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1、Jan19th2006
2、NEWYORKFromTheEconomistprinteditionRebuildingtheAmericandreammachineFORAmerica'scolleges,Januaryisamonthofreckoning.MostapplicationsforthenextacademicyearbeginningintheautumnhavetobemadebytheendofDecember,soauniversity'spopularityisputtoanobjectivestandard:howmanypeoplewanttoattend.O
3、neofthemoreunlikelyofficestohavebeenfloodedwithmailisthatoftheCityUniversityofNewYork(CUNY),apubliccollegethatlacks,amongotherthings,afamoussportsteam,bucoliccampusesandraucousparties(itdoesn'tevenhavedorms),and,untilrecently,academiccredibility.AprimarydrawatCUNYisaprogrammeforparticularlycleve
4、rstudents,launchedin2001.Some1,100ofthe60,000studentsatCUNY'sfivetopschoolsreceiveararethinginthecostlyworldofAmericancolleges:freeeducation.ThoseacceptedbyCUNY'shonoursprogrammepaynotuitionfees;insteadtheyreceiveastipendof$7,500(tohelpwithgeneralexpenses)andalaptopcomputer.Applicationsforearlya
5、dmissionsintonextyear'sprogrammeareup70%.Admissionhasnothingtodowithbeinganathlete,orachildofanalumnus,orhavinganinfluentialsponsor,orbeingamemberofaparticularlyaggrievedethnicgroup—criteriathatareincreasinglyimportantatAmerica'selitecolleges.Mostofthestudentswhoapplytothehonoursprogrammecomefro
6、mrelativelypoorfamilies,manyofthemimmigrantones.AllthatCUNYdemandsisthatthesestudentsbediligentandclever.Lastyear,theaveragestandardisedtestscoreofthisgroupwasinthetop7%inthecountry.AmongtherestofCUNY'sstudentsaveragesarelower,buttheyarenowjustbreakingintothetopthird(comparedwiththebottomthirdin
7、1997).CUNYdoesnotappearalongsideHarvardandStanfordonlistsofAmerica'stopcolleges,butitsrecenttransformationoffersaneatparableofmeritocracyrevisited.Untilthe1960s,agoodcasecouldbemadethatthebestdealinAmericantertiaryeducationwastobefoundnotinCambridgeorPaloAlto,butinHarlem,atasmallpublicschoolcall
8、edCityCollege,thecoreofCUNY.America'sfirstfreemunicipaluniversity,foundedin1847,offereditsservicestoeveryonebrightenoughtomeetitsgruellingstandards.City'sgoldeneracameinthelastcentury,whenAmerica'sbestknowncollegesrestricted
