Investing thousands of pounds in the recruitment and training of each new graduate recruit may be just the beginning. Choosing the wrong candidate may leave an organisation paying for years to come.

Few companies will have escaped all of the following failures: people who panic at the first sight of stress; those with long impressive qualifications who seem incapable of learning; hypochondriacs whose absentee record becomes astonishing; and the unstable person later discovered to be a thief or worse.

Less dramatic, but just as much a problem, is the person who simply does not come up to expectations, who does not quite deliver; who never becomes a high-flier or even a steady performer; the employee with a fine future behind them.

The first point to bear in mind at the recruitment stage is that people don’t change. Intelligence levels decline modestly, but change little over their working life. The same is true of abilities, such as learning languages and handling numbers.

Most people like to think that personality can change, particularly the more negative features such as anxiety, low esteem, impulsiveness or a lack of emotional warmth. But data collected over 50 years gives a clear message: still stable after all these years. Extroverts become slightly less extroverted; the acutely shy appear a little less so, but the fundamentals remain much the same. Personal crises can affect the way we cope with things: we might take up or drop drink, drugs, religion or relaxation techniques, which can be have pretty dramatic effects. Skills can be improved, and new ones introduced, but at rather different rates. People can be groomed for a job. Just as politicians are carefully repackaged through dress, hairstyle and speech specialists, so people can be sent on training courses, diplomas or experimental weekends. But there is a cost to all this which may be more than the price of the course. Better to select for what you actually see rather than attempt to change it.

( )1. The purpose of this passage is to give managers the advice that .

A. Employers should select candidates for their potential.

B. Employers should select candidates for what they are rather than for their potential.

C. Employers should select the newly graduated and send them on training courses, diplomas or experimental weekends.

D. Employers should select experienced candidates to avoid spending thousands of pounds in training.

( )2. According to the passage, which of the following statements is true? .

A. Absolutely, People don’t change during their working lives.

B. Generally, people change to a large extent during their working lives.

C. Fundamentally, people stay the same during their working lives.

D. Normally, people don’t change at all during their working lives.

( )3. What does a fine future behind them (line 3 of paragraph 3) means? .

A. Some people will certainly have a promising future though they are not very competent in their present work.

B. Some people don’t have any potential for their work though they are employed.

C. Some people can have a bright future though they can’t do their work well.

D. Some people have potential when they are employed, but never realize that potential.

( )4. According to the passage, people’s basic abilities like language learning and numeracy .

A. change little over their working life.

B. never change over their working life.

C. change fundamentally over their working life.

D. change profoundly over their working life.

( )5. The word deliver (line 2 of paragraph 3) means .

A. to take goods to the places or people they are addressed to

B. to give a speech

C. to do what you promised to do

D. to help a woman to give birth to a baby.

Section D

Even if you get work done and generally get along with co-workers, you could have habits that bug your boss (not to mention your officemates). While these quirks may not necessarily get you fired, they certainly can keep you from climbing the corporate ladder. We’ve uncovered a number of habits that bug your boss and offer tips on how to avoid them.

According to LaRhonda Edwards, a human resources manager with thirteen years of HR experience, tardiness is one of the biggest concerns for managers. “If the normal work day starts at 8 o’clock, then the expectation is that you’re in the office ready to start your day,” she explains. Her advice to the chronically late? “Plan ahead,” she urges. “If you live 50 minutes away, you don’t leave 50 minutes early. Tag on extra time and anticipate road blocks.” Some people even set their clocks a few minutes early to ensure that they’re on time. Different bosses prefer different modes of communication. Lindsey Pollak, a workplace expert and author of Getting from College to Career, says if you text your boss and she prefers in-person meetings, “either your information won’t get across or you’ll irritate [her].” Fortunately, there’s a simple fix: ask your boss how and when to send updates. If you’re too shy to ask outright, then Pollak suggests observing how they communicate with you. “If you have a boss who communicates once a day by email, that’s the boss’ preferred frequency and method of communication,” explains Pollak.

A cluttered, messy work space can give your boss the impression that you’re lazy or disorganized, so try to keep your desk neat. “Never put more on your desk than you’re going to work on for the day,” recommends Edwards. “At the end of the day, make sure you set up for the next day. I may be working on five things at once, but at the end of the day, they’re gone, and I set up for the next day.” Most managers would rather you ask a question than make a mistake, but many questions can be answered on your own. “Is this something you could Google or ask a colleague?” wonders Pollak. “The internet is so vast that a lot of information you can get yourself.” If you must approach your boss with a question or issue, then Pollak recommends brainstorming beforehand. “Rather than saying ‘This client is terrible. What should I do?’ think about potential solutions,” she says.

Cell phones are practically ubiquitous in the workplace these days, but it’s still disruptive and disrespectful when they go off during a meeting. Edwards says that you should, “put your cell phone on vibrate or leave it in your own office so it’s not a distraction.” That way you won’t be tempted to text either

( )6.According to the article, how many pieces of advice are offered here? .

A. Two B. Three C. Four D. Five(B)

( )7.What is this article about? .

A. How to be successful in the workplace.

B. How to communicate with your boss.

C. How to avoid quirks that annoy your boss.

D. How to utilize your mobile phones at work.

( )8.What does the phrase “to get across” in the sentence “…she prefers in-person meetings, “either your information won’t get across or you’ll irritate …” of the second paragraph mean? .

A. To be communicated B. To be passed

C. To be promoted D. To be anticipated(A)

( )9.According to the article, which of the following modes of communication is the best when communicating with your boss? .

A. Any ways you think are appropriate.

B. In-person meetings.

C. Correspondence.

D. The way your boss communicates with you.(D)

( )10.Which of the following statements is not mentioned?

A. Employees should pay respect to their bosses anytime.

B. Employees should plan beforehand so as to show up at work on time.

C. Employees should not let their mobile phones go off during meetings.

D. Employees should keep their desks neat and organized.

Asthenumberofparticipantshasincreasedfrom60to98,wewonderifwecanuseLectureHall'A'as'B'willbetoosmall.

Read the text about career-planning services.

Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps .

For each gap 9– 14, mark one letter (A-H) on your Answer Sheet .

Do not use any letter more than once .

There is an example at the beginning .(0)

Your Career Path Can Lead You Anywhere

We used to be advised to plan our careers. We were told to make a plan during the later stages of our education and continue with it through our working lives.(0)_____ some people still see careers in this way. However, to pursue a single option for life has always been unrealistic.

Planning for a single career assumes that we set out with a full understanding of our likes and dislikes and the employment opportunities open to us. (9)____ For most people this degree of certainty about the future does not exist.

Our initial choice of career path and employer is often based on inadequate knowledge and false perceptions. But with age and experience, we develop new interests and aptitudes and our priorities alter. The structure of the employment market and, indeed of employment itself, is subject to change as both new technologies and new work systems are introduced (10) _____ We must face the uncertainties of a portfolio career.

It is clear from the recent past that we cannot foresee the changes which will affect our working lives. The pace of change is accelerating , as a result of which traditional career plans will be of very limited use. (11)_____ They will need updating to reflect changes in our own interests as well as in the external work environment. Flexible workers already account for about half the workforce. (12)______ We are likely to face periods as contract workers, self-employed freelances, consultants, temps or part-timers.

Many employers encourage staff to write a personal development development (PDP) (13)_____ Although some people use it only to review the skills needed for their job, a PDP could be the nucleus of wider career plan –setting out alternative long-term learning needs and a plan of self-development.

A report issued by the Institute of Employment Studies advises people to enhance their employability by moving from traditional technical skills towards the attainment of a range of transferable skills. (14)_____ Instead, special schemes should be established to encourage people to examine their effectiveness and to consider a wider range of needs.

0 A B C D E F G H

A This dual effect means that the relationship between employers and workers has evolved to such and extent that we can no longer expect a long-term relationship with one employer.

B. It carries an implicit assumption that we ourselves, and the jobs we enter, will change little during our working lives.

C. This growth suggests that a career plan should not be expressed only in terms of full-time employment but should make provision for the possibility of becoming one of the.

D this is a summary of one’s personal learning needs and an action plan to meet them.

E Consequently, they must now accommodate a number of objectives and enable us to prepare for each on a contingency basis.

F However, it warns that employers often identify training needs through formal appraisals, which take too narrow a view of development.

G . Such a freelance of consultant would be constantly in demand.

H We were expected to work towards that one clear goal and to consider a career change as a bad thing.

Thereisno(　)betweenthenations.