Nia was an ambitious（有野心的、抱负不凡的）/æm'biʃәs/ graduate with a clear career（职业生涯）/kərɪr/ goal: she hoped to work as a communication（沟通）/kəmˌjunəˈkeɪʃən/ specialist（专家；专员）/'speiʃәlist/. To apply（申请；应用）/əˈplaɪ/, she had to submit an application（提交申请）/səbˈmɪt ən ˌæpləˈkeɪʃən/ for a paid placement（放置、布置）/'pleismәnt/ at BrightPath, a dynamic（动态的、有活力的）/dai'næmik/ company that helped small businesses. Her application（申请；申请材料）/ˌæpləˈkeɪʃən/ described her professional（职业的；专业的）/prəˈfɛʃənəl/ qualification（资格、条件）/.kwɒlifi'keiʃәn/ and her strength（优势；力量）/strɛŋθ/ in creative writing. Yet she knew a certificate（证书、证明书）/sә'tifikeit/ alone would not make an applicant（申请者）/'æplikәnt/ stand out.

At the interview, the department（部门）/dɪˈpɑrtmənt/ chairman（负责人；主席）/ˈʧɛrmən/ gave each candidate（候选人；申请人）/ˈkænədɪt/ an unexpected（料想不到的、突然的）/.ʌnik'spektid/ brief（任务简报）/bri:f/. To be qualified for（有资格胜任）/bi kˈwɑləˌfaɪd fər/ the placement, they had to prepare a client（客户）/klaɪənt/ proposal（提案；方案）/prəˈpoʊzəl/ before a strict deadline. The company would assess（估定、对...征税）/ә'ses/ not only individual（个人；个体）/ˌɪndəˈvɪʤəwəl/ competence（能力；胜任）/'kɒmpitәns/ but also the ability to cooperate. Mr Gao said the successful（成功的）/səkˈsɛsfəl/ candidate would work as an assistant（助手、助理）/ә'sistәnt/ to a senior（资深的；高级的）/ˈsinjər/ consultant（顾问）/kәn'sʌltәnt/. Every application must be assessed by the same panel（嵌板、仪表板）/'pænl/. The final decision（决定）/dɪˈsɪʒn/ would be based（以……为基础的）/beɪst/ on performance（表现；绩效）/pərˈfɔrməns/.

Nia's group had one hour. One member wanted to impress（印象、特征）/im'pres/ the client with a complex（综合体、情结）/kәm'pleks/ design; another worried about the budget. Nia chose to take the initiative（采取主动）/teɪk ðə ˌɪˈnɪʃətɪv/. She said, “It is important for every applicant to respond to（回应）/rɪˈspɑnd tɪ/ the actual（真实的、实际的）/'æktʃuәl/ need. Let us assign（分配、指派）/ә'sain/ one duty to each person, take responsibility for（承担……的责任）/teɪk riˌspɑnsəˈbɪləti fər/ our part, and meet a deadline（按期完成）/mit ə ˈdɛˌdlaɪn/ together.” The group agreed, and her calm leadership（领导能力、领导阶层）/'li:dәʃip/ began to build confidence.

In order to stand out, they presented an efficient（有效率的、能干的）/i'fiʃәnt/ plan rather than a costly display（显示、陈列）/dis'plei/. Nia used her writing skill to create the summary（摘要、概要）/'sʌmәri/, while an expert in finance（财务；资金）/fai'næns/ checked the expected income（收入）/ˈɪnˌkəm/. A flexible（灵活的）/'fleksәbl/ teammate adapted（使适应、改编）/ә'dæpt/ the schedule, and another member prepared the contract（合同）/ˈkɑnˌtrækt/. Their effort showed commitment（投入；承诺）/kә'mitmәnt/, but Nia also found a weak claim（理赔申请；主张）/kleɪm/. She asked the group to evaluate（评估、评价）/i'væljueit/ it, revise（校订、修正）/ri'vaiz/ the prospect（前景；可能性）/'prɒspekt/, and meet the deadline with accurate（正确的、精确的）/'ækjurәt/ figures（数字；图表）/ˈfɪgjər/.

The panel praised the group's responsible approach（方法；处理方式）/əˈprəʊtʃt/ and enthusiastic（狂热的、热心的）/in.θju:zi'æstik/ manner. Mr Gao explained that BrightPath wanted to employ（雇用）/im'plɒi/ people who would be willing to（愿意做）/bi ˈwɪlɪŋ tɪ/ learn and be capable of（有能力做）/bi ˈkeɪpəbəl əv/ adapting. The placement offered a fair salary（薪水）/'sælәri/ and a clear path（小路；路径）/pɑːθ/ to professional growth（成长；增长）/groʊθ/. It would also strengthen（加强、变坚固）/'streŋθәn/ Nia's confidence and give her an opportunity（机会）/ˌɑpərˈtunəti/ to gain（获得；增加）/geɪn/ experience in a real enterprise（企业、事业心）/'entәpraiz/. She accepted the offer. Her ambition（野心、志向）/æm'biʃәn/ was still large, but the interview taught her that a worthwhile（值得做的）/'wә:θ'hwail/ profession（职业；专业）/prә'feʃәn/ depends on initiative（主动性；倡议）/i'niʃiәtiv/, honest judgement（判定、审定）/'dʒʌdʒmәnt/, and respect for staff（员工；全体人员）/stæf/ and client alike（相似的、同样的）/ә'laik/. She hoped one day to lead a firm, promote（促进、晋升）/prәu'mәut/ young（年幼的；较年轻的）/ˈjʌŋɡə/ talent, and help others prepare for the same challenge.