What is it like to be a poor student at a very rich university or high school?
在一家富人学校做一个穷学生是什么感觉？
获得22554好评的回答@ Virginia Kettles：
During my first year of college, I went on a trip with a group of other classmates to New York City to network with alumni. At the end of the day, after spending hours going from one company to the next, several of the students talked about hanging out in the city for a while before getting dinner.
在我大一的时候，我通过互联网联系了校友，和他们一块去了纽约旅游。旅游临近尾声，在花了几个小时参观了一个又一个公司后，几个同学建议在吃晚饭前逛一下这座城市。
Itll be so much fun, they said. You should totally come with us!
这必然会非常有趣，他们说。一块儿吧！
I said I would be happy to tag along, and I followed the group onto a train headed towards another part of town. When we finally reached our sTOP and climbed out onto the street, I suddenly found myself surrounded by clothing stores and restaurants as far as the eye could see.
我说我非常乐意跟他们一块逛，然后我跟着他们上了火车，去往这个城市的另一个地方。当大家最后到达车站，上了大街时，我忽然发目前目光所及之处，都是服饰店和饭店。
Feeling a pit in my stomach, I followed the group into a store they decided to enter at random, and walked idly around the interior as I gazed at the golden lights, the shiny surfaces, the hard edges, and the beautiful clothes.
在我饥肠辘辘的时候，我跟着他们随便进了一家商场，我一边懒洋洋地走进室内，一边被金色的灯光、闪耀的灯面、坚固的棱角和好看的衣服所深深吸引，移不开目光。
I saw a pretty jacket and checked the price tag. $530.
我看中了一件好看的夹克，看了看价格标签。530USD。
That would look so cute on you! One of the girls in the group, Melanie, was suddenly standing beside me, taking the jacket from the hanger and holding it up against my chest. It totally goes with your hair color.
你穿那件夹克肯定非常好看！，同伴中一个叫梅兰妮的女生忽然出目前我身旁，从衣架上拿下夹克，把它举在我胸前。它与你的发色非常搭。
I think Im good, thanks.
谢谢，我想它不合适我。
Are you sure?? Its totally cute.
你确定？？它真的非常好看。
Honestly, Im okay. I paused, noticing the piles of clothes Melanie held clutched against her chest. Did you find anything you like?
说真的，我感觉还好。我停顿了一下，注意到梅兰妮把衣服在她身前对照。你有找到你喜欢的衣服吗？
Oh my gosh, yes! It totally sucks living in a college town because there are, like, no clothing stores. I honestly try to come to NYC as much as possible just to shop.
欧是的！住在大学城简直遭透了，由于根本没服饰店。我将来真想常来纽约的商店逛逛。
I almost laughed, thinking she was joking, but when Melanie turned away to inspect a $1,000 dress hanging from the wall, I realized she was serious.
我笑了笑，以为她是开玩笑的，但当梅兰妮转身去检查墙上挂着的一件1000USD的衣服时，我才意识到她是认真的。
The other students in the group ended up spending thousands of dollars at the store, their purchases being folded carefully and tucked away into colorful paper bags. It was only when they had finished that they decided to eat dinner at a place across the street.
同游的其他同学最后在商场里花费了数千USD，他们买的衣物被小心翼翼地折叠起来，塞进了彩色纸袋里。当他们全部购物完后，他们才决定在街对面的一个地方吃晚饭。
In the nicest restaurant I had ever been to that year, I ordered the cheapest appetizer I could find, and sat in silence as the students around me reminisced about the private schools they had gone to, their most recent vacations to Europe.
那是我那年去过的所有饭店中最好的一家，我点了最实惠的菜，然后静静地坐着，而我周围的同学都在讨论他们上过的私立学校，或是他们近期在欧洲度过的假期。
When the dinner was over, a student suggested seeing a broadway play, and one of the guys pulled out his phone and told the group Cabaret was playing for only $250 a ticket.
当晚餐结束时，一位同学建议去看百老汇的戏，接着就有一个小伙子掏出手机查了价格，发现卡巴莱歌舞表演只须250USD一张票。
What a steal! Melanie, wearing her brand-new jacket, cried. We have to go! She turned to look at me and gave me a big smile. Do you want to come?
这票价简直像偷来的一样！梅兰妮穿着崭新的夹克惊呼。大家必须要去不可以错过了！她转过身看着我，向我投来了一个大大的微笑。你要一块儿吗？
I knew I wasnt going to be spending $250 for a show.
我了解我不会为了看一场演出花250USD。
I have a lot of homework, I said. But thanks anyway.
我还有不少作业没做，我说，但不管如何非常谢谢你们邀请我。
Melanie shrugged, and after paying for our dinner, the group walked out of the restaurant into the chilly New York City air to head towards the show. I walked back to the hotel alone, and spent the night studying for my upcoming Sociology exam.
梅兰妮耸了耸肩，晚餐结账后，他们离开了餐厅，走在寒冷的纽约街上，朝着百老汇的方向前去。而我一个人走回酒店，花了一个晚上复习马上迎来的社会学考试。
When I had finished studying, I lay back in the starched sheets of the bed and wondered what it was like for those classmates of mine, who had grown up with the ability to spend thousands of dollars on clothing, to go on trips to big cities to see expensive shows and blow even more money on fancy restaurants and stores. Who went to summer camp, private schools, who lived in big houses with maids and housekeepers, who went on vacation to foreign countries, staying in beautiful hotels.
当我学习完，躺在浆洗过的床单上，想着那些同学的生活，那些有着优越的家境、有能力承担数千USD的衣服开销、去大城市旅游、看价格昂贵的演出和砸不少钱在高端餐厅和商场的同学。那些参加夏令营、上私立学校、又或是住在有着女佣和管家的大房屋、去海外度假、住在好看的酒店里的同学们。
To be very honest, I find it fascinating to be surrounded by classmates who come from wealth like I have never experienced. Im not embarrassed for being unable to afford the things some of my classmates buy dozens of through online shopping. Im not embarrassed for growing up being told no again and again, because my family simply didnt have enough money.
说实话，我感觉身边围绕着不少有着我从未历程过的富裕生活的同学非常有意思。尽管我的一些同掌握通过网购买一堆如此的东西，我不为自己买不起东西而感到尴尬。我也不由于我的家庭并不富裕，而一次又一次地拒绝其他人的邀请而感到尴尬。
Im proud of who I am, and where Ive come from. And thats enough for me.
我为自己自豪，也为我的出生自豪。这就足够了。
获得2302好评的回答@ Michael Cheng：
I didn't think I was a poor student until I arrived at USC for my MBA program. I had worked hard and saved up $150K, which was to last me exactly through the $100K in tuition for two years and $50K for basic living expenses.
在我去南加州大学攻读工商管理硕士前，我都不觉得我是一个穷学生。我一直都努力工作，攒了15万USD，这支撑着我两年10万USD的学费支出和5万USD的基本生活开销。
As soon as I pulled into the student parking lot, I could see all the late model cars, many of them luxury marks. This was the undergrad parking area. One blond undergrad roared her shiny white Cadillac Escalade down the ramp as I looked for a spot.
我一进学生停车点，就能看到所有些新型车，其中不少是奢侈汽车品牌。这是本科生的停车点。在我找停车位的时候，有一个金发碧眼的本科生正沿着斜坡开着闪亮的白色凯迪拉克呼啸而过。
During our casual meeting time with fellow students, productively labeled as networking, I heard about the kind of massive homes in exclusive neighborhoods that were the norm. Many of my classmates had gotten new luxury cars just for school and had fancy upscale condos for partying during school. But, that was just stuff. What really blew my mind was their attitude about money on a daily basis.
通过与同学的偶然相遇，常常是靠互联网联系，我获悉住在富人区里的大房屋里是非常一般的事情。我的不少同学都只不过为了去学校而买了新的豪车，也有为在学校里开派对而筹备的高端公寓。但，那些只不过物质方面的东西。真的让我惊讶的是他们对平时开销的态度。
Many would invariably go to night time parties two or even three times a week, all during some very intense course work. While I looked for ways to stick to my $25 daily food budget, they had no problem splurging a few hundred dollars a night each time they were out. At the same time, I knew they were taking out massive student loans to fund their gratuitous consumption, along with tuition and basic living expenses.
很多人每周都会参加两到三次夜间聚会，所有这类都是在一些很紧张的课程中抽空进行的。当我天天挖空心思让我们的食品开销低于25USD的预算时，他们每次出去都能在一晚上毫无顾忌地挥霍几百USD。我也了解他们会把很多的学生贷款用在非必须的花费上，但也包括学费和基本生活成本。
Their lack of concern about repaying an extra $50K just surprised the heck out of me. I wasn't dead broke and could tag along, but I just didn't see the benefit of such free spending. Eventually, I settled into a more middle-class normative life-style and was comfortable.
他们不关心偿还额外5万USD的态度使我惊讶。我并非身无分文，也可以跟随他们一块玩，但我只不过没看到如此毫无约束地支出有哪些好处。最后，我开始了一种愈加中产阶级的规范生活方法，感觉非常舒服。
Then I saw how naive I truly was.
后来我才了解我有多么纯真无邪。
One of my classmates had gotten to attend the MBA program on a merit and needs-based scholarship. He didn't have any money. While his tuition was waived, he still needed to pay for daily expenses.
我的一个同学在奖学金和助学金的支持下参加了MBA课程。但他没钱。虽然他的学费被免除去，但他仍然需要自己支付平时开支。
Instead of a fancy high floor condo or even a modest downtown condo, he lived in one of the roughest neighborhoods just off campus. I lived nearby and can hear the police patrols and random gun fire where he lived. My place wasn't much but at least it was secure. He lived on a couch in a shared room right in the middle of regular gang and drug activity. Running water wasn't always available, but it was cheap, just a few hundred bucks a month.
他住在了一个简陋的街区而不是住在奢华的高层公寓或是舒适的市中心公寓，住的地方距离学校非常近。我住在附近，可以听到在他住的地方常常有警察巡逻和枪击的声音。我住的地方不大，但至少是安全的。他睡在一间公用房间的沙发上，住处正处于帮派和毒品买卖地区的中间。自来水提供时有时无，但它是实惠的，一个月的就几百USD。
Obviously, he didn't have a car and relied on brisk walks to get anywhere. He didn't have many friends as he couldn't afford to go hang out with anyone. When we hung out, I made sure we didn't need to spend any money.
非常显然，他没汽车，通常都靠步行去要去的地方。他没不少朋友，由于他承担不起和其他人出去玩的花费。当大家出去的时候，我需要确定大家无需花任何钱。
He couldn't even afford food, so he worked part time at university food service to make a few dollars and grab leftovers for meals. While others dined in fancy Beverly Hills and Hollywood hot spots, he was scraping pots for a bite. But, he never complained about the squandered money of our fellow students. He knew his values and was content on focusing on his goals.
他甚至连食物都买不起，所以他会趁空闲时间在大学食品服务部兼职赚钱，然后把剩下的食物当饭吃。当其他人在贝弗利山庄和好莱坞的热点地址吃饭时，他只能刮着锅里残留的食物吃一口。但，他从不抱怨大家的同学浪费钱。他了解我们的价值所在，也专注于我们的目的。
He certainly kept me grounded as I felt like a spoiled brat using money so freely and buying myself a burrito whenever I felt hungry.
他让我感觉自己像一个被宠坏的孩子，能自由地烧钱也能在任何我感觉饿的时候给自己买煎饼吃。
So, here I was moping ridiculously about my relative paucity; he showed what real determination and pride in the midst of deprivation looked like.
所以如此相比起来，起初我为自己相对不富裕的经济状况而闷闷不乐的看上去是多么可笑。他在窘迫的日常展示了真的的决心和自豪。
And, even at the MBA level, there's a bias to spend money. My freespending classmates all got six-figure jobs right out of school from their networking efforts and were able to quickly pay off their huge student loans. Meanwhile, my poor friend is still struggling financially.
而且，即便是工商管理硕士，对烧钱的态度也有不同。我那些毫无顾忌烧钱的同学都在毕业后通过互联网的力量找到了年薪六位数的工作，也非常快还清了巨额学生贷款。但同时，我可怜的朋友还在努力赚钱。
