Now a new study has showed a key trick in getting the best deal - asking for a range of pay, rather than a single figure.

The research contradicts（与……抵触）traditional wisdom that argues giving a range will automatically cause employers to focus on the lower end of the offer. For instance, if you want  $90,000 and you suggest a range between $90,000 and $110,000, the study finds employers are more likely to make a higher offer.

But simply asking for $110,000 in the first place increases the chances of the deal falling apart, as it is a sign that the employee is not open to negotiation（协商）.

The team made the discovery after running a series of experiments involving Amazon Mechanical Turk workers and business school students.

Respondents were asked not only what they thought their negotiation partner's lowest acceptable offer could be, but also questions designed to show how they viewed their partner.

One type of offer, called a “bracketing” range,places the figures on either side of the desired salary. For instance, if you want $90,000, you'd ask for a range of between  $80,000 and $100,000. This causes employers to offer the lower end of the scale,but, unlike single figure offers, the deals rarely fall apart as the negotiator is often viewed favourably. “If your goal is to get along with someone without losing money, the‘bracketing' range offers may be a good move,”Dr Ames told the Wall Street Journal.

The“backdown”range offer, meanwhile, uses the target salary as the high figure in the range. For $90 ,000, an employer would ask for a range between $70,000 to $90,000. These range offers , predicta-bly, give the worst results in terms of pay.

However, Dr Ames warns against setting the range too high and says the most successful range is usually within 20 per cent of the target offer.

   It has always been my dream to attend college. My parents were glad I chose this path. 【小题1】 Upset and stressed，I decided to look for ways to pay by myself.

My search for money began on the Internet. I went to every free scholarship search engine and spent a lot of time each day online looking for scholarships I was qualified for. 【小题2】 This gave me a way to prioritize（按优先顺序列出）my schedule. I finished applications due（到期的）in October in September，November's deadlines in October，and so on.

After organizing everything，it was time to fill out the applications. Some were easy and took little time while others were long and tedious. Despite the amounts，which ranged from $100 to $40，000，I took each scholarship seriously because together they would fund my goal.

【小题3】 Almost every one required an essay about my extracurricular activities，commitment to education and career aspirations. To perfect my writing，I turned to friends，relatives and teachers for advice.

Now I have won 80 percent of the scholarships I applied for. After many hours of staying up late to finish them，I managed to receive over $ 100，000. Now，I can attend college completely free. I feel that a huge burden has been lifted from my shoulders. This fall，I am attending Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans. 【小题4】

The scholarship search truly made me a better person. I learned the importance of setting a goal and accomplishing it. 【小题5】 I'm delighted that I had the opportunity to learn more about my drive to succeed — I can push ahead no matter what obstacles are in my way.

I am a senior one student. I have known that the playground of our school will be rebuilt recently._________

Yours sincerely,

Li Hua