Anonymous 03/26/09(Thu)21:25:57 No.3646579
Gentlemen,
For the first time in my life I got rejected by something I sort of cared about. Both Berkeley and Claremont McKenna did not accept me.
This in and of itself does not really bother me. Neither school was exactly what I was looking for, and I suppose the opposite was true as well. What really, really fucking pisses me off, gentlemen, is that I played my cards right. I did everything I was supposed to do. I have a 4.6 right now (lol weighted grades), I can write, I’m assuming I had good letters of recommendation, I had an SAT score of over 2100 (didn’t bother studying, stupid standard anyways), got 5’s on every AP test I took, lived abroad, and I stuck to the rules during high school. What did it get me? 2 rejection letters. While I understand that the system is designed this way, I feel cheated. What the fuck else was I supposed to do? Berkeley told me that due to some ELC bullshit for CA residents I had a ~90% statistical chance of getting in. I want to become a successful member of society, but I cannot help but feel that even if I continue to do what I am supposed to do, I will see nothing for it. The world can be an unfair place. I always “knew” this, but it never really hit me until now how shitty it can be. Makes me want to rob people and steal from stores. Cause mayhem just because. Graffiti on public property. Show the world how unfair it is.
Anyways, I just thought I would share my little story of rejection and feelings of disdain with someone.
!NMXLXb/PtQ 03/26/09(Thu)22:18:02 No.3647247
I know you already know this but I’m just going to restate it for you. For your entire life you have been lied to, that hard work and “smart” work (whatever the fuck that means) will always get you to the top or wherever you want to go. Your parents, your school, your counselor and pretty much everyone involved with your education have told you this lie and now that you see it for what it really is its a slap in the face.
The fact is is that there are absolutely no guarantees in life. Sometimes your best won’t be good enough. Sometimes THE best won’t be good enough. Sometimes, life is absolutely unfair and there is nothing out there that can really change that. However, none of that matters. You’ve been told that where you will go will determine your future. You’ve been told that the success you have in life is what will be the measure of your life. All of that is true, but not in the way you think it does.
So you got rejected from UCB and Claremont. Does this make you any less of a student? Does this make all your work meaningless? No. What the truest measure of character is not what has been given to him by the “system” but how he rises to the challenges. What makes a boxer great is not just how hard he punches, but how quickly he gets up after falling down.
Don’t give up OP. If you’re truly as smart as you say you are, you should be able to turn this downturn into an opportunity with no problem.
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