So I guess I’m going to Anderson.
As D-Day part two approached, I refused to make a big deal about this decision. I didn’t stay up at night thinking about it. I wasn’t checking my email every five minutes like I did last time. I didn’t create any “positive imagery†and in fact had a lot of “negative imagery†in my head, to potentially help blunt a negative outcome. And while the build-up to the decision was completely different this time around, my result was exactly the same.Â
The wording of the decision was slightly different:  the letter said I’m a great, talented candidate… yada yada yada… and that the class of 2013 was already full.  The school said they would distribute another “final†decision on or before July 18th (which basically means on July 18th). Problem is, I plan to give notice at work about a month before that.
At the end of the day, regardless of how formal the email, the school just doesn’t want me that badly. And I need to move on. There are a slew of things I need to get started on, including and not limited to:
- Reaching out to Career Services and charting out an initial career path
- Studying / preparing to waive accounting courses
- Finalizing my housing plans / getting a roommate
- Preparing for an international trip this summer
- Ramping down my activities at work
I really can’t sacrifice my career progress for what is now essentially a crap shoot.
Congratulations to all of you who did get off the waitlist. As for me, it seems that Wharton and I were not meant to be. I’m starting to see the writing on the wall and I can’t deny it anymore. Sitting on a waitlist is painful torture, but after this point, any pain I suffer is self-inflicted. I’ll probably pull myself off the summer waitlist soon, but I’ll definitely consult my friends / recommenders before doing so.
I share the same fate as you, Mark. And my attitude to this decision release was exactly like yours – trying to play it down and prepare myself for a no. I’d rather they turn off the lifesupport system and tell it as it is so we can move on with travel, work and other plans. Best of luck with Anderson!
Congrats, Mark! Happy to hear you’re still on the awesome West Coast!
Wow, I am in the same boat as you too and it is uncanny how similar my experience, preparation and reactions were. Oh well…whatever Allah has in store for all of us shall transpire no matter what we do… =)
Wow, I am in the same boat as you two and it is uncanny how similar my experience, preparation and reactions were. Oh well…whatever Allah has in store for all of us shall transpire no matter what we do… =)
I sincerely wished that you got off listed from wait-list and your name appear in accepted candidates.
Hi Mark, Just came across your blog. I also just graduated from Columbia and I wanted to share with you that our student speaker at commencement read his wait-list letter to the class at the beginning of his speech. This guy was and is a very successful person- personally and professionally. He got top grades, was a club founder and a club leader, and landed a plumb job. Another top classmate of mine who has won several championships while at school and is similarly successful on a personal and professional level admitted once that he was grabbed off the waitlist. Remember these things are arbitrary at some point. Take hold of whatever you have and make something of it. The ‘didn’ts’ don’t matter.