regrets, pt. 3
December 20, 2012 § 4 Comments
And directly on the heels of Rowan’s rejection, here comes the rejection from Wisconsin-Madison.
Half of my potential schools have officially rejected me now. Judging by the pace at which I received these last two rejections, I am going to guess that my last three will likely arrive any day now. Why am I so confident that I will be rejected? Because deadlines have come and gone, and no one requested to see additional materials from me. I will not be granted an interview if they have not looked at additional materials (like letters of recommendation and writing samples).
It is with this third rejection that I am beginning to feel a little shaken. Not shattered and destroyed, mind. But a bit shaken. Wondering about the possible colossal mistake I made by following my interests and natural talents, and earning an advanced degree in such a specialized, practically non-hirable field. Considering advising the opposite course of action when Melanie goes to college.
As I said, I am not shattered by this–just a bit shaken. In the meantime, I have submitted a shorter version of a dissertation chapter to a journal (the one that the entire committee loved the most). I fear that a rejection from a journal will lead to some deterioration of my positivity and optimism. Of course, I am liable to be rejected simply by virtue of statistics. Rejections are far more common to receive than acceptances, and I have never submitted an article for publication before. So, it is statistically likely that the first line I cast in the publication pool will come up empty.
Let’s just hope the rest of the forthcoming rejection letters are a bit gentle.
A.Hab.'s View 
Keep your chin up! I know these rejections have to be frustrating! This job market is very hard, and I’m considering going the tech writing route if I can’t find anything in teaching. We will find something!
Thanks Tawnysha. It sure would be nice to hear from the last three, considering interviews are this week. I just want to be put out of my misery, you know? No idea why they haven’t sent me my rejection notices yet.
I think having technical writing is a great back-up plan. But, honestly, I am not worried about you snagging a job! 🙂 You are already published and so very active in your field. Not to mention you are a stellar writer and any program would be lucky to have you at the creative writing helm. (And I mean that, honestly.)
Yikes! I just looked at the others and am startled that not a single one greets applicants personally. Perhaps an applicant might not be the right fit right now, but don’t they have any interest in keeping the way clear and light should circumstance change in the future? Seems wiser than this approach.
I hope here’s good news coming from one of the three now remaining.
Welcome to the blog, Deborah! I know, isn’t it just pitiful?
So far I haven’t heard from the last three jobs I applied to…which is strange, since interviews are this week. It would just be nice to be rejected rather than to keep wondering if it’s going to work out or not. Ah well.
Happier things to come in 2013, I am sure of it! 🙂