A rejection letter is one person’s decision, not God’s final word on you.

Rejection from an institution comes from someone with limited information, a deadline, and a fixed number of places. It tells you about the fit between an application and a slot on a particular day. People read it as a judgement on their whole self because it arrives in writing and looks official. One desk does not get to issue a verdict on your life.

Write down three things the person reading your application never found out about you. Send one more application this month, or ask what would make the next one stronger. Let the no be information rather than a sentence.