Life is a never ending cycle. In elementary school you had to try to get into a good secondary school. In secondary school you had to work hard to pass the exam to get into a good high school. In high school you work harder to get into a good college (I remember going to London 4 times and sleeping on a friend's floor to take the SATs and TOEFL and ACTs 6 years ago). You thought you were done? No way, job searching is even worse. Imagine applying to 100 firms, spending 8 hours per day job searching only to get a few interviews and if you're lucky, 1 job offer.
Well, that's not the end. Just when you think it's going to get better, applying to grad school is the same grueling cycle. LSAT, GMAT, essays, interviews, resumes. And if you do get in, you barely have time to breath before that internship and full time job search comes back to haunt you...
I hope this will be the last admissions process I ever have to go through. I don't think I can stand doing this one more time. Unless one day I couldn't find a husband and decide to get a PhD to kill time... As my friend said, she'll go back to Vietnam after her MBA to work and find a husband, but if by the time she's 30, she is still single, she'll probably go abroad to do a PhD.
The only good thing coming out of this is that I made a few new friends also going through the same thing as me. It's kind of like a support group. Also, while trying to write these arduous essays, I had to think a lot about my past, present and future and had to do an evaluation of myself. I actually discovered a lot about myself, and suddenly remembered a lot of things/accomplishments I had that I had long forgotten. It somewhat gave me a bit encouragement in disappointing times. It made me realized that I actually had a few good achievements and characteristics, that I am stronger than I thought I could be.
Just have to keep trying. Keep smiling. Keep hoping. And keep praying...
Everytime you are sad, just remember the last sentence in this entry. I know you are a "strong" girl.
ReplyDeleteHope you are done with the admission by this time, and Good Luck!
ReplyDeleteBtw, all the reasons that may lead you to pursuing a PhD are wrong. So, don't do it. Otherwise, it is just killing time as you said :).