A little backstory here, my dream school was the University of Georgia. I felt that school was everything I wanted in college. It had the right major and concentration I wanted, it's in-state, my brother goes to the school as well (so he can help with the transition), and they have an amazing marching band program! In fact, one of my dreams was to become part of their marching band and maybe become a drum major there. On Friday, March 13th (of course...Friday the 13th), I finally got the decision. I didn't get in and I was so upset. I put my heart and soul into my grades and essays. It was also the day that I realized I was meant to go to the University of Hawaii at Mānoa! Here are the 6 ways I accepted the rejection.

1. It's okay to be upset/frustrated

When I found out the decision, I didn't know how to comprehend it. I had so many emotions running through my head, but this is part of life. You're going to have failures in life and this is definitely one of them. You need to have failures in life in order to get back up and succeed. This took me a while for me to realize.

2. Talk to people

Though it might be hard to talk to people about rejection, this helped me the most. I mostly talked to family and friends about getting rejected and they were supportive. Never forget that people care about you and your wellbeing.

3. Find the silver linings

This is also another way that helped me the most. I kept thinking overtime, maybe UGA was not the right school for me after all. Embrace the schools that have accepted you. Maybe tour (or re-tour) the schools that you have been accepted to. The main silver lining for me was that I have extended family that lives in Hawaii and I barely get to see them. This is the time that I finally get to spend time with my aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents!!

4. Don't take the decision personally

This is a big thing that seniors keep forgetting, including myself. The only reason why any school rejects a student is because the admissions team believes that their school is not a good fit for them at the moment. I took the decision personally and felt so worthless after getting rejected. A college decision does not prove your self-worth as a person or a student!

5. You can always transfer next year

If you believe you are destined to go to that dream school, by all means, transfer to that college if you can! For me, I want to be with family as much as possible and I don't think transferring is the best decision for me. But for others, if you don't think the current school you're going to is the best fit, I would totally recommend transferring.

6. You are not alone!!

Please don't forget that you are not the only one that has to deal with getting rejected from your dream school. A ton of high school seniors deal with this. You are totally worth it and you have the decision to do what you want with choosing the right school to go to.

If you ever need someone to talk to, feel free to DM me on Instagram @kwagener24