Devoted Reader Terry W sends along a brilliant example of the inflated self-esteem of the college student slamming headfirst into the cold hard reality of real life:
The world of a college journalism intern is not glamorous. It's not exciting, and it isn't fun. It is a true test of skills and stamina, and above all, it makes you wonder if you really want to do what you thought you always wanted to do. Last week, I was flatly rejected by SPIN magazine for a summer internship in New York City...The rejection e-mail from SPIN also welcomed "questions regarding my decision." Naturally, I was a little more than curious. I was, and am, heartbroken, and like any heartbreak, I needed a reason. I asked politely, and received no response. A week later, I sent another e-mail, asking a little less politely, and a little more aggressively. This time I got an answer.
After telling me the delay in correspondence was because they had "fallen a bit behind in the creation of the next issue," I was told that being "snippy" to a prospective employer was "unbelievably off-putting," even if they had already decided not to give me the job. I went home and cried until I passed out, then woke up and cried some more. Then I thought about what the second rejection e-mail really said...
...being "snippy" and being direct are two very different things. He said he would answer questions, and I took him up on the offer. When he didn't reply, I asked again. I wasn't mean or rude, just to-the-point. If he didn't have time to answer my first question, he wouldn't have time to read any unnecessary formalities. I had a question, and I wanted an answer. That's all.
Don't miss the part where she says she used a "creative" font on her resume so that she'd stand out. Spin is a national magazine that probably gets thousands of applicants for its 2-3 internships each season. Yet this young lady had already set up housekeeping in NYC under the assumption that she and her creative resume were a shoo-in.
I shouldn't mock; I'm sure I was this dumb, once. Thank God I don't have a newspaper article like this to read ten years from now, and cringe.