Inspired by Melanie Stefan’s article and others, this is my Shadow CV, a record of my failures, rejections, and setbacks.
It reminds me that growth often comes from perseverance through challenges.
After Undergrad
December 2024
- rejected from a startup i was really interested in working
November 2024
- rejected from midsize reputated company after TPI
September 2024
- rejected from giant tech for new grad role
August 2024
- did not make it to the cutoff for the technical assessment
July 2024
- rejected from gen-AI startup
June 2024
- rejected from dream grad school
Undergraduate
February 2024
- Rejected from two competitive conference paper submissions.
January 2024
- Rejected for a scholarship to present my paper in Australia (SOMP’24).
April 2023
- Unable to secure a research internship at my first-choice lab.
August 2023
- Rejected for an internship at GS.
June 2023
- Did not make the cutoff for actuarial exams.
May 2023
- Rejected from every single summer REU program I applied to.
April 2023
- Unable to secure a research internship at my first-choice lab.
High School
- Did not apply for NEET/JEE because of IBDP
December 2019
- Rejected from a student exchange program to Sweden.
October 2019
- Struggled with rejections before securing a 100% scholarship for the University of Arizona.
May 2020
- Rejected from Apple WWDC’20.