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sigelphoenix at 02:48pm on 19/12/2006 under office monkeying
sigelphoenix at 02:48pm on 19/12/2006 under office monkeyingUndergraduate university students have got to be the most annoyingly anal-retentive people on the planet.
You all know that I work at an academic office, right? That means, when I'm covering the front desk, I have to field a lot of questions from students. But some of those questions ... Look, if you're spending your time asking me "who should my recommendation letter be addressed to?" and "how should I format my resume?" then you're spending your time on the wrong thing. You should probably be focusing on more important parts of your application, like, you know, whether you qualify for our program. It's not like the admissions committee is going to look at a perfect applicant and say nope, sorry, your font choice for your personal essay just wasn't up to par, too bad.
Rule of thumb: if your most pressing question about your application is a nitpicky formatting issue, you need to rearrange your priorities. (Or it could just mean that your qualifications are so fabulous that you don't need to worry about anything else, but typically that's not the case.)
And while we're at it: we don't hold your hand. Seriously. Whining at us that you're having a hard time writing an essay is generally not going to get us to look favorably at you. Whining that it's really really hard to get the professional experience we require is also not going to help you. Most of all, asking us to walk you through the application process because you're too lazy to read the website, which provides the instructions that walk you through the application process, is also not a good indicator that you're a good fit for the program.
Okay, I'm probably being sort of crabby because I'm stuck at the front desk right now, where I have to deal with these questions, and I can't work on the project that I'm really really supposed to finish before I leave the office tomorrow ... But still. Was I this much of a wanker when I was a new college student? (Probably.) These kids have a lot of growing up to do, before I'm comfortable with them becoming health care professionals. At least I know that this program will give them a good push.
In happier news, I am eating fudge and truffles right now. Staff meetings always have the best food, and they leave the leftovers out for us. :D~
You all know that I work at an academic office, right? That means, when I'm covering the front desk, I have to field a lot of questions from students. But some of those questions ... Look, if you're spending your time asking me "who should my recommendation letter be addressed to?" and "how should I format my resume?" then you're spending your time on the wrong thing. You should probably be focusing on more important parts of your application, like, you know, whether you qualify for our program. It's not like the admissions committee is going to look at a perfect applicant and say nope, sorry, your font choice for your personal essay just wasn't up to par, too bad.
Rule of thumb: if your most pressing question about your application is a nitpicky formatting issue, you need to rearrange your priorities. (Or it could just mean that your qualifications are so fabulous that you don't need to worry about anything else, but typically that's not the case.)
And while we're at it: we don't hold your hand. Seriously. Whining at us that you're having a hard time writing an essay is generally not going to get us to look favorably at you. Whining that it's really really hard to get the professional experience we require is also not going to help you. Most of all, asking us to walk you through the application process because you're too lazy to read the website, which provides the instructions that walk you through the application process, is also not a good indicator that you're a good fit for the program.
Okay, I'm probably being sort of crabby because I'm stuck at the front desk right now, where I have to deal with these questions, and I can't work on the project that I'm really really supposed to finish before I leave the office tomorrow ... But still. Was I this much of a wanker when I was a new college student? (Probably.) These kids have a lot of growing up to do, before I'm comfortable with them becoming health care professionals. At least I know that this program will give them a good push.
In happier news, I am eating fudge and truffles right now. Staff meetings always have the best food, and they leave the leftovers out for us. :D~
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