A Nightmare Revisited

I never thought I’d be doing this all over again.

When I was a freshman here at WT, I sat down in my first class on the first day of school and subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.  Applications were done, scholarship forms completed, what seemed like mountains of paperwork were turned in, never to bother me again.  Or so I thought…

Now it’s my senior year, and when I come home from class, I meet a sneakily familiar mound of papers on my desk.  Application packets, scholarship forms, personal essays, reference letters…  It feels somewhat like a flashback to a more nightmarish era of my past; it so turns out that doctoral programs require even more paperwork than undergraduate applications.  Imagine that.

On a more positive note, I was very encouraged and excited by the WT Career Expo last week.  There were special sessions on interview skills, networking, business etiquette — did you know you’re supposed to wear your nametag on the right side of your shirt? — and the chance to talk with over 100 prospective employers from the surrounding area.  I made some wonderful contacts and met some great people; I even got a couple of interview offers!  Several of my friends have interviews this week with businesses that were at the Expo.  Now I’m pumped about job-hunting once I finish my doctorate.

I guess all this paperwork will be worth it after all. 🙂

~Kelsi May