A high school teen’s witty response to a rejection letter from Duke University earned her some viral attention online this week, but she apparently borrowed and adapted the letter from one already circulating online.
Siobhan O’Dell, 17, of High Point, North Carolina, posted a letter on Tumblr under her account, “Reece O’Dell,” that she wrote responding to Duke’s rejection in the same format as they rejected her.
“After careful consideration, I regret to inform you that I am unable to accept your refusal to offer me admission into the Fall 2015 freshman class at Duke,” O’Dell wrote. “This year I have been fortunate enough to receive rejection letters from the best and brightest universities in the country. With a pool of letters so diverse and accomplished I was unable to accept reject letters I would have been able to only several years ago.”
The letter was
almost exactly like one posted on Snopes.com that was done in reference to a job rejection.
Still, O’Dell's funny letter brought some levity to the sometimes stressful college application process. On her Facebook page, O’Dell wrote, “Guess who was featured on Seventeen?”
On that Seventeen article, O’Dell’s grandfather, David W. O’Dell, wrote in the comments, “Duke University is not worthy of her. But then, what do I know? I'm only her grampa.”
Duke University answered the rejection letter O’Dell sent, very professionally telling O’Dell the school’s decision wasn’t a reflection of her as a person or a student, and offering her a way (that usually doesn’t work) to appeal the decision.
O’Dell told CBS she wouldn’t be appealing, and that she has already made plans to attend the University of South Carolina. She also gave simple advice to seniors worrying about college: “Don't stress too much. It's not worth it."
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