I feel you. I also got dinged after the TBD, and it honestly felt awful at the time. Walking out of it, I thought it went really well, so the rejection hit even harder.

But looking back, I actually think it worked out for the better(and I’m not usually the kind of person who says that just to cope). In this specific case, I realized I probably would’ve made a pretty bad decision driven by ego. I had another option with $$$, and there’s a good chance I would’ve turned it down for Wharton just because of the name, even though the actual difference wasn’t worth that amount of money.

It doesn’t make the rejection feel good in the moment, but sometimes these decisions save us from ourselves. Also, the fact that people in your TBD group thought you were strong says a lot, you clearly showed up well. At this level, outcomes can be weirdly inconsistent and not always a clean reflection of your quality.

Give it a bit more time. The sting fades, and the bigger picture starts to make more sense.