Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Kant vs. Kierkegaard Essay Example for Free

Kant vs. Kierkegaard Essay I also believe that the issue that I am discussing is deep, and therefore interesting. Its weaknesses would be its lack of quotes. The difficulty with this paper was trying to find the idea in the first place. It took me a lot of time to find deep similarities and differences between the two. It also took me some time to figure out how I would lay the essay out and how I would flesh the essay out. As this paper is not superficial, I found myself finding new ideas and problem as time passed. This gave me another problem as I always had to rethink and re-edit. The goals for my next paper are to include more quotes, as my papers lack evidence. My other goals are to carry on writing interesting and thought provoking papers. I aim to try to make my essays as clear as possible, as tackling deep issues can sometimes make the writing quite convoluted. Love of Duty vs. Love of Choice In their essays ‘Lectures on Ethics Friendship’ and ‘Works of Love – Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbor’, respectively, Kant and Kierkegaard both appear as idealists: They each portray a utopia in which friendship is universal. Kant believes that perfection can be achieved if people put love of mankind before love of oneself, and Kierkegaard believes that perfection can be achieved if you love everyone as if they were your neighbor. Ironically, both also contradict themselves: Kant contradicts his other idea that one will never be able to achieve the ideal of friendship, where partners share everything with each other. While Kierkegaard contradicts himself by saying a true Christian is completely selfless. This is a contradiction, as someone who is selfless cannot have a choice (free will), but as rational humans we do have a choice. Given these parallels, are these two thinkers ultimately offering us the same sense of utopia? No – in fact, Kant is a realist who uses a scientific approach to figure out what it means to be a friend, whereas Kierkegaard is a religious thinker who applies his religious morality on people. Their utopias look very similar on the surface, but their underlying methods to reach them are vastly different. Both Kant and Kierkegaard come from two very different backgrounds. Kant was born in Prussia, and was interested in physics and mathematics. He didn’t have a positive view of religion was also asked to stop teaching Theology at the University of Konigsberg by the government as he allegedly ‘misrepresented’ the principles of Christianity. This shows that Kant was a thinker independent of religion. Kant believed that â€Å"mankind’s final coming of age,† was â€Å"the emancipation of the human consciousness from an immature state of ignorance and error. † This is the opposite of Kierkegaard, as he was a devout Christian. Kierkegaard tried to incorporate religion (Christian morality) with reason. This is where he comes up with his idea of ‘loving thy neighbor’. Whereas Kierkegaard comes from a position that his way is the ‘right’ way, as it was mandated from God, Kant comes from a position which is influenced by Rousseau and Aristotle, in fact Kant’s idea of man having self-love and love for humanity comes straight from Rousseau’s book ‘The Discourse on the Origin of Inequality’. There is also a deeper difference: Kierkegaard’s religious morality implies duty, whereas Kant’s view on friendship implies choice. Choice lies at the heart of Kant’s philosophy. He says that man has two basic instincts: self-love and love for humanity (pity). These two instincts conflict with each other and only one can win. Kant believes that in an ideal world, all people would put love for humanity before self-love. This would create a world where love is reciprocated, and therefore man does not have to worry about losing his happiness. In essence, Kant’s version of a utopia is where man chooses to love humanity. This is vastly different to Kierkegaard’s version, where man has no choice, as it is his moral duty to love everyone as if they were his neighbor. Kierkegaard does acknowledge Kant in a way, by distinguishing between earthly love and spiritual love. He says earthly love (Kant’s type of love) is the exact opposite of spiritual love. He argues that a ‘poet’ (Kant) is absolutely right in saying that earthly love cannot be commanded. Kierkegaard believes that Christian love is better as it is ‘completely selfless’. For Kierkegaard, â€Å"Christian love teaches love to all men, unconditionally all. Just as unconditionally and strongly as earthly love tends towards the idea of there being but one single object of love, equally unconditionally and strongly Christian love tends in the opposite direction. If a man with respect to Christian love wishes to make an exception in the case of one man whom he does not wish to love, then such love is not ‘also Christian love,’ but it is unconditionally not Christian love. † (41) Kierkegaard also believes that it is quite liberating to be forced to love. As if the absence of choice creates peace. He believes that â€Å"it is encouraging in your relation to a distinguished man, that in him you must love your neighbor; it is humbling in relation to the inferior, that you do not have to love the inferior on him, but must love your neighbor; it is a saving grace if you do it, for you must do it† (50). Thus the difference between earthly and spiritual love is that earthly love is a choice and spiritual love is a command from God. Both Kierkegaard and Kant come to different conclusions because in their writing, their focus is on separate ideas. Kant, being a man of reason primarily, approaches his philosophy in a scientific manner. To explain, he breaks one thing into smaller things. Kant makes observations based on what he sees, hears, tastes, smells, and feels (like his three types of friendships). However, he does also make some conceptual assumptions (discussed earlier) such as his idea of putting love of humanity before self-love will cause reciprocation of friendship. Unlike Kierkegaard, Kant does not focus on religion as it is unnecessary for someone who is only interested in empirical observations. Kierkegaard however is not concerned with empirical observation, as he believes that there is something higher and more important i. e. Christianity. Kierkegaard concentrates more on morality and what he believes is right, instead of focusing on what is actually there. Kierkegaard doesn’t even talk about friendship in his writing. This shows that he places much more importance on what his religion says is right instead of trying to observe and deconstruct what friendship is. Although both philosophers have radically different ideas on how to achieve a utopian world, their ideas as an end result are very similar. They both want a world in which everyone loves everyone. The difference is that Kant’s love comes from reason, whereas Kierkegaard’s is spiritual. For this reason Kant’s idea seems more logical to the rational human being. Kant doesn’t believe in forced love, he believes in a choice to put either love of humanity or love of oneself at the fore. Kierkegaard’s idea of loving as a moral duty is contradictory at its heart, because how can you love if you don’t have a choice who to love? If you ‘love’ everyone it stops being love because love is defined by its opposite. How can there be love without hate? If it can’t exist, then how feasible is Kierkegaard’s idea? This is the main problem with Kierkegaard, because his observations come from his faith. In the real world, love should come from understanding, not dogma. If there is no understanding, it’s like a slavery of the mind. Works Cited Immanuel Kant, â€Å"Lectures on Ethics†, Ethics. Trans. Louis Infield, Harper Torchbooks, The Cloister Library, Harper Row Publishers, New York and Evanston. Soren Kierkegaard, â€Å"Works of Love†, Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbor. Trans. David F. Swenson Lillian Marvin Swenson, Princeton – New Jersey, Princeton University Press.

Monday, January 20, 2020

A Good Man Is Hard To Find by Mary Flannery O’Connor Essay -- Literary

Mary Flannery O’Connor, the writer of many short stories known for their cruel endings and religious themes, wrote â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find† in 1955. â€Å"Her works combine flat realism with grotesque situations; violence occurs without apparent reason or preparation.† (Roberts 429). â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find† is about a southern family’s trip to Florida which takes a dramatic turn. This story was written in O’Connor’s first collection of short stories. â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find† is a compelling story of tragedy that utilizes humor and irony to draw the reader’s attention, and two major characters to convey the authors central theme. Throughout the short story â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find† O’Connor uses humor to enhance her story and set a tone for the reader. Margaret Whitt states that â€Å"Because of the specificity of detail of dress and family interaction, the story is also funny in a grotesque way† (Whitt 44). O’Connor’s humorous description and situations are used all through her stories including â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find† (Wilson â€Å"A Good†). For Example, John Wesley tells his grandma, â€Å"if you don’t want to go to Florida, why dontcha stay at home?†. At that point his little sister June Star makes her way into the conversation and says, â€Å"She wouldn’t stay home to be queen for a day†. June Star later adds, â€Å"She wouldn’t stay at home for a million bucks†, to further exaggerate on her point. Even though grandma expresses how she does not want to go to Florida and would rather v isit her connections in East Tennessee, she is still the first person in the automobile the next day for their three day trip to Florida. Another humorous situation happens while the family is driving through Georgia and the ... ...'One Of My Babies': The Misfit and the Grandmother." Studies in Short Fiction 33.1 (Winter 1996): 107-118. Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 61. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 21 Feb. 2012. Keil, Katherine. "O'Connor's 'A Good Man Is Hard to Find.'." Explicator 65.1 (Fall 2006): 44-47. Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Vol. 111. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 22 Feb. 2012. Nester, Nancy L. "O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to Find." The Explicator 64.2 (2006): 115+. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 21 Feb. 2012. Whitt, Margaret. Understanding Flannery O'Connor. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina, 1995. Print. Wilson, Kathleen, ed. Short Stories for Students. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1997. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 21 Feb. 2012.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Strategic risks †thinking about them differently Essay

One of the most important aspects to put into consideration when taking up a project is project risk management. A project risk is an event / condition, which is uncertain that, upon it occurrence brings either a positive or a negative impact on the project. A positive manager should consider this as one of the ten knowledge areas where competence is highly regarded. Risk management is critical, especially to organizations working in multi-project environments and the maturity for risk is high (Loftus, 1999). A wide range of risks is apparent when working in projects involving construction among other engineering work. These risks are mostly attributed to government policy, diversity in stakeholders’ aspirations and the challenges of adding multiple projects. For a good risk management process, there must be a clear statement and understanding of roles and responsibilities, proper skills on technical analysis and the prevailing organizational factors should support the project . Project risk management involves identifying, assessing and prioritizing of risks: and thereafter putting resources to use in order to reduce, monitor and control those risks that could affect the project negatively and increase realizing of opportunities (Jaafari, 2001). This report seeks to outline the knowledge acquired on management of risk in projects among other basic knowledge gathered on management of projects. Discussion             All organizations exist for their own different purposes, and that of public engineering organizations in the construction business, the purpose is to deliver a service, which brings a beneficial result in the public/ stakeholders interest (Harrison, 2004). Decisions to pump resources into investments on capital infrastructure are prompted by needs that are meant to enhance the achievement of the major purpose. According to Flanagan and Norman (1993), the benefits of efficient risk management are evident especially in projects involving capital infrastructure because they are dynamic in nature and bring positive cost implications from the construction related decisions. Risk management should be taken as an intrinsic part of capital infrastructure investment decisions mainly because, as project, ventures get more elaborate, the role of risk management is exemplified (Kutsch & Hall, 2010). Regarding this realization, some countries have enacted government policies on constructors emphasizing on the need to incorporate risk management in capital infrastructure schemes (Uher & Loosemore, 2004). Risk is therefore, in many occasions, viewed as a condition or event whose occurrence will have adverse effects on the project and may hinder the attainment of set objectives. Hence, risk management relates decisions to such probable harmful effects (Chapman et al, 2012). This philosophical approach to risk management enables the process to be broken down into four fundamental sub-processes (Culp, 2001). These involve identification, analysis, response and monitoring. The former step of identification is the most critical step because it has the biggest effect on decisions emanating from the process of risk management. Reviewing risk management, in his article, Williams (1995), notes that there is little structured work in publication about typical risks. According to Chapman (1998), as much as risk identification is critical on the risk assessment and response phases, very little empirical evidence is available at this early phase. The heavier task in risk management remains in the analysis and response to the risk, yet the reasoning stands that unless the risks are identified, they cannot be analyzed and responded to. For most engineers, the need to have a set out program is critical for it provides an umbrella under which all current projects fall so that an outcome can be delivered massively in general, and greater than the total sum of all others. A program is usually temporary, and flexible; created to direct and oversee the implementation of a set of related projects and activities for the deliverance of beneficial outcomes that relate to the organization’s strategic objectives. Several projects are undertaken under this umbrella. This explicitly differentiates between program management outcomes and project management outputs. However, there is a link between projects and strategy through the program. Risk management is becoming an increasingly important process due to external pressures in existence. However, good risk management is seen as a critical attribute of organizational success in the field of engineering. The assumption that programs are merely extensions of projects should cease to exist because many will tend to reflect program risk management to project risk management (Allan, 2008). Program management is a broad extension of the varied, yet related, projects. On projects, it is important to define one or more objective functions like capital expenditure and completion time to represent it to measure the probability of achieving the set targets. Risk management then goes on to model the project’s objectives against the projects variables like costs and the quantity of inputs. These variables are usually uncertain as time goes on, hence the uncertainty of a hundred percent achievement of the objectives set. The most ideal situation would be identifying and characterizing the variables in advance providing that they will remain unchanged by time. This would make it easy to estimate the possible risks and the consequent variance of the project’s objective(s). However, not all project variables can be identified as new variables might surface as the project goes on while the probability of occurrence of the initial variables may vary (Kerzner & Saladis, 2009). The impacts of the initial variables, both positive and negative, may change too hence making risk management even more hard (Drummond, 1999). Certainty and uncertainty of realizing a project’s objectives are measurable, only ideally. The possibility of a project not breaking even could be considered as a representative of the whole project: and then used in turn to evaluate against the variable and try to reduce the risks involved. This becomes a basis for decision-making. Some projects may proceed normally in a stable environment, hence making the uncertainty high at the time it is conceptualized. Pro-active planning and making prudent decisions will see the uncertainty reduce (Royer, 2001). However, uncertainty in complex projects within a changing environment will not necessarily reduce/ diminish as time goes by Chapman (1998). It is necessary to keep on checking on the project’s variables and re-evaluating of the objective function’s status to facilitate adjustments in the project’s strategies. Uncertainty surrounds many parts of a project; hence early resolution of variables may not be poss ible always. Variables change over time leading to exposure to new threats and risks along the way. This fact should not be refuted and a lot of work is required in the planning evaluating phases, where most of the critical work is done. In spite of all the uncertainty and complexity surrounding risk management and project management, it is important to seek methods of improving the project’s base value (Drummond, 1999). Conceptualization, planning, and implementation of a project are complex process that requires management based on set strategic objectives, which vary from time to time. The objectives should be integrative and holistic in the sense that it caters for social, political, environmental, and community aspects (Sears et al, 2010). Traditionally, planning in project management should form the basis of planning, alongside other functions of project management including; human resource, time, scope, integration, quality and procurement. These should be the fundamental factors f consideration along each phase. A variety of guidebooks, protocols and codes of practice in the engineering field have been made available for use in risk management in project management. In the United Kingdom, the ‘Orange book’ is a framework that is set to offer guidance on basic risk management concepts and as a resource for developing risk management processes and implementing them I the public sec tor (Aritua et al 2011). It is also aimed at using a risk based decision-making on investment. There have been many more publications and publications aimed at dictating hoe risk management should look like. These guidelines have offered a basis upon which projects are appraised and their investment viability tested. This has enhanced the process and shifted its reception and perception from project risk management to a risk management strategic level (Melton, 2011). In engineering and construction professions, program management and project management came to existence due to the changing procurement environment (Cox et al 2006). In the United Kingdom, procurement of infrastructural assets was done in a sequential manner, which involved a clear differentiation in the project life cycle phases. Currently there are three major procurement systems. These systems are prime contracting, Design and Build procurement and Private Finance Initiative (Aritua et al 2011). These methods were because of the need to adopt integrative and collaborative project delivery methods. The procurement systems have features like framework agreements, the use of specifications that are output based, and more importantly, emphasis on the lifelong value of the structures (Shehu and Akintoye, 2009). The office of Government Commerce has facilitated the change in construction procurement in the public sector too. The agency’s main agenda is to ensure that policies ar e followed and enhancing promotion of the best performance practices. These systems ensure that the project undertaken is of high quality and regard set policies and guidelines. These sanctions in the public works and construction sector have acted as strategic risk management tools for they ensure quality assurance as well as proper quality management. Project management should incorporate the use of a strategy-based management approach. This will facilitate the integration of planning, risk management and decision-making hence ensuring real time real time realization of an optimum of the project’s strategic objective against its variables (Schmidt, 2009). The project’s promoters are not always the investors. Investors are not always actively involved in the management of the project, but invest resources into the project hoping to get dividends. The promoters’ objective, on the other hand, is to deliver a facility that will ensure a long term balanced and financially viable business entity. The project is therefore a compromise between the attainment of investors’ interests and that of the community (Pinto & Morris, 2010). Project development should be based on a set of strategic objectives, which stamp the project as a business and entwining project decisions to strategic business decisions (Wearne, 19 89). Amid all risks, the project should be planned proactively regarding its variables and with a focus on the life cycle objective functions (Westland, 2007). All life cycle functions should be observed. These are: financial functions, customer satisfaction, and policy observance/ adherence to statutory concerns. Statutory concerns could be like those regarding projects adjacent to ecological systems or highly populated areas (Jha, 2011). Proactive planning of the project ensures real time minimization of risk. Effective risk management ensures that there is typical conceptualization of projects and their subsequent implementation using strategic objectives. It also ensures any further variables are assessed and managed accordingly to optimize the project’s strategic outcome, that which of a business entity (Heagney, 2011). Since projects are subjected to changes in objectives and variables due to external factors, it is important to incorporate a continuous risk management process that involves continuous risk and uncertainty management process conducted in real time to bring value to the project manager. Strategies made from risk analysis are a basis upon which decision-making is based going forward. Objectives of the life cycle are the vessel for analysis. Ethical practices are important factors to put into consideration when taking up/ procuring a project (Ralf et al, 2014). There exists codes of conduct and these codes may vary depending on the government regulations from one country to another. These codes guide management of projects, operations and supervision of work, and the technical aspect of the project, which is building. Since the work done is of great importance, the designed code of conduct and ethical measures should be used as they set standards for the output as well as achieving business objectives with the community in regard (Haukur et al, 2011). Reflective assessment Group activities that included vast research and group projects were vital in broadening my understanding of the project management theory, which of great importance to establishing and undertaking successful projects. According to Turner (1993), scope management is what the project management theory regards. Scope management involves three fundamental issues; ensuring that an adequate amount of work has been done, avoiding doing any unnecessary work and ensuring that the work done fulfills the intended business purpose as stated. The recognition of the sequential state in which activities are undertaken helped us as a group in determining what had to be done at a particular time and by what particular persons as well as accounting for what had been spent on completed work in anticipation of costs that would be accrued in the next steps. I came to understand project management by likening it to production operations management. The crystallization of project management theory to oper ations management theories made it easy for us to recognize the resounding reliance on the transformational theory, which is production oriented. This is because project management involves injecting inputs on which transformational processes occur to bring the result, which is the output (Nell, 1998). Goals are set on the output, upon which a basis for control is placed: control systems are put in place to ensure activities align with achieving intended goals and putting improvement measures in place. This deep understanding of the theory has been enhanced mainly by the critical analysis and discourse that we have engaged ourselves with in the group to widen knowledge on the process. Relevant knowledge on management theories on planning, execution and control has expanded from these activities as well as project theories pertaining flow of production (which projects have been likened with) (Sulliman, 2014). These productions method include incorporating techniques such as lean prod uction and just in time (JIT) (Gilbereath, 1922). Ethical practices in governance for contemporary organizations are also a major factor for consideration (Ralf et al, 2014). Conclusively, exploration on the area of project management has instilled in me management skills, which are very critical in handling projects and managing every aspect in them including risk. References Allan, N., Davis, J., 2006. Strategic risks — thinking about them differently.Proceedings of ICE 159 Aritua B., Nigel J. Smith, Denis Bower (2011) International Journal of Project Management. United Kingdom: University of Leeds Chapman, C. B., Ward, S., & Chapman, C. B. (2012). How to manage project opportunity and risk: Why uncertainty management can be a much better approach than risk management : the updated and re-titled 3rd ed of Project risk management, processes, insights and technoiques. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley. Cox, A., Ireland, P., & Townsend, M. (2006). Managing in construction supply chains and markets: Reactive and proactive options for improving performance and relationship management. London: Thomas Telford. Culp, C. L. (2001). The Risk Management Process: Business Strategy and Tactics. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Drummond H 1999. Are we any closer to the end Escalation and the case of Taurus? International Journal of Project Management Flanagan, R., & Norman, G. (1996). Risk management and construction. Oxford [u.a.], Blackwell Science.Gilbreath, R. D. (1992). Managing construction contracts: Operational controls for commercial risks. New York: Wiley. Harrison, F. L., & Lock, D. (2004). Advanced project management: A structured approach. Aldershot, England: Gower. Haukur, I. J., & Ingason, H. T. (2013). Project ethics. Farnham, Surrey: Gower. Heagney, J. (2011). Fundamentals of Project Management. New York: AMACOM. Jaafari A. (2001) International Journal of Project Management. Sydney: University of Sydney Jha, K. N. (2011). Construction project management: Theory and practice. New Delhi: Dorling Kindersley. Kerzner, H., & Saladis, F. P. (2009). Project management workbook and PMP/CAPM exam study guide. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. Kutsh E. &Hall M. (2010) International Journal Paper of Project Management. United Kingdom Loftus, J. (1999). Project management of multiple projects and contracts. London: Thomas Telford. Means, J. A., & Adams, T. (2005). Facilitating the Project Lifecycle the Skills & Tools to Accelerate Progress for Project Managers, Facilitators, and Six Sigma Project Teams. Hoboken, John Wiley & Sons. http://www.123library.org/book_details/?id=9130. Melton, T. (2008). Real project planning developing a project delivery strategy. Amsterdam, Butterworth-Heinemann. Nell, E. J. (1998). The general theory of transformational growth: Keynes after Sraffa. New York: Cambridge University Press. Pinto, J. K., & Morris, P. (2013). The wiley guide to project, program, and portfolio management. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. Ralf M., Rodney T., Erling S.A, Jingting S., Oyvind K. (2014). Ethics, Trust, and Governance in Contemporary Organizations. Norway: Project Management Institute Royer, P. S. (2001). Project risk management: A proactive approach. Vienna, Virg: Management Concepts. Schmidt, T. (2009). Strategic project management made simple: Practical tools for leaders and teams. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons. Sears, S. K., Sears, G. A., & Clough, R. H. (2010). Construction Project Management: A Practical Guide to Field Construction Management. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Shehu, Z., Akintove, A., 2010. Major challenges to the successful implementationand practice of programme management in the constructionenvironment: a critical analysis. International Journal of Project Management Suliman Saleh Al Fredi (2014) International Journal of Science and Technology. Saudi Arabia: Al Qassim University Uher, T. E., & Loosemore, M. (2004). Essentials of construction project management. Sydney: UNSW Press. Westland, J. (2007). The project management life cycle: a complete step-by-step methodology for initiating, planning, executing & closing a project successfully. Williams, T., 1995. A classified bibliography of recent research relating to project risk management. European Journal of Operational Research Zhang Lianying et al (2012) Procedia Engineering. China: Tianjin University Source document

Saturday, January 4, 2020

The Hardship That Came With Furthering My Education

Jazlyn Pulido Professor M. Tran English 101 13164 10 Mar. 2016 The Hardship that Came with Furthering My Education Martha Stewart once said, â€Å"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.† What I wanted for myself was to accomplish a great task that no one in my family has done, but I had never analyzed my options. My journey had started senior year of high school, with a full mentality of being able to go above and beyond. My thoughts were so secure and my life had seemed planned out, until the rationality of my near future really hit. Although I had been successfully admitted into two private universities, I found that I had another alternative to further my education in a way that†¦show more content†¦With much encouragement by my close friends, a sigh of relief was taken when I had pressed the ‘Submit’ button for each of my applications to Marymount University, Barry University, Cal State Poly Pomona, and Cal State Fullerton. After all my applications wer e sent, I began to enjoy what was left of my senior year in high school. All was good until the many students of school began to get their letters of acceptance or denial around mid December. That was a stressful time for all the students around me. It was like dropping your phone; you either drop it, or catch it mid-air. All around me students were full of worry until they ripped open their letters and yelled with joy. Not in my case, although I had applied with regular admission, the universities I had applied to were taking longer than I had anticipated. I wanted to dance with excitement with my classmates, but I just had to hold my breath until a letter would be placed in my mailbox. Frustration overcame me when my friends got accepted to their top choice schools. I bit my tongue and congratulated each friend. I felt happy for my friends, but the anticipation of not knowing killed me. The time I had finally received responses was a huge sigh of relief. I had finally received the results of the few universities around late March and early April. I just ripped open the letters like if I was peeling off a band aid. I had not been accepted to my top choices, but I