Student who was rejected from top school lands spot at Harvard instead

A student who learned that he had been rejected from his top college ended up with a consolation prize: a highly coveted seat at Harvard.

On Dec. 23, 18-year-old Prazul Wokhlu shared the moment on his TikTok. In it, he records his multiple reactions to getting rejected from several schools. Among them was his top choice: M.I.T.

“Last year, I was deferred from my dream school (MIT) …” he wrote. “… and eventually rejected.”

@prazulwokhlu

i promise being rejected is not the end of the world. finish strong seniors you got this ##harvard2024 ##harvard2025 ##collegeacceptance ##classof2020

♬ original sound – carrigan ☁️☁️

The clip then shows several moments where Wokhlu appears dejected. That is … until he finds out that he got accepted to a top Ivy League university.

“I was then rejected from a bunch of other schools,” he wrote. “But then it all paid off.”

Upon learning that he got into Harvard, he, along with his family, jump up and down in excitement.

“So to all of you who are feeling down right now, keeping word you got this,” he wrote. “Your hard work will pay off, one way or another.”

Wokhlu’s TikTok has since gone viral, receiving nearly 133,000 likes and more than 2,000 comments.

“This gave me chills good work bro,” one person wrote in response.

“Dude thats awesome congrats,” another wrote.

“I’m glad you got to this point of reaching your dreams,” a third added.

According to Quartz, Harvard’s acceptance rate in 2019 was just 4.5 percent (approximately 1,950 applicants were accepted that year). M.I.T., on the other hand, had an acceptance rate of 6.6 percent (or about 1,410 accepted applicants). This year, Harvard’s acceptance rate was about 5 percent, while M.I.T.’s acceptance rate was 6.7 percent.

If you liked this story, check out this article on an Ivy League professor who abruptly abandoned students during a Zoom call.

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