Somebody Give This High Schooler An Award For Her (Fake) Harvard Rejection Letter
National Reporter, HuffPost
The "Harvard rejection letter" that went viral earlier this week? Yeah, it's fake. But you should still read it.
Molly McGaan, the letter's author and a student at Francis W. Parker School in Chicago, wrote the cheeky piece of satire for her school's humor publication, " Citizen Poke ," and it viral -- for obvious, hilarious reasons:
The letter purported to come from the Harvard College Office of Admissions and Financial Aid. It regretfully informs Ms. McGaan her application, which rested on a solid foundation of “proficiency in ‘dank memes’” and a respectable level of “$wagg moneyyyy,” wouldn't be enough to earn admission despite a solid GPA and test scores.
"We also suggest obtaining recommendation letters from teachers or trusted mentors," the letter advises, " not 'my #4 side ho Derek' or Chief Keef , who submitted a picture of a dinosaur drawn in crayon on a rolling paper."
McGaan told The Huffington Post she was inspired to lighten the load of applying to schools.
"I've had a lot of friends ... really stressed out about college admissions," McGaan said, "and I just wanted to make some people smile."
She said she never expected the letter to resonate so much outside of her friend group. But it clearly has, racking up millions of views across Reddit, Tumblr, Facebook , and elsewhere since she posted it to the Citizen Poke Facebook page on Tuesday .
"To me it was just this very juvenile little joke that I wrote," she added. "I couldn't believe it got picked up so fast. I write this magazine at my school, and the most amount of 'likes' [a story has had on Facebook] before this was about four."
The 18-year-old has actually applied to Harvard, and is slightly concerned the tongue-in-cheek letter may harm her admissions odds. School officials told The Boston Globe they have indeed seen McGaan's handiwork , but declined to comment further.
"People legitimately think it’s real, which is so bizarre to me." McGaan told the Globe. "It’s just so insane."
McGaan doesn't expect to hear back from Harvard for another couple weeks. Thankfully, the stress of admissions season doesn't seem to have affected her sense of humor:
You can't tell me what to do anymore mom I'm viral now, get on my level. — Molly (@mollymcgaan) March 5, 2015
What you guys don't know is that this Harvard thing was an elaborate ploy to distract you from the dress. — Molly (@mollymcgaan) March 6, 2015
Support HuffPost
Our 2024 coverage needs you, your loyalty means the world to us.
At HuffPost, we believe that everyone needs high-quality journalism, but we understand that not everyone can afford to pay for expensive news subscriptions. That is why we are committed to providing deeply reported, carefully fact-checked news that is freely accessible to everyone.
Whether you come to HuffPost for updates on the 2024 presidential race, hard-hitting investigations into critical issues facing our country today, or trending stories that make you laugh, we appreciate you. The truth is, news costs money to produce, and we are proud that we have never put our stories behind an expensive paywall.
Would you join us to help keep our stories free for all? Your contribution of as little as $2 will go a long way.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you’ll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.
Before You Go
Popular in the Community
From our partner, more in teen.
Fake Harvard rejection letter causes real-life stress for student Molly McGaan
Chicago teen worries that joke letter could affect her actual application.
Social Sharing
A joke rejection letter from Harvard University has been shared thousands of times online and its author is wondering if it could affect her actual application to the Ivy League school.
The fake letter informs Molly McGaan of Chicago that Harvard is unable to accept her application, despite her claims of proficiency in "dank memes," her killer essay salutation ("listen here u little slanks"), and her inclusion of a "fire" mixtape.
Got denied from Harvard :( <a href="http://t.co/VigHYU6plN">pic.twitter.com/VigHYU6plN</a> — @hawntr
The letter was apparently posted to Facebook yesterday and spread to Tumblr, Reddit and Twitter via several different accounts. Between the multiple posts and retweets, the letter has been posted tens of thousands of times.
However, the author of the letter, Molly McGaan herself, wasn't the one who put it online. And now she's freaking out a little bit.
OKAY BUT I ACTUALLY APPLIED TO HARVARD WHAT IF THEY SEE THIS AND GET MAD AT ME — @mollymcgaan
This is really scary omg — @mollymcgaan
McGaan said she wrote the letter for a high school publication.
Guys! THE LETTER IS FAKE! I wrote it for my school humor magazine called citizen poke! — @mollymcgaan
McGaan told the Boston Globe that the letter was posted on the Facebook page for her high school's satirical magazine and spread from there.
"People legitimately think it's real, which is so bizarre to me. It's just so insane," she told the Globe.
The letter, apparently on Harvard letterhead but with the magazine's logo visible at the top, says that the application pool for the class of 2019 was the strongest ever, and admission could not be offered to every applicant, regardless of their level of "$wagg moneyyyy."
It also advises against ending one's application essay with "*drops mic*."
Recommendation letters, the fake Harvard dean of admissions wrote, must be more robust than "a picture of a dinosaur drawn in crayon on a rolling paper."
McGaan said the inspiration for the letter was her rejection from the University of Michigan.
"I wanted to turn something sad into something funny," McGaan said in her interview with the Globe.
She has also applied to Harvard, but has yet to receive an actual response.
The Globe contacted Harvard about the fake letter. School officials said they have seen it, but had no further comment.
You can't tell me what to do anymore mom I'm viral now, get on my level. — @mollymcgaan
To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
0, text: error()">
Let's fight boredom together!
Become a member
0, text: error(), css: errorCssClass">
Password reminder
Please provide your email address and we will send your password shortly.
If there's a Bored Panda account associated with , you'll receive an email with instructions.
If you don't receive an email, please check your spam inbox, or enter your email address again .
Please enter your email to complete registration
Activate to continue
Your account is not active. We have sent an email to the address you provided with an activation link. Check your inbox, and click on the link to activate your account.
- Relationships
The Bored Panda iOS app is live! Fight boredom with iPhones and iPads here .
- Partnership
- Success stories
- --> -->