About

What is this?

Your CV lists your publications, grants, and awards. It doesn't mention the desk rejects, the unfunded proposals, or the jobs that went to someone else.

Desk Rejected is a place to document the other stuff. The rejection letters. The near-misses. The "we regret to inform you" emails collecting dust in your inbox.

When I was starting out, I thought I was the only one getting rejected all the time. Turns out everyone was—they just weren't talking about it. — Matt

Why bother?

• Everyone gets rejected. A lot. Even the people with impressive CVs. Especially the people with impressive CVs.
• CVs lie by omission. You only see your colleagues' wins. Their rejection folder is just as full as yours.
• Misery loves company. There's a certain solidarity in shared failure.
• Hindsight is useful. That devastating rejection from five years ago? Probably looks different now.

The taxonomy of disappointment

• Journal Rejections - Desk rejects to post-review heartbreaks
• Grant Rejections - Federal, foundation, fellowship
• Ethics/IRB Rejections - When your protocol doesn't pass
• Job Rejections - Applications that went nowhere
• Award Rejections - Teaching, research, best paper
• Conference Rejections - Abstracts, papers, posters
• Book/Chapter Rejections - When publishers pass
• Collaboration Failures - Projects that dissolved
• Other Setbacks - Everything else