<p>I once viewed an interesting psychologist who claimed that strong feelings from others comments really come for being told similar things by and adult when your were very young and your brain was not fully developed. If deep down you knew the negative comments weren’t true then you would totally discount them (and whom they came from). But when you get upset it comes from some self doubt that was probably seeded by a misguided adult. Only YOU can let someone make you feel inferior. When you get upset take back control by analysis your feelings and use some adult reasoning to combat those feels. Then and only then can you discount your grandmothers unfortunate comments and feel really proud of everything you have accomplished. Good Luck! </p>
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<p>That is probably true for most “desirable” colleges and universities today relative to the 1960s (or even the 1980s or 1990s), since the growth in the number of high school seniors applying to colleges and universities has greatly outpaced the growth in capacity at “desirable” colleges and universities.</p>
<p>Note that if grandma was admitted to Rice before the mid-1960s, she also likely found it easier to be admitted since Rice’s original charter specified its mission to educate white inhabitants of Texas, which greatly limited the potential applicant pool.</p>
<p>Smile and nod, just smile and nod. Lots of people, of all ages, through your entire life will annoy the heck out of you if only you let them. I can understand that it bothers you only because you care what they say and want someone to congratulate you without belittling your achievements. Give it up - no one is going to do that - not even in the best of families, in the best of circumstances - people will let you down, say the wrong thing and screw up. Be your own cheerleader and you will live in a happier frame of mind. Fwiw, congratulations on everything you have achieved - and good luck on those remaining apps! And appreciate your grandmother as much as you can - sounds like she’s been through a lot and she won’t be around to push your buttons forever.</p>
<p>Come up with a polite but factually correct response. I told my grandmother (a masters computer science grad) that I was thinking about majoring in English, and her response was “ENGLISH!? What are you going to do with an ENGLISH degree??” And I calmly cited some facts about how English is actually a very employable degree because teaches reading, writing, and critical thinking skills, which are applicable to virtually any and all fields of work. Her response? “…Oh.”</p>
<p>Piss your GM off. Go apeshiet. She’ll pretend to be mad/sad and complain to your parents. Then your parents will tell you about how you are a disrespectful little shiet, but you will never have to deal with your GM again after a forced sarcastic apology</p>
<p>Jwen556 actually, my parents would not make me apologize at all. I think my parents are more ticked about what my grandma has said than I am. When I made the post, I was frustrated about things that have said. I would never “go off” on anyone really. They most certainly would not make me apologize. My brother told her what he thought once, but not in a major tell off way. We quickly left and then my mom suggested that while we might feel that way, and we are all in agreement of these thoughts toward “Grandma,” that …this is what my mom always says “how someone behaves is a reflection of themselves, not of the person they are being mean to.” What this means is…when Grandma acts like a jerk, SHE is the one being the jerk, and everyone else can see that. But if I react in kind, then I would be the jerk. So, I continue to act nice, no matter how mean she is.</p>