Woman Says She Refused to Give Up Spot in Prestigious Program for Sister

Sibling rivalry can be tough.

In a post on Reddit’s popular “Am I the A——?” forum, a 20-year-old woman wrote that she was accepted into a competitive, prestigious summer program. However, things got complicated when her older sister, 23, insisted she give the spot to her.

The younger sister noted that she worked hard to get accepted. For two years, she spent a considerable amount of time and energy curating her portfolio and attending workshops to better her odds of being accepted.

She added that her older sister never expressed interest in her chosen field, but she also applied to the program, on a whim. Unlike the younger sister, she didn’t get in.

“When she found out I was accepted, she asked me to give her my spot because she thinks it would ‘look better on her resume’ and that I could “just apply again next year,’ ” the younger sister wrote. “I told her no, explaining that this is something I’ve worked toward for years and that I’m not giving it up just because she wants it now.”

After hearing this, the older sister called her “selfish” and got their parents on her side. The parents, in turn, asked the younger sister to comply and “be the bigger person.”

Both the older sister and parents said the younger sister could just reapply next year, whereas the older sister can’t.

Commenters weighed in under the post, and overwhelmingly supported the younger sister’s position. Most pointed out the fact that acceptances, especially to such a selective program, just aren’t transferable.

“Bold of her to assume that by giving up your spot that she’ll be the one to receive it,” one commenter wrote. “If it’s competitive and she hasn’t worked for it, it seems unlikely that she is next in line for consideration.”

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Another commenter urged the original poster to stand her ground, and suggested a practical approach in the midst of the tough situation.

“Make sure you let your contact person or the coordinator in the program know that you are being pressured to give away your spot and if anyone contacts them to pull your name out, it is not you! And to contact you, right away!” the comment read.