Handling a Rejected PR

Difficulty: Intermediate

Question

Tell me about a time one of your PRs was rejected or received critical feedback. How did you handle it?

Answer

Open-source contributions involve collaboration, and not every PR gets accepted on the first try. How you handle rejection reveals your ability to collaborate and grow.

When I had a PR for a UI component rejected because it didn't follow the project's existing accessibility patterns, I first took time to understand the reviewer's feedback fully. I asked clarifying questions about which specific patterns I should follow and asked for examples of similar components that passed review.

I studied the existing accessible components, implemented the changes, and re-submitted. The reviewer appreciated my responsiveness. The key lesson was understanding that the rejection was about the code, not about me personally.

If a PR is rejected outright, I try to understand the maintainer's perspective. Sometimes the feature doesn't align with the project's roadmap. In that case, I thank them for their time and look for other issues. Maintaining a positive relationship is more important than getting a single PR merged.

Key points

• Separate your ego from your code — criticism of the PR is not criticism of you
• Ask clarifying questions rather than getting defensive
• Sometimes the best response is to gracefully move on
• Every rejection is a learning opportunity

Concepts covered

Resilience, Feedback, Collaboration, Growth Mindset