Oops: By mistake, Johns Hopkins sends acceptance emails to rejected applicants
Johns Hopkins University shattered the dreams of 294 applicants not once, but twice this week, after accidentally sending rejected students emails saying that they had been accepted.
The applicants received emails with "Embrace the YES!" in the subject line, The Washington Post reports, and many were confused but excited, thinking that either their earlier rejection letter had been wrong or the school had a change of heart. The university realized the emails had been sent in error after a student contacted them, and quickly sent out another email, letting the applicants know the acceptance email had been a "technical mistake."
This isn't the first time a university has sent out acceptance letters to rejected students, and it's likely not the last. While David Phillips, vice provost for admissions and financial aid at Johns Hopkins, apologized for the "human error," one mom wasn't going to let the university get away with not having to speak to her son. "All we want is a personal phone call," Cathy Stephenson told The Post. "When I make a mistake, I do the right thing."
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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