Nine hopeful applicants saw their college plans turned upside down after a university made a major admissions mistake.
Waiting to hear back from schools can be an anxious time for students, with big questions hanging over what the next few years might look like.
So when an acceptance finally arrives, it usually brings relief and excitement in an instant.
But for nine students who applied to Brigham Young University (BYU) in Utah, that celebration didn’t last. They received acceptance letters even though they had actually been denied admission.
One of those affected was Owen Johansen, a high school senior from Oakton, Virginia.
In comments to KSL, Johansen said he was thrilled at first when he believed he’d been admitted.
After starting to move forward—accepting the admission message and even looking for a roommate—Johansen noticed his online portal changed. The “Welcome to BYU” message was replaced with a rejection notification.
His parents, both BYU alumni, contacted university officials and were informed that the acceptance notice had been sent in error.
Johansen’s mother, Talai Johansen, said the experience was devastating and urged the school to stand by the acceptance her son—and the other eight students—had been given.
BYU admissions director Chad Johnson later addressed the situation in a statement.
It read: “We are truly sorry that an unfortunate error in our admissions decision notification system resulted in nine prospective students mistakenly receiving congratulatory messages of acceptance.
“The Admissions Department reached out to those impacted to express our regret and our sincere apologies.
“We know that admissions decisions are highly anticipated, and we recognize this mistake caused confusion and disappointment. Our BYU admissions team is working to ensure this mistake does not occur in the future.”
After public criticism, the university ultimately moved to let the students attend, according to a report from the New York Post.
BYU has since said it granted provisional admission to the nine students, and that staff are working with each individual to confirm they meet the school’s academic requirements.
BYU’s website states that the university accepts 68.7 percent of freshman applicants.
It also lists average tuition per semester at $6,688 for undergraduate students who are not members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and $3,344 for members.