Just about every year, a university mistakenly sends offers of admission to the wrong batch of students. The school then realizes the error of its ways and quickly sends out corrections. This year, the culprit is the University of Michigan. In past years, Columbia University, Johns Hopkins University, Tulane University, University of California – Los Angeles, George Washington University, New York University, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are among the universities that have sent out offers of admission in error — either at the undergraduate or graduate level.

University of Michigan Sends Out Acceptance Email in Error

As reports Matt Harmon for “Michigan Daily” in a piece entitled “Admissions sends out premature transfer acceptance email,” “The University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science and the Arts sent an email Monday to prospective transfer students congratulating them on their acceptance to the University and inviting them to LSA’s Transfer Student Days in April. While normally a moment of celebration for most students, the email was met with confusion and questions — students who received the email had not heard back in an official capacity from a University office in regards to their admission status at the time of LSA’s email. Addressed by Transfer Recruiting Coordinator Kristin Heinrich, the email was reportedly sent to prospective students still waiting to hear if their transfer to the University was accepted or rejected. ’Congratulations on your admission to the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts!’ the email read. ’I am sure this is an exciting time for you. Are you interested in learning more about LSA? Do you want to meet current transfer students and professionals from across campus who are here to help YOU? We invite you to attend one of our LSA Transfer Student Days in April!’”

But the offer of acceptance was premature indeed as the university hasn’t yet rendered final decisions on their transfer applicants. Michigan would soon notify the students who received the email that it was sent in error — much to their disappointment. And while it never surprises us that universities walk back these mistaken acceptances, they really should honor these letters if possible. If a store mistags an item as $10 when it’s supposed to be $100, that store is supposed to honor the $10 tag. We think colleges should honor their mistags too.

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