One Big Boo Boo

[lizbud]

What a mistake to make. I feel sorry for these kids.


UNC congratulates 2,700 prospective freshmen in error
POSTED: 4:21 p.m. EST, January 26, 2007

CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina (AP) -- An admissions department e-mail sent from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill congratulated 2,700 prospective freshmen this week on their acceptance to the school.

The problem is that none of the applicants have been admitted. They won't start finding out until March whether they've made the cut.

"We deeply regret this disappointment, which we know is compounded by the stress and anxiety that students experience as a result of the admissions process," Stephen Farmer, the school's director of undergraduate admissions, said in a news release.

Farmer said two employees accidentally sent the e-mail Tuesday. It began, "Congratulations again on your admission to the University."

The e-mail was intended to request midyear grades from high school students who already have been accepted to the school.

Admissions officials have sent follow-up e-mails apologizing for the error. They have also e-mailed admissions counselors around the nation to explain the mistake.

About 20,000 people apply each year to UNC Chapel Hill, and the school enrolls about 3,800 new freshmen.

[Edwina's Secretary]

Many years ago I was working for a compnay on the north side of Chicago. The company had been going through lots of RIFs...some very difficult ones...long service employees.

I had a new secretary who was very eager and wanted to demonstrate her skills.

One day I took a letter from my "secret" drawer and asked her to retype it with a different date. It was a letter I would be giving to an employee who was to be let go. He had started with the company before I was born.

The next day it occured to me she had never given me the letter back. I asked her about it. "Oh, I went ahead and mailed it!"

I learned it is possible to unsend a letter...if it hasn't been delivered (Too Late!) I knew the guy was out of town on vacation. I remember sitting outside his house wondering if I was up for a Federal Offense...of going into his mail box.

I didn't. But I can empathize with the folks at UNC!

[wombat2u2004]

Many years ago I was working for a compnay on the north side of Chicago. The company had been going through lots of RIFs...some very difficult ones...long service employees.

I had a new secretary who was very eager and wanted to demonstrate her skills.

One day I took a letter from my "secret" drawer and asked her to retype it with a different date. It was a letter I would be giving to an employee who was to be let go. He had started with the company before I was born.

The next day it occured to me she had never given me the letter back. I asked her about it. "Oh, I went ahead and mailed it!"

I learned it is possible to unsend a letter...if it hasn't been delivered (Too Late!) I knew the guy was out of town on vacation. I remember sitting outside his house wondering if I was up for a Federal Offense...of going into his mail box.

I didn't. But I can empathize with the folks at UNC!

So the very next day you put a brown paper bag on your head and quit your job.....right ???

[Logan]

Oh good heavens, Liz. This is awful!!!!!

I can remember the days where I waited, patiently (or maybe unpatiently) for my acceptance to Clemson. I was at work at the local Walgreen's, one night, when my dad walked in with my orange striped letter.......so much better than a darned email, to start with. I can't imagine getting that notice, then having them say its not true. How horrible!!!!!

Logan

[lizbud]

It's a shame really. I kept thinking of my own children and how disappointed
they would be if they had recieved a letter of acceptance, and find out later
it was all a mistake. :( I remember the waiting period & how anxious they were. It's a heck of a mistake to make, isn't it.

[emily_the_spoiled]

The University could be in for a really rude surprise. The year I was accepted into pharmacy college something similar happened. There was a mistake and the college accepted an additional 20 students. (I know that doesn't sound like much but when the original incoming class is only 40, increasing it by 50% is a big deal.) The College didn't find out it's mistake until people started moving to town and registering for classes (this was in the days before computer registeration). They then tried to tell the students that it was an error and they weren't accepted. I am not sure what happened, but a couple of hours later they "accepted" all the students. I suspect that someone threatened to get the lawyers involved...

[wombat2u2004]

The University could be in for a really rude surprise. The year I was accepted into pharmacy college something similar happened. There was a mistake and the college accepted an additional 20 students. (I know that doesn't sound like much but when the original incoming class is only 40, increasing it by 50% is a big deal.) The College didn't find out it's mistake until people started moving to town and registering for classes (this was in the days before computer registeration). They then tried to tell the students that it was an error and they weren't accepted. I am not sure what happened, but a couple of hours later they "accepted" all the students. I suspect that someone threatened to get the lawyers involved...

Something similar happened to me here in Australia, the Law School I attended made the same mistake...and hey...guess who suffered ??? Us students....in the tutorials the classes numbered in excess of 35 students (not a tutorial in my books...almost a lecture) whereas previously tutorials had no more than 18 students per session. Because the teacher / student ratio was higher, we had to work much harder at our readings, class discussions were a mess, and we had to be divided into smaller groups, it ended up a joke.
It's the quality of education that matters the most, and if this University in Carolina accepts all of these additional students, and uses the same number of teachers, then these students are going to be in for a rough time.