Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), a United Kingdom-based organisation that manages college applications for British universities, was forced to send out over 4,100 apology letters.
It happened after an "email error" resulted in students being accidentally accepted to Newcastle University and Northumbria University, located in the Northern city of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
The apology letters were sent out even as thousands of students in the country are still awaiting their A-level results, which are due by mid-August. The UCAS email read: "You have been accepted at university and you will be studying at Newcastle next year - congratulations!"
The email had sent shockwaves across the nation as acceptance letters are sent out only after the A-level results will be made public on August 16 this year.
Many took to Twitter to express their disappointment, calling the incident "heart-wrenching" as college admissions in the country have become increasingly hard to come by. While others, who had chosen Newcastle or Northumbria as second or third preferences, were worried that they had been rejected by their first-choice institution.
UCAS' apology email stated: "About 4,100 students awaiting their exam results received an email from UCAS which incorrectly said they had been accepted to study in Newcastle. The affected students had applied to Newcastle University or Northumbria University and have not yet had their place confirmed."
A spokesperson for the organization added: "The affected students had applied to Newcastle University or Northumbria University and have not yet had their place confirmed. Our mistake was quickly spotted, and a follow-up email to apologise was sent that afternoon. All students can log into Track to see the latest information on their application."
— abbi (@abbixstannard) July 26, 2018
