CNU Accepts 2,000 Students by Mistake

Waiting for a college acceptance letter is a stressful time in any high school senior’s life, but what would you do if you received an acceptance letter to you choice school, only to find out a few hours later than the letter was sent out to you by mistake and you had not really been accepted? Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened to 2,000 prospective students at Christopher Newport University last week.
On February 23, 2011, CNU sent 2,000 erroneous emails to prospective students. These emails told the students that they had been accepted to CNU’s fall 2011 class, but in truth, the students had not been accepted.

“The emails titled ‘Welcome to CNU!’ were sent at about 2:30 p.m. and were followed by an apology at 6:45 p.m. The CNU Office of Admissions is also attempting to contact all students who received the email,” according to The Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Obviously, this was upsetting to many students and their parents:
“Last night my teenage daughter, a senior at Yorktown High in Arlington, squealed with joy when she received an acceptance email from Christopher Newport University, one of her top two college picks,” said one mother. Now, imagine her heartbreak when she learned she had not really been accepted.
So what happened? Evidently an employee accidentally included too many students on the email. CNU is taking full responsibility for the email and apologizes for any distress this caused the affected students.
Honestly, I’m not sure an apology is enough to remedy this situation. I cannot imagine the heartache these 2,000 students are now suffering, after their dreams were handed to them and then taken back away only a few hours later.
What do you think? Should CNU be forced to accept these students after already offering them an acceptance letter? Or should the school get off the hook with absolutely no repercussions for the disastrous emails? Tell us below!
Via The Washington Post