"Thought I Was Admitted and Gave Up Other Schools"... University Reverses Decision Calling It a 'Mistake'

DGIST "Feeling the heavy responsibility... We apologize"

Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) mistakenly notified an applicant who applied through early admission that they had been accepted, only to later retract the acceptance. The applicant had already been accepted to another university but gave up that enrollment, ultimately ending up unable to enroll in either university.

According to Yonhap News on the 27th, A, a third-year student attending a public high school in Gyeonggi Province, received a "passing call" from DGIST at around 3:40 p.m. the previous day. Since applicants who are accepted to multiple universities must choose only one, A gave up enrollment at Ajou University, where he had previously been accepted.

However, around 4 p.m. on the same day, A confirmed that his name was not on the list of successful candidates posted on the DGIST website. Upon inquiry to the school, he was told, "There was a mistake by the admissions officer," and A was notified again that he had failed.

On the morning of the 14th of last month, when the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) was held, examinees were preparing for the exam at the testing site set up at Banpo High School in Seocho-gu, Seoul. The photo is unrelated to the article content. Photo by Yonhap News.

According to DGIST, the admissions officer made an error while entering the successful applicants' exam numbers. However, a thorough investigation found no issues with acceptance notifications to other applicants besides A. DGIST reportedly informed A that "admission is not possible, but we will take legal responsibility."

In an interview, A expressed, "I feel very unfairly treated," and appealed, "DGIST should take proper responsibility, but they are not doing so. The damage I have to bear due to the school's mistake is too great." A’s high school reportedly inquired with Ajou University's admissions office about reversing the withdrawal of enrollment, but was told it was not possible.

The DGIST admissions office stated in a press release, "We feel a heavy responsibility for this incident," and added, "We will thoroughly reflect on and improve our shortcomings. We sincerely apologize."