Future RAs denied via email mistake

After months of interviewing during the application process, every accepted Resident Assistant for the upcoming fall semester was sent an incorrect email message April 6 stating that they were not hired.

Of approximately 275 applicants, 88 were accepted to the program. Each accepted candidate received the message from the Office of Residence Life, which was obtained by The Review, stating they would be placed on the job applicants’ waiting list.

“The computer just pulled the wrong spreadsheet,” said Ivet Tweedy, assistant director for selection and training in the Residence Life office.  “It was a technical glitch.”

Applicants said they were upset after receiving the incorrect email.

“I was really disappointed and I was bumming out a little bit,” said sophomore Lauren Carberry. “A lot of people were telling me, ‘Oh, you’re going to get it.’ When I didn’t get it, it was like I was re-evaluating my life.”

Tweedy said officials soon sent a corrected email with the subject line “RA Hire Letter/CORRECTION.”

“We knew the second it went out and knew immediately that it was sent,” Tweedy said.  “Within minutes we sent out the correct information.”

However, Carberry said that she waited approximately one hour before receiving the correct email.

“The first one was sent out at 1:30 p.m. and the second one was sent out at 2:30 p.m.,” she said. “It was just like, ‘correction,’ and it gave you the letter. I don’t believe it gave any, ‘Sorry, we made a mistake.’”

Freshman applicant Sarah Swanson said that because the application process was rigorous, the rejection email was especially disappointing. She said the process included essays, personal recommendations and a requirement that applications shadow a current resident assistant during night duty.

Carberry called the interview process intense.

“It’s very stressful,” she said. “You have each of your group interviews of 100 excited people that want the same position.  Everyone is trying to outshine everybody else.”

After the confusion surrounding the incorrect email faded away, Tweedy said that the students were excited to join the team of new resident assistants.

“I got some really enthusiastic responses, even though the students initially faced disappointment,” she said.