The University of California, Davis, has issued an apology to 90 applicants who were not admitted but received an e-mail this week intended for applicants who were admitted.

The e-mail was mistakenly sent to 90 applicants who had hoped to transfer to UC Davis from community colleges in California.

They had been notified in April that they were not admitted for the 2004-05 academic year. But on Wednesday (May 12) they received an e-mail intended to remind admitted students about the university's Summer Advising Program.

The e-mail also was correctly sent to approximately 3,900 students who were admitted.

Yvonne Marsh, UC Davis assistant vice chancellor for enrollment services, said the mistake was caused by a programming error.

Marsh sent the 90 students an apology Thursday night.

"Please accept my sincere apologies on behalf of the University of California, Davis, for this error. We are truly sorry for any confusion and disappointment that our mistake has caused you and your family," Marsh wrote.

"We commend you on completing your first two years of college studies and earnestly encourage you to continue to work toward your four-year degree."

In mid-March, UC Davis apologized to 6,000 admitted students who were sent an erroneous e-mail that said they had been awarded a prestigious scholarship.

This is the first admissions cycle to employ a new electronic system intended to simplify the application and enrollment process and to reduce costs. UC Davis is refining that system to ensure that such errors are not repeated, Marsh said.