Student expelled from University of Copenhagen — warning ended up in spam filter

Irish student James Lang thought it was some kind of joke. On 8 October he found out that he had been expelled from his master’s programme in agronomy at the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH).

There had been a misunderstanding in the admission process. He had uploaded a transcript instead of his bachelor’s diploma by mistake.

But when UCPH contacted him via the admissions system to request the correct document, the message never got through to him. It was caught in his spam filter. Shortly afterwards, he was deleted from the digital learning platform Absalon, lost his Danish student grant, and was removed from all UCPH systems.

»I never imagined I would be expelled over a misunderstanding,« says James Lang to the University Post.

James Lang has now regained his place after his submitted documents were approved.

I understand that rules have to be followed, but I was never given a real opportunity to correct the mistake

James Lang

But not before his case had led to uproar within his department: Several instructors believe that a mistake like this could previously have been resolved with a single phone call.

His lecturer, Professor Søren Husted, sees James Lang’s case as a consequence of the administration reform that came into force at UCPH in spring 2025. The new centralised administration treats students more rigidly than back when the administration was closer to the students it was meant to serve.

Message stuck in spam filter

James Lang had been accepted into the master’s programme in agronomy back in May. It was on the condition that he submitted proof that his Irish bachelor’s degree had been completed by 20 September. He uploaded a transcript but not the diploma itself, as he had been instructed to do.

The University of Copenhagen sent him an automated message via the application portal on 5 September, reminding him of the deadline for the missing document. According to James Lang, he received no email about the message — it had landed in his spam filter. And he saw no reason to log in to the portal again.

It’s a simple misunderstanding that could have been fixed with a quick phone call

Søren Husted, professor at the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences

So James Lang began the programme in good faith, only to discover that he could not access the student digital learning platform Absalon.

At first, he thought it was an IT error, but on 8 October he found out that his enrolment had been cancelled and that he had been removed from all UCPH systems for not submitting the correct documents by the 20 September deadline.

»I understand that rules have to be followed, but I was never given a real opportunity to correct the mistake,« says James Lang.

He tried several times to open up a channel of communication with the administration. But contact has been minimal, and he was left with the impression that his case could not be reconsidered.

UCPH maintained that the procedure was correctly followed, and that James Lang had the same conditions and deadlines as all other applicants.

»Back in the day, we would have made a call«

At the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, the case has fuelled debate among lecturers. Professor Søren Husted, who teaches the course James Lang is taking, describes the situation as an example of how the university’s new administration structure after the major reform has created distance between students and staff.

»Back in the day, we would have called the student and resolved the issue in a morning. Now everything is handled centrally and anonymously, and no one takes responsibility,« says Søren Husted.

According to the professor, a case like this would have previously been handled locally by the department or faculty administration. Back then, a coordinator could pick up the phone, contact the student directly, and quickly sort out any missing documents. Today, all communication happens exclusively via system messages and automated emails.

»No one has done anything wrong here. It’s a simple misunderstanding that could have been fixed with a quick phone call. But now students face a wall of rules and emails that no one reads,« says Søren Husted.

UCPH: The rules were followed

According to Rie Snekkerup, Deputy Director for Education at the University of Copenhagen, no errors were made in the case. She emphasises that James Lang has been treated just like all other applicants, and that the university is obligated to follow rules for admission.

»When a student is conditionally admitted, it is clearly stated that we must receive documentation of a completed bachelor’s degree before the deadline. If we don’t, we cannot confirm the admission,« says Rie Snekkerup.

We have to ensure equal and fair treatment. If we start calling some students and not others, that’s discrimination

Rie Snekkerup, Deputy Director for Education at the University of Copenhagen

She confirms that the messages to James Lang were sent automatically through the university’s admissions system, and that no attempt was made to contact him by phone. This is standard practice, she says, as the number of applicants makes it impossible to reach out individually.

»We have to ensure equal and fair treatment. If we start calling some students and not others, that’s discrimination,« she says.

That the message ended up in a spam filter is unfortunate, she acknowledges, but this is not the university’s responsibility. She rejects the claim that it is the centralisation that has made the administration less flexible:

»I understand James’ situation, and that it must have been a difficult experience, but the rules are the same as before: You have to meet the admission requirements to be accepted onto a programme,« says Rie Snekkerup.

According to Rie Snekkerup, the fact that the email ended up in a spam filter did, however, give James Lang grounds to have his case reconsidered — if he submitted the correct bachelor’s diploma showing that he completed his degree before the deadline. And James Lang subsequently did so.

Attended without enrolment

James Lang is now, and has been, attending classes. Søren Husted and colleagues had allowed him to follow the course until the case was resolved.

»It is unreasonable for a student to lose an entire semester due to a technical error,« says Husted.

After James Lang has submitted additional documentation for his bachelor’s degree, it has now been confirmed that he is reinstated.

»I’m back, and it feels good,« James Lang tells the University Post.

»It could have been a very lonely and sad experience, but in a way — because all the lecturers helped me and were so understanding — it actually felt like there was a little silver lining in all the negativity,« he says.