"We very much regret having added to the disappointment felt by a group of very capable and hardworking students, especially ones who were so committed to the idea of attending Johns Hopkins that they applied early decision," David Phillips, the University's vice provost for admissions and financial aid was quoted as saying by the newspaper Tuesday.
Phillips added that the e-mail was mistakenly sent to the applicants by an employee of the contractor for the University responsible for electronic communications.
Johns Hopkins is not the first top US college to experience mix-ups in its admissions letters. In February, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) sent a similar erroneous e-mail to its applicants. In December 2013, Fordham University also misled 2,500 applicants on their acceptance.