Birmingham Uni has rejected me for the most unfair reason...

So I applied to Birmingham university to do Mechanical Engineering and since on their website they say nothing about being able to do a combination of 2 A levels and 2 AS levels (which most uni's do for e.g. Manchester uni accept it) I was not really sure if I should go through with the application so I contacted their admissions by telephone at first and was told me that my combination of 2 A levels and 2 AS levels was accepted and should not be a problem btw I was applying with A Level Maths and Physics and AS Further maths and Business studies. So obviously I emailed them as will saying is my combination accepted and they said yes it is.

So on monday I found out that my offer was turned down and I emailed them last night asking why, this is what they say:

"Dear ...Thank you for the email. I am sorry but we require three A level subjects and do not accept two As subjects in lieu of one a level. Kind regards"To which I reply back with a quote of what the exactly same person email me with months back in November saying that they accepted it, at this point I'm honestly not too happyso she reply's back with:"Dear ...I have been informed by our Central Admissions Office that we are no longer allowed to accept this combination and you would have already made your choices with regard to what you were studying well before you contact me.
Kind regards"and at this point I'm super annoyed because of obvious reasons.... so I email back with:"As what you are saying is very true since it was my choice to do 2 AS levels however I find it extremely unfair and misleading to tell me that my combination is accepted and within the 19 days between my email and time that it takes for UCAS to send my application to my respected choices to come to a decision that those combination are no longer accepted. Is there anything that can be done to resolve this since Birmingham was my main choice and the fact that I got rejected alone is very disheartening but getting rejected based on something that I was told that should not be an issue in the process is beyond that."having said this I was predicted AAAB b for business studies
Honestly I have no idea what to say to them now... any help?

So I applied to Birmingham university to do Mechanical Engineering and since on their website they say nothing about being able to do a combination of 2 A levels and 2 AS levels (which most uni's do for e.g. Manchester uni accept it) I was not really sure if I should go through with the application so I contacted their admissions by telephone at first and was told me that my combination of 2 A levels and 2 AS levels was accepted and should not be a problem btw I was applying with A Level Maths and Physics and AS Further maths and Business studies. So obviously I emailed them as will saying is my combination accepted and they said yes it is.

So on monday I found out that my offer was turned down and I emailed them last night asking why, this is what they say:

"Dear ...Thank you for the email. I am sorry but we require three A level subjects and do not accept two As subjects in lieu of one a level. Kind regards"To which I reply back with a quote of what the exactly same person email me with months back in November saying that they accepted it, at this point I'm honestly not too happyso she reply's back with:"Dear ...I have been informed by our Central Admissions Office that we are no longer allowed to accept this combination and you would have already made your choices with regard to what you were studying well before you contact me.
Kind regards"and at this point I'm super annoyed because of obvious reasons.... so I email back with:"As what you are saying is very true since it was my choice to do 2 AS levels however I find it extremely unfair and misleading to tell me that my combination is accepted and within the 19 days between my email and time that it takes for UCAS to send my application to my respected choices to come to a decision that those combination are no longer accepted. Is there anything that can be done to resolve this since Birmingham was my main choice and the fact that I got rejected alone is very disheartening but getting rejected based on something that I was told that should not be an issue in the process is beyond that."having said this I was predicted AAAB b for business studies
Honestly I have no idea what to say to them now... any help?

Their website is quite clear: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/undergraduate/requirements/index.aspx
(edit - and that part is unchanged from at least March 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150319134759/http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/undergraduate/requirements/index.aspx )

Do you have a record of who you spoke to on the phone (name and job title?) and did they follow up in writing confirming what they'd said?
If not then you'll struggle to prove that they stated anything other than 3 full A levels are required for admission.

If you kick up a stink then they might be willing to fiddle the UCAS application in a way which would allow you to substitute their choice for another university - but that application would be considered late.

I don't have the conversation recorded but I do remember who I spoke to and it was the same person who emailed me since I emailed them straight after I ended the phone just to have a written confirmation, I have all the emails exchanged and the email that she said that my combination is accepted.

In that case you have a good case that you were misadvised and should be allowed to substitute in a different choice.

Someone giving advice contrary to their university policy isn't enough to force them to make you an offer.

Come August and I do meet their standard offer is there a way to get them re-review my application since they rejected me based on the fact that they don't accept candidates with my combination of A Levels when the admission tutor claimed they would and assuming they still have places.. or is that a bit of a stretch?

Come August and I do meet their standard offer is there a way to get them re-review my application since they rejected me based on the fact that they don't accept candidates with my combination of A Levels when the admission tutor claimed they would and assuming they still have places.. or is that a bit of a stretch?

It's not going to happen. The admissions tutor gave you advice that contradicts the admissions policy. The policy stands and requires 3 full A levels. You were misadvised but that means they have to give you the option to apply elsewhere not give you a place.

I'm not as much on the inside as PQ, so what she says is the important thing, but the most likely outcome is for the person you spoke to to get her knuckles rapped, not for the university to change its admissions policy, so I'd have a contingency plan in place.

It's not going to happen. The admissions tutor gave you advice that contradicts the admissions policy. The policy stands and requires 3 full A levels. You were misadvised but that means they have to give you the option to apply elsewhere not give you a place.

So I applied to Birmingham university to do Mechanical Engineering and since on their website they say nothing about being able to do a combination of 2 A levels and 2 AS levels (which most uni's do for e.g. Manchester uni accept it) I was not really sure if I should go through with the application so I contacted their admissions by telephone at first and was told me that my combination of 2 A levels and 2 AS levels was accepted and should not be a problem btw I was applying with A Level Maths and Physics and AS Further maths and Business studies. So obviously I emailed them as will saying is my combination accepted and they said yes it is.

So on monday I found out that my offer was turned down and I emailed them last night asking why, this is what they say:

"Dear ...Thank you for the email. I am sorry but we require three A level subjects and do not accept two As subjects in lieu of one a level. Kind regards"To which I reply back with a quote of what the exactly same person email me with months back in November saying that they accepted it, at this point I'm honestly not too happyso she reply's back with:"Dear ...I have been informed by our Central Admissions Office that we are no longer allowed to accept this combination and you would have already made your choices with regard to what you were studying well before you contact me.
Kind regards"and at this point I'm super annoyed because of obvious reasons.... so I email back with:"As what you are saying is very true since it was my choice to do 2 AS levels however I find it extremely unfair and misleading to tell me that my combination is accepted and within the 19 days between my email and time that it takes for UCAS to send my application to my respected choices to come to a decision that those combination are no longer accepted. Is there anything that can be done to resolve this since Birmingham was my main choice and the fact that I got rejected alone is very disheartening but getting rejected based on something that I was told that should not be an issue in the process is beyond that."having said this I was predicted AAAB b for business studies
Honestly I have no idea what to say to them now... any help?

Contingency plan as in a back up university?