The U.S. Education Department has disqualified 30 graduate students at the University of California at Berkeley from the government's competition for Fulbright research grants after a late pickup by FedEx caused the students to miss the department's application deadline last fall.

Although the delivery company was scheduled to pick up the applications on the deadline day, a courier did not arrive until the next morning. Berkeley has lobbied the department to accept the applications.

"We used our political friends and anyone we could think of" to influence the department, said Mary Ann Mason, dean of the graduate division at Berkeley, who in an interview on Thursday called the government's decision "senseless."

Robert M. Berdahl, the university's chancellor, even traveled to Washington in January to meet with department officials. But on Tuesday, the chancellor informed the graduate students that the Education Department had decided not to consider their applications.

"For these students to lose out on the opportunity to compete for the Fulbright award in this way is outrageous," Mr. Berdahl said in a statement the university issued on Wednesday. "These awards are among the most prestigious research-abroad fellowships available and are crucial to many students' ability to complete their dissertations."

Sally L. Stroup, the Education Department's assistant secretary for postsecondary education, said in a statement released on Wednesday that "Berkeley was negligent in failing to mail its application on time" last October. After "a thorough review" of the department's policies, she said, officials decided that the Berkeley students did "not merit special treatment."

"There is a reason for the deadline," the statement went on to say. "Fair and equitable treatment is essential in a competitive grant competition to avoid the appearance of favoritism." Students at 60 other institutions met the deadline, the statement said.

The Berkeley graduate students -- who are studying the social sciences, arts, and humanities -- applied for fellowships ranging from $15,000 to $63,000 through the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Program. Last year, 30 Berkeley graduate students applied for Fulbright awards that ranged from $19,593 to $63,947, and the Education Department approved half of them.

Jason Seawright, a graduate student in political science, is among those who lost out this year. He had requested $39,000 to travel to Argentina, Peru, and Venezuela to interview local leaders of political parties.

"This is the major research for my dissertation," he said in an interview. "Without this, I won't ever get my Ph.D."

Last September, the Berkeley students attempted to submit online applications -- as required -- to the Education Department, but the system kept "freezing up," said Mr. Seawright. The university then sought permission for its students to submit applications on paper. But by the time the Education Department granted approval, the students had to rush to finish the documents by the October 20 deadline.

The applications were waiting for a FedEx pickup in an office of Sproul Hall that day, but a courier never arrived. A Berkeley employee called the company three times that day to find out why.

When it became clear that the applications would not meet the postmark deadline, the employee sent an e-mail message to the Education Department saying that FedEx was to blame. Berkeley officials forwarded to the department a letter from the company acknowledging its fault. FedEx also agreed to backdate the air bill to October 20, even though the company made the pickup the next morning.

For more than a month, "we couldn't get an answer" from the Education Department about whether the applications would be considered, said Ms. Mason, the graduate dean. Finally, on December 4, the department informed Berkeley that the applications had come in too late. That's when Berkeley started its futile lobbying campaign.

The university is now pledging to help the graduate students finance their research. And it is asking FedEx to help. A spokeswoman for the company said it is "working with the university to find a resolution."

As Ms. Mason put it, "we can't give the students a Fulbright, but we'll make it work one way or another."