So, I’ve received an email quite recently for augmented review for lets say one of the UC’s. The email was regarding augmented review of my application to further assist their process in my admission decision. So, I decided to do some research. The augmented review is only prompted under special circumstances, but there are rumors going around claiming that it means that the UC is very interested in you but are cautious for whatever reason and looking for information to help your application. I immediately got to work to submit my augmented review. Just a day or two before I would submit my supplementals, I received an invitation to apply to the alumni program. I was under the impression that it was some sort of automated email, so I gave it little thought. However, I started hearing that it’s because you were a promising candidate to the admissions office and they then referred you to the alumni program?? The school that contacted me happens to be my dream school, but the acceptance rate is extremely low. On top of that, my stats are pretty low/decent for the school. I have a 4.0 GPA and a not so great SAT score. So, I’m thinking it had to do with my piqs? Let me know if you have any insight!
To answer your questions:
The Augmented Review pool should be limited in size to no more than 15 percent of all applicants.
The criteria for referring an applicant for Augmented Review include the following:
- Evidence of focus on an area of special talent which may have limited a student’s time to participate in a broader range of activities.
- Evidence of character traits that imply a strong likelihood of making a significant contribution to campus life.
- Evidence of significant academic achievement or the potential for academic achievement at the University in spite of extraordinary or compound disadvantage or learning difference, or physical disability or other unusual circumstances.
- Evidence of significant improvement in the academic record accompanied by one or both of the following: (1) reasons for the initial poor performance; and (2) sustained and in-depth participation in educational outreach programs, which demonstrate the applicant’s commitment to succeed academically within a challenging environment.
- Evidence of relative lack of access to, counseling about, or support to take college preparatory, honors, Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) classes or required college entrance examinations.
UCLA Alumni Scholarships:
The vast majority of the ~150 awarded the Alumni scholarship get the standard $1500 per year, unless they receive the extra need based aid. There is a shortlisting process for video/phone based interviews (IIRC organized on a regional basis within CA) and then roughly 1 in 3 of those interviewed wins the scholarship.
The award of the scholarship is typically announced in early April and then there is a reception for awardees at Bruin Day. A small number (I think 10-20% of winners) are also invited to compete on campus the next weekend for a higher award amount. There is also a reserve list for runners up, since not all of the original winners will choose to attend UCLA.
The shortlisting process appears to be based primarily on a) did you write an essay that stands out and gets noticed by your reader and b) your community service and similar ECs. Its different from the Regents scholarship which is based more on pure academic talent (and obviously relies on the original UC application for shortlisting).
Also note that anyone applicant can apply for the Alumni Scholarship and you do not need an invite. They are also inviting more applicants this year than the last few years.
There is a correlation with around 60% of the invitees are eventually accepted but since the pool of invitees is greater this year, most likely the correlation percentage will probably drop.
Okay I see, I think throughout this process I should keep in mind that correlation is not causation!