Hi, so I was recently emailed from UCB asking for me to submit a letter of rec. Does this mean anything? I’ve asked several of my friends who have higher stats than me and they didn’t get one.
UC GPA:
W: 4.28
UW: 3.91
SAT: 1490
SAT MATH 2: 770
That should be taken as a positive I would think, since it probably means they haven’t put you in the rejection pile. But then again, I didn’t think that they would start evaluating until after 12/1, so I have no idea why they would ask so soon.
I would not read anything into the request other than to take advantage and present yourself in the best possible light. Something in your application has warranted further information from UCB and all you can do address this fact.
What UCB values:
-Academic performance and potential (both overall and in the context of the applicant’s high school class)
-Love of learning
-Leadership (in school, family, or community)
-Persistence in the face of challenges
-Cross-cultural engagement
-Originality/Creativity
-Demonstrated concern for others
From the email:
After initial review of your application we would like to invite you to submit letters of recommendation to add to your admission application.
Here are a few points to consider:
•This is optional and not required. If you decide not to submit letters of recommendation as part of your application, we will continue to evaluate your file with the information you provided in your UC Application.
•You have the option of submitting up to two letters of recommendation. One letter must be from an academic teacher.
•The deadline for your recommenders to electronically submit their letters of recommendation to UC Berkeley is January 15, 2019
Does this mean that two are required? Can I just submit one letter or do I need to get two? Sorry, it’s a bit confusing.
If possible I would submit 2 LOR’s but if you can only obtain 1 LOR that you feel would best represent you in a positive light, then just submit 1.
@anteatergang, I am wondering when did you receive the email about LOR? Have you also received another email about creating an account on UCB Student Portal? My D also applied UCB and submitted his application about 2 weeks ago, he only received an email about accessing Student Portal.
My older son applied in 2016 and received a LOR request. 4.0 uw/34 ACT. Younger son applied 2018 and did NOT receive LOR request 3.88 uw/35 ACT.
Both were accepted to L&S.
Adding. While they requested one letter come from a teacher (academic). The other letter can be from an employer, coach, counselor or perhaps volunteer coordinator who knows you.
@svlab112 Thanks for the additional info. If the school doesn’t request LOR, do we need to or is there a way to submit LOR along with the application? My D said there was no info about requesting/submitting LOR when filling his application.
In years past, the LOR was by request only. The applicant receives an email with instructions after the application is submitted. So, not part of the initial application.
If you’re not invited to send an LOR, there’s no need to send it, nor is there a place to send it to even if you wanted to.
@svlab112 Okay, thanks for answering it.
@anteatergang here’s some facts for Cal’s LOR based on 2016-17 data
Dear Colleagues:
I hope this message finds you well. As we move quickly toward the UC application submission deadline, I wanted to reach out to share a few quick updates from UC Berkeley.
As you may know, UC Berkeley is again requesting letters of recommendation from some, but not all, freshmen applicants. Like last year, we are making a letter request when we would like to see additional information. Three important distinctions remain: 1) the letter is optional, 2) students may only submit two letters each, and 3) while the student can choose the letter writer, Berkeley faculty policy prefers that one letter come from a teacher or academic contact.
To make sure that you are informed - and in the spirit of transparency - I am happy to share the following results from last year’s letter process. Every year’s applicants are unique so these numbers may be used as a point of reference, but shouldn’t be used to predict outcomes for the 2017-18 pool.
In the 2016-17 application cycle, UC Berkeley:
requested letters from more than 24,000 freshman applicants,
observed more than 19,700 (79%) applicants (of the 24,000+) requesting at least one letter from recommenders,
received and reviewed almost 40,000 letters from more than 19,000 students, representing a response rate over 95% (of the 19,700).
And, we experienced the following outcomes:
admitted more than 9,500 students who did not receive an invitation to submit a letter,
admitted more than 5,500 students who were offered the opportunity to submit a letter and, as a result, submitted at least one letter,
admitted 540 students who were offered the opportunity to submit a letter, but for whom no letter was received.
As we continue to use letters as resources in the 2017-18 reading cycle, I want to thank you for your support of our holistic review process. As admission becomes more selective each year, we are fully committed to gathering as much information as we can. Your support of students is evident and we are grateful for your partnership.
If we can help in any way as the letter requests are generated, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We are available to serve as resources to students, letter writers, and student advocates. The deadline for letter submission is January 15th. Letter requests will be issued through the first week of December.
For more information on our Letters of Recommendation process, please visit our website.
With much appreciation,
Amy W. Jarich
Assistant Vice Chancellor & Director of Admissions
University of California, Berkeley
On my daughter’s portal, application, and test scores have a green check next to them. Then underneath that it says letter of recommendation with a little icon next to it, but no check mark. My daughter says she hasn’t received a request for a LOR . Wondering what that means? Could it be that one of her teachers automatically sent it in?
If I’m doing the math right, that means that about 27% of applicants who were asked for a letter and provided one were accepted, while only 13% of applicants who were asked for a letter and didn’t provide one were accepted. For reference, in 2017, Berkeley’s freshman acceptance rate was 18.3%.
@literallyliteral
Correct, and it shows that the LOR’s are very important and that Cal does read them and it does have an impact on whether or not you get accepted. There’s such a fine line these days and that’s why it’s so important to really understand all the dynamics and unfortunately many are out of your control but the ones’ you do say LOR, yes, you should submit one. Use all the facts/data that’s relevant to make a more informed decision.
Good Luck and GO BEARS!!
I just opened my Cal application portal that they sent me through email. I saw the “application checklist” in the portal and it shows that my application and test scores were received with a green check mark. But, there’s also an optional Letters of Recommendation. Im confused because I never received an email about sending recommendations (like everyone else), but it appears in my portal?
Does this mean that I can send letters?
I am little confuse about LOR?So when you summit application you do not summit LOR at that time?
Thanks!
That also happened to my son’s portal.
It’s possible that when the counselor sent the LOR through Naviance, they also sent them for UCs.
Nevermind, they just sent the email!