I am an international applicant and the email reads:
UC Berkeley Application Interview Opportunity
Thank you for applying to University of California, Berkeley for Fall 2016.
If you have not already done so, please know that you have an opportunity to submit a video interview to UC Berkeley’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions to be included in your application. This interview allows you to demonstrate your proficiency in English.
The interview will be conducted by the company InitialView. You can sign up for the interview at the InitialView website.
If you are not able to find a time that works for you, call + 86-10-8286-3889 or e-mail contact@initialview.com.
Once you submit your video, UC Berkeley’s international admission specialists will review the video as part of your application.
Please note: Your application to UC Berkeley will be reviewed regardless of whether you submit an InitialView interview. Each application will be reviewed in its entirety, and some students without an interview may still be accepted.
If you choose to participate, please complete your interview no later than Saturday, February 27, 2016.
Office of Undergraduate Admissions
UC Berkeley
Hmm I’m really trying to work out Berkeley’s connotations here…
For the record, since I got 2300 SAT and 115/120 in TOFEL, honestly I think I have demonstrated my “proficiency in English”… :-S
The interview costs about 250 USD… Is it worth it?.. Any advice would be appreciated.
Hey @AspiringSenior!
I am an international applicant from Brazil, and I also received a similar email regarding InitialView but from Carnegie Mellon University. I am also applying to UC Berkeley, but they didn’t send me anything like that up to date. And, by the way, my SAT and TOEFL scores are very similar to yours.
I’ve still not taken the interview, mainly due to its reasonably high cost (around 50% of the average monthly income of a Brazilian worker for something that I don’t consider necessary) and terrible schedules (taking an interview at 3 am, seriously???). So, just like you, I am having a hard time figuring out if its really worth it, and although I’ve emailed CMU explaining my considerations and doubts, they haven’t replied me yet.
May I ask you where are you from? I’ve heard that due to recent controversies regarding TOELF and SAT in China (https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/01/19/chinese-students-hungry-attend-universities-caught-fraudulent-application-process/gpRB06mqBVAsxZ6eAbFKCJ/story.html), many asian applicants are now encouraged to “prove” their English communication skills through other means besides standardized testing.
Anyway, I will wait for an answer from CMU. Why don’t you too email Berkeley expressing your points? Please let me know if you have any new information!
Hey! I know you guys were talking about this two months ago, I am an Spanish transfer applicant to UC Berkeley and I also received this email! I sent them an email asking if it’s necessary, as I too have good TOEFL scores, have been living in the US for two years, and find the price too high… and they answered me what they say on the e-mail: They said that it won’t affect the outcome if I don’t take it, but while doing some research I found that in many articles they recommend it. So I decided to take it 
did you guys take it? where you accepted? I will know in a month as I am a transfer…
Thanks!