<p>I was told only UCSC and Davis didn’t read them by my community college counselor.</p>
<p>“At least 2 individuals review the admissions application, including the personal statement. Consideration is given for the specific factors, both academic and personal, used in the UC San Diego comprehensive review process. Admission is offered to applicants on the basis of their total comprehensive review score.” taken from [UC</a> San Diego Comprehensive Review Admission Process: Freshman Selection, Fall 2010](<a href=“http://www.ucsd.edu/prospective-students/freshmen/eval-process.html]UC”>http://www.ucsd.edu/prospective-students/freshmen/eval-process.html)</p>
<p>It looks like GPA and grades do matter but the essay is also taken into consideration. Which makes sense because if your grandma died last Spring and you had a bad semester… you’d need an essay to talk about that.</p>