<p>hey guys,</p>
<p>did anyone else get an email inviting u to apply for this scholarship? it sounds pretty hard to get though…they invite thousands, but only hundreds will win!</p>
<p>The application is open to anyone who qualifies and you can check your eligibility and apply at:</p>
<p>I think you asked about the regents for both Cal and LA earlier so if you're interested in LA's alumni scholarship too and don't want to wait for their invite email, you can also check you're eligibility and find the application at:</p>
<p>They will not let you apply online though- you need to download the application and mail it in. Best of luck to you!</p>
<p>i got one too. does it signify anything else i mean like ur chances at admissions or something</p>
<p>Nope, Alumni email invitations do not signify anything as it should have said in the email. I think all students who applied to the university are sent the email, and if not, they can still apply anyways as it's an open application.</p>
<p>I got one too. I'm on student council, but I haven't done anything very impressive. I agree with jyancy, I think everyone who applied was sent the email.</p>
<p>ooo i thought it was "special" haha my bad</p>
<p>I got one today... I thought my essay-writing days were over, but I guess this proves me wrong. at least the deadline isn't until feb 14. </p>
<p>do people think it's better to focus on a few leadership opportunities, or mention most/all of the one's you've done? do you have to talk about all of the activities that you listed above on the form, if some are self-explanatory?</p>
<p>they only have room for three activities on the form, right? I think they're going for quality over quantity...so I'm gonna focus on just a few. of course, I've only got a few really big ones TO focus on, but heeeey.</p>
<p>and SERIOUSLY about thinking the essays were all done...haha, I clearly celebrated prematurely.</p>
<p>Definitely better to go for quality over quantity. When you start listing, it becomes more of a brag sheet, and if they really wanted to see a list of your activities, they can always refer to your UC application. Focus on just a few and expand on exactly what you did, how it affected you and/or your community, what you can bring from your experiences as a leader or member of a club, etc. Also, by listing several activities, you are opening yourself to being asked any of a variety of questions about any one during your interview, some of which you might not have much to talk about- better to really focus on those that you think are the most important!</p>
<p>Do they care/WILL THEY KNOW if my Alumni scholarship essay is VERY SIMILAR to the UC long one I did? Because I have my own video production business and i wrote aobut that for the long essay, but now I wanna write about it for this alum scholarship. i mean, its def the biggest/most imporant leadership position i have had, but it'd be horribly stupid if they saw my app and saw that the essay was similar.</p>
<p>Are out-of-state students qualified for this scholarship?</p>
<p>^^ Yes. When I was in Chicago, I was invited to interview some Chicago students who applied for that Alumni Scholarship.</p>
<p>I do believe that out-of-state student qualify. I got an invite last year, and i was out-of-state (DC). I don't know if they are a lot more stringent on the out-of-staters tho. I didn't get it, but was told that i made it to the final round and i had some really strong ECs.</p>
<p>steveruleworld:</p>
<p>how do you like berkeley? also, would you mind sharing some of your stats from high school? just to give all of us hopefuls something to mull over while our applications are being processed...</p>
<p>I love Berkeley, i definately made the right choice. I definately recommend being in the dorms for anyone who gets in, i was in the substance free one, but we still have...interesting times, lol.</p>
<p>I forget my exact stuffs, but i think my SAT I was around 1440, my UC GPA was around 4.5-4.6. I took the hardest courses available at an extremely competitive Private High school in downtown DC. I was an out-of-stater as i mentioned. I was extremely involved in Boy Scouting, i got my Eagle before Sophomore High School year and was an Junior Asst scoutmaster into assist scoutmaster. Also, i was a founding member and captain of the robotics team at my school which went to MIT for a comp. Also, a member of the 'A' team for math and computer programming. Also i organized a toy drive for an orphanage in Kyrgyzstan and did a bunch of other community service things. I was admitted into the Nuclear Engineering department. Any other questions, you can keep posting here, make a new thread, or look up my aim sn in my proflie</p>
<p>I'm an Alumni Scholar, and I strongly suggest you apply for it. The application really isn't that bad, and the interviews are great experience. If you do get the scholarship itself, it's good money and almost no commitments during the school year.</p>
<p>I know that UCLA offers an infinitely better package than Cal in terms of Alumni Scholarships (I was offered both), but I think we all know the better school, eh?</p>
<p>Any questions about the scholarship or anything about good ol' Cal, I look forward to hearing from any future Bears!</p>
<p>pookdogg: Would you mind sharing the ECs you have done and/or used for your scholarship application? Also if you were an in-state or out-of-state applicant?</p>
<p>I have a fair number of leadership extracurriculars, but nothing spectacular, especially if you consider that I went to a very small high school. I am in-state, for what that's worth.</p>
<p>Leadership-related ECs:
Senior Class President
Concertmaster of School orchestra, county youth orchestra
Attended leadership camp put on by the Rotary Club
Ultimate Frisbee team co-founder (although I failed to mention our 0-5 record our first year...we went 3-2 the following year though :-P)
Mock Trial Attorney 2 years, Expert witness 1 year</p>
<p>And that's around it. Sure, I had high SAT scores (1590/2380) but I don't think they mattered too much for the scholarship.</p>
<p>In my limited experience with UCLA and Cal Alumni Scholarships, they place a lot bigger emphasis on the interviews than they would let on. In the UCLA process, I was interviewed by a surprisingly large pool of people as I moved into the regional and state qualifying stages (sometimes as many as 9 "judges" in the room at once during my interview), giving the powers-that-be a pretty good taste of how I interacted with folks. There was only one Berkeley interview, and it was much more informal (3 "judges") and conversational, but that doesn't diminish the ability of the interviewers and the scholarship giver-outers (for lack of a better term) to see fairly effectively how your brain works. Public speaking is always a plus!</p>
<p>If I remember correctly, I basically used one of my UC essays and fiddled around with it a bit before sticking it into the Alumni application. Went off without a hitch, evidently.</p>
<p>Once again, I strongly urge everyone to apply for the scholarship. It's free money, and you get the opportunity to make those lucrative...connections...with the more affluent Alumni, if you get my drift.</p>
<p>about how much money is it?
The interview sounds a little intense--</p>
<p>$1000 a year, and as long as you don't turn into a vegetable and not do anything, you can apply for another $1000 every year.</p>
<p>Don't get me wrong, the interviews are very laid-back; I was just emphasizing their importance (in my opinion, anyways). :-D</p>