This says it is, I was just wondering if anybody on here can validate this.
They are not required, according to http://admissions.berkeley.edu/freshmanpolicy .
Recommendations typically favor those in higher achieving high schools (usually either magnet schools, public schools in high SES areas, or private schools that are typically chosen for academic quality), since teachers and counselors are more likely to be experienced in writing them, and students are more aware of the need to get recommendations.
Well if the opportunity is there for me to increase my chances then it would be silly not to take advantage of this.
Not required and no one knows how much weight they will carry since it is the first time around. But yes I would send them.
I just think it will help me because my Precalc/Calc teacher has said to me that I will be his favorite story to tell (From being at the bottom of my class at the beginning of Precalc to being at the top of the class in Calculus. I put so much work into math and he loves to brag about me because of that.)
And that ties into what I’m trying to convey in my personal statement to all of the UC’s is how much I had to persevere in high school facing a learning disability and two different surgeries that both kept me out of school for almost two weeks for each surgery but I still maintained a competitive GPA through all of that. (My UC Capped GPA is 4.18 and Uncapped it is 4.36) and I feel like a letter of rec from my math teacher would only help me convey that.
According to their website, only certain freshman applicants will be asked to send letters of recommendation. See here: http://admissions.berkeley.edu/freshmanpolicy “Starting in fall 2015, some applicants to UC Berkeley will be invited…” “…consider the following concepts when asked to add a letter to the application process”
^ Hmm, well that’s a switch. Previously that page said, “Starting in fall 2015, all applicants to UC Berkeley will now have the opportunity to submit two letters of recommendation.” It’s still says “all applicants” in Google’s cached version of the page:
Ok I have a question about this as well. Does anyone know who will be chosen for rec letters? Berkeley says it will only choose “select applicants”.
@michelle426 My guess is maybe 2,000-3,000 of the applicants that they are really on the fence about. That’s my guess.