OOS - UCLA and Berkeley - what are they looking for

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - GENERAL
1

My daughter is applying to UCLA and Berkeley from what I’m sure is an under-represented state in terms of applications to UCs (although i don’t even know if that matters).

She scored a 36 on the ACT and was hoping that would be helpful for UCLA, but obviously at the last minute, couldn’t report that. She’s a full IB diploma student taking the hardest curriculum available at her school and has received all As.
What concerns me is that no IB or AP classes are available until 11th grade because the IB sequence is two years. I feel like that puts her weighted and capped GPA at a significant disadvantage because her entire courseload 11 and 12 are IB but 12th doesn’t count.

Other: NMSF, three sport varsity athlete two years and two sport varsity the other two, significant service with the same organization for four years, several clubs, no real leadership roles, and has worked in the summers and for a significant portion of the school year. She has been an essential worker (a continuation of her job from before) throughout this school year while also tutoring and participating in athletics. Typical honors given her grades, scores, etc.

Not being from CA and without any history from her school of people applying to the UCs, I can’t tell how they read these apps. We did visit UCLA before Covid but I still didn’t get a good feel for that in the presentation because almost everyone was in state and transfers in our group.

Would appreciate your thoughts - she feels like she just sent her application into a black hole, which was different than any of her other apps. It’s just so unique. Thanks.

2

Below is a comprehensive list of the UC’s review applicants minus test scores for this year. UC’s tend to be very GPA focused along with a competitive HS course rigor.

* BERKELEY

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Important: Extracurricular activities, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Considered: Character/personal qualities, First generation college student, State residency, AP/IBLH exam scores

  • Note: Thorough review of academic performance; likely contribution to intellectual and cultural vitality of the campus; diversity in personal background and experience; demonstrated qualities in leadership, motivation, concern for others and community; non-academic achievement in the performing arts, athletics or employment; demonstrated interest in major.

  • LOR’s by invitation only as of 2017
    Division (L&S, CNR, CoC, CED, CoE) matters for admission selectivity.
    Within CoE (but not the other divisions), major matters for admission selectivity. Changing majors within the CoE after enrolling is not guaranteed, unless one is CoE undeclared.

      Note that L&S admits students as undeclared; admission to capped 			majors (e.g. CS, economics, psychology, ORMS, statistics, art practice, 		and a few others) is by college GPA in prerequisite courses (and 				portfolio for art practice) after attending for a few semesters.

  The business major is in a separate division and admits students in a 		competitive holistic process. Frosh intending business majors begin in 		another division (usually L&S), take the business major prerequisites, 		and apply (usually in their second years). They also need to take 				prerequisites for a backup major in case they are not admitted to the 		business major.
  
  All students who apply to UC Berkeley and select a major within the 			College of Natural Resources are evaluated based on their application, 		not on the particular major they select.

  •   DAVIS

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Important: Character/personal qualities, Extracurricular activities, Talent/ability, Volunteer work

  •   Considered: First generation college student, Geographical residence, State residency, Work experience

  •   Note: Scholastic achievement most important, followed by school and community activities, academic interests, special circumstances, special achievements and awards

    Admission decisions are made based upon the qualifications of the applicant pool and the number of available spaces within each academic area:
    • College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences admits by college
    • College of Biological Sciences admits by college
    • College of Letters and Science admits by division within the college
    • (Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies; Mathematics and Physical Sciences; Social Sciences)
    • College of Engineering admits by academic department
    Students applying as “undeclared” or “undeclared/exploratory” are considered within the college/division to which they applied.

  •   IRVINE

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Extracurricular activities, Level of applicant's interest, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Important: Character/personal qualities, Class rank

  •   Considered: First generation college student, Geographical residence, State residency

  •   Note: Demonstrated record of academic preparation, educational engagement, talent and skills important.

  • Freshman Selection:
    UCI admits into the University first and then into the major. In the case that UCI is unable to accommodate all qualified applicants in their first-choice major, those students who indicate a valid alternate major may be offered admission in that major or Undeclared.

    • LOS ANGELES
  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Important: Character/personal qualities, Extracurricular activities, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Considered: First generation college student, Geographical residence, AP/IBHL exam scores

  •   Note: GPA, test scores, course work, number of and performance in honors and AP courses most important. Essay considered. Strong senior program important. Extracurricular activities, honors and awards also reviewed.
    • For the College of Letters and Science, the applicant’s major is not considered during the review process. The Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science admits students by declared major, with more emphasis on science and math programs. The School of Nursing also places more emphasis on science and math programs and requires the submission of an additional supplemental application. The School of the Arts and Architecture; Herb Alpert School of Music; and the School of Theater, Film and Television admit students by declared major (within the school), and put more emphasis on special talents through a review of portfolios and/or auditions, which are the most significant admission factors for these schools.
  •   MERCED

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Important: Class rank, Extracurricular activities, Talent/ability

  •   Considered: Character/personal qualities, First generation college student, Geographical residence, Level of applicant's interest, Recommendations, State residency, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Note: Academic record and test scores determine eligibility.

  •   RIVERSIDE

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Considered: Character/personal qualities, Extracurricular activities, First generation college student, State residency, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Note: A fixed weight point system comprehensive review model that culminates in an Academic Index Score to determine admission for incoming freshmen.

  •   SAN DIEGO

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Important: Character/personal qualities, Extracurricular activities, First generation college student, State residency, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Note: High school course pattern, GPA, essay and test scores most important. Admission for out-of-state applicants more selective than for residents.

    The campus does not admit students on the basis of academic major or choice of UC San Diego undergraduate college. Alternate majors are considered. Also note: Capped majors require additional pre-req courses
    and specific GPA to be able to qualify to if changing majors.

  •   SANTA BARBARA

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Considered: Character/personal qualities, Class rank, Extracurricular activities, First generation college student, Level of applicant's interest, State residency, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Note: Eligibility established by high school GPA, course requirement, and SAT scores. Special consideration for disadvantaged students.

  • Freshman Selection:
    College of Letters and Sciences: Choice of major is not considered in selection to the College of Letters and Science. The exceptions to this rule are dance and music performance majors. Both majors require applicants to complete an audition in late January or early February.

    College of Engineering: Students are selected by major for all engineering and computer science majors. Only applicants with a solid background in advanced high school mathematics will be considered for admission to engineering. This includes high grades in all math courses through grade 11 and enrollment in pre-calculus or higher in grade 12. A student not selected for their first choice major will be reviewed for admission to an alternate major outside of the College of Engineering if one was selected.

    College of Creative Studies:
    Applicants to the College of Creative Studies submit a supplementary application in addition to the general UC Application, which is reviewed by Creative Studies faculty. Students are selected within Creative Studies majors only. Applicants not selected for Creative Studies will automatically be considered for admission to the College of Letters and Science.

  •   SANTA CRUZ

  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores, State residency

  •   Important: Character/personal qualities, Extracurricular activities, First generation college student, Geographical residence, Talent/ability

  •   Considered: Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Note: Test scores, GPA in required subjects most important. Personal statement very important.

  • Admission Selection:
    Important Note for Prospective Engineering Students: Choice of major does not influence the selection of first-year students, except for those applicants interested in a major offered by the Jack Baskin School of Engineering (BSOE). Freshmen who are interested in a BSOE program should be sure to indicate a BSOE proposed major. Students who do not indicate a BSOE program or who apply as undeclared might not be able to pursue a BSOE program.

3

thank you @Gumbymom. I edited my post about the weighted and capped GPA since she didn’t have access to AP/IB until junior year. I feel like that is going to be an issue given the importance they place on it.

4

Sorry for the posting issues with the above information. I have tried copy and pasting several times and the information will not post correctly.

5

She will be evaluated in the context of her HS so if IB courses are not available until 11th, then that will be taken into consideration.

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@Gumbymom I love how Berkeley has “very important” for standardized test scores :joy:

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you can add new test scores on the update application page

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@jeweledowl812 I thought the UCs were test blind? I don’t think they’re looking at those.

9

This question might not be exactly on point for this thread, but I have been wondering about the discrepancy between the stats on the UC freshman profiles on the university website, as compared to my daughter’s high school Naviance. For example, on the UCLA freshman profile, instate admitted 25th percentile had 3.92 UW (i.e. the lowest 25% of admitted students had all As except for 1 B in 10th and 11th grade). On our CA public high school’s Naviance, the average GPA admitted to UCLA is 4.23. If a student is taking the most rigorous courses available at our school and had UW 3.92, their weighted GPA would be 4.5-4.6. The data doesn’t seem to match up. We haven’t had a bunch of athletes admitted to UCLA, so that wouldn’t explain it.

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@Sisternight: I do not want to derail this discussion but you need to find out what GPA is being inputted into Naviance. UC capped weighted (up to 4.4), UC Fully weighted (up to 5.0)? Are Senior grades included or only 10-11th? Many different scenarios which could explain what you are seeing.

As the old adage states: Garbage in, Garbage out.

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@nanosec: Fall 2021 enrollment

UC will not consider SAT or ACT test scores when making admissions decisions or awarding Regents and Chancellor’s scholarships. If you choose to submit test scores as part of your application, they may be used to determine your eligibility for the California statewide admissions guarantee, as an alternative method of fulfilling minimum requirements for eligibility or for course placement after you enroll.

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@Gumbymom - that’s what I thought! :slight_smile: