Supplement Application

[callmekert]

<p>No one seems to be much help in another section of this site, so hopefully someone here can clear things up for me.</p>

<p>Hello all. Recently I received an email from UC Irvine saying that I've been given a chance to "Enhance Your Application" and I'm not too sure what to make of it, was hoping some people here could shed some light. When I logged into my portal I was greeted with two essay prompts, which it claim are optional, but I take it they're basically not. </p>

<p>Anyways, the first prompt reads:
"In your application you may have mentioned an extraordinary talent/skill or academic achievement. This may include participation in Junior Olympics, national debate competitions, recognition for musical talent, etc. Please take this opportunity to share with us more detailed information about the level of your achievement, depth of participation, and passion for this particular area."</p>

<p>While the next one says:
"Please describe any special circumstances that you would like us to consider that may have affected your ability to achieve academically. This may include personal circumstances, family experiences, and opportunities that were or were not available at your school or home. If you participated in an educational preparation program (i.e., EAOP, Talent Search Upward Bound, Puente, etc.) please describe your level of involvement and how each program was beneficial to you."</p>

<p>I know they have three different supplements, does this one mean that I'm basically a borderline applicant? Does writing great essays here improve my chances greatly or not so much? On that note, how long should these responses be- I'm not looking to write one paragraph responses that say I have no interest, but I don't want to write something so long the readers bore. I recently dropped out of my dual enrollment program at my local CSU that would have had me taking Computer Science 222 and 223 after getting an A in CS221 in order to join a busy on campus club as VP and do varsity track, how much of a negative impact will this have on my decision? I've already notified the UC admissions office directly as well as UCI through my message center. Besides the essays I was asked to provide my first semester grades, which were all A's and one B, so I think that should help. Hope most of this information was somewhat relevant- would appreciate any and all responses; good luck to everyone who applied for fall 2014!</p>

[FutureNow]

<p>I got a supplemental application from UC Davis recently, and when I talked to a admissions rep they basically told me that it’s only purpose was to help the admissions readers make a more well informed decision. Basically, they are interested in something you mentioned briefly on the UC application and would like you to expand on whatever subject that may be so that they can understand who you, as a person, are. The rep I talked to said that it does not mean that you are a borderline applicant, but that it is in your best interest to do your best to answer the prompts.</p>

<p>As for your specific prompt, I would suggest writing short essays for each response - maybe about 1000 words per question. Although the rep did tell me that the answer length does not matter, it is important to expand your response fully, and given that I had 18 individual questions to respond to I would assume that they are looking for long(er) responses from you, given only two prompts. My supplemental application did include both of the questions you mentioned in addition to questions on economic hardships, and I responded to most of the meaty questions in maybe 5-10 sentences.</p>