<p>I noted that texas ;)</p>
<p>Ascaris, I’m not getting my hopes high on this 
Also, in case you’re wondering, Cal usually sends out ‘likely letters’ in the form of a regents scholarship interview invitation. They surprise people by telling them of their likely status during the interview 
This seems like a good interpretation,</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>However, I doubt the not-reading-my-application part It’s too close to decision time for them not to have read my application haha :)</p>
<p>2 of my classmates got that same email. One’s American, the other isn’t. So doesn’t really help judge whether its general or only for a few. </p>
<p>Still, it seems naive to think that they would ask all Mech applicants to apply for a highly selective scholarship right?</p>
<p>That doesn’t seem naive tastycles ;)</p>
<p>The fact that I would try to read between the lines of such a general email is naive :rolleyes:</p>
<p>Why would they want to receive and review hundreds of transcripts, recommendation letters etc to select around 10 max, when they could cut down their number by not contacting those who don’t have a chance of being admitted?</p>
<p>Agreed. However, the application is not invitation-only. Anyone who Googles it, applied to Cal for MechE and submits the application before 28th March will be considered.</p>
<p>In case you’re wondering, only 6 students were selected in 2009.</p>
<p>They could just throw away all the scholarship application forms from the rejects when decisions come out on the 28th. No one is forcing them to read every single one. I do think that this email is to inform everyone and make sure their application is done on time. Sending it to all the applicants and weeding out those rejected later seems smarter than sending out, what will essentially be, likely letters.</p>
<p>^ That would be really harsh :c</p>
<p>I am surprised that those who have their Chemistry exam tomorrow are on CC still at this time</p>
<p>Maybe they’ve burnt out memorizing? :p</p>
<p>In any case, good luck everyone!</p>
<p>@Ascaris Yeah, I guess that’s possible. Serves their interests the best.</p>
<p>ISC people, how was physics today? I found it a lot easier than expected, thankfully. :)</p>
<p>Good luck to all CBSE’ers for tomorrow’s Chemistry exam</p>
<p>Hey all.
Btw, how EXACTLY do u joy
down on a paper your love for engineering? I mean, i am not crazy about it either but erm, how do u write that “i love engineering bcoz…?” I can write why the schools engineering program suits me and stuff, but how do i write about something i have never tried my hands on? Erm, like why do i like engineering?- no idea! I like it because of the job prospects and my love for bio ( intended major- biomed engineering) …?</p>
<p>Right about any experience, event, activity, sight, smell, sense, memory or anything that might have made you want to study engineering. BUT please don’t talk about all these things. The simpler you make it, the better :)</p>
<p>Then, follow it by a quick, “I was especially intrigued/fascinated by Professor Derp Derpson’s research on how to make a great rage comic. His and his department’s research is unique to this university as is demonstrated by how many successful memes he has created. I would love to participate in such research at your university.”</p>
<p>Follow this by why you want to do research.</p>
<p>Know the university in and out. Better than the janitor who has been working there for 20 years.</p>
<p>Disclaimer: I do not guarantee this to be the best approach. This is just my approach. Of course, you should personalize this so that your essay sounds like your voice and not mine.</p>
<p>You will notice that sometimes, you will just scrap your original essay because you may not like it. Inspiration can strike any time. Always ask a few people who you trust to give their opinions on your essay. Never take these opinions as a final word.</p>
<p>PM me if you need more help</p>
<p>I’ve been thinking a bit about my chances of admission to Cal, and here’s an optimistic take on it:</p>
<p>Berkeley and UCLA send out supplements to people on the borderline - not good enough to be accepted right away but not bad enough to be outright rejected. None of us Indians got the supplement which means one of two things: we’re either in or out. At the same time, all of us (I think) got the UCLA likely, which means it’s safe to assume that we’re in the top percentile of competitive applicants and will most likely (99% probability) get in. Since we’re THAT competitive at one of the most selective departments at UCLA, we probably have a more than decent shot at Berkeley’s engineering department and, since we KNOW we aren’t on the borderline, we are probably in. </p>
<p>Take this with a grain of salt of course. Or preferably a bucket. These are just the musings of a sleep deprived mind. Come march 28th I might be eating my words ;)</p>
<p>I hope your intuition comes to fruition ;)</p>
<p>To be honest, I hadn’t heard of the Drake scholarship till I read your post. But then I asked my roommate, who’s a MechE, and he told me it’s a fully funded ride for US citizens. As for the invitation, to my knowledge, Berkeley sends out lots of bulk email (I remember receiving a couple last year, not this one since I’m an EECS major, but the Leadership Award). This is not an indication of admission, and is sent out to all prospective students.
On the other hand, a Regents’ invite, which some people here also equate to a ‘likely’ letter, is the most prestigious scholarship that Berkeley offers. It is a fully funded scholarship, including housing and priority registration for classes(which is a big deal!). If you do get the Regents’ invite, then you are certainly admitted, regardless of whether you’re awarded the scholarship or not. Unfortunately, I don’t know of any international students that are Regents Scholars, so I assume it’s not offered to internationals, though I might be incorrect. I should mention that I have had the privilege of knowing a couple of Regents’ scholars myself. To give you a glimpse of the quality of these selected students, one of them turned down Harvard, Columbia and Stanford to come here and the other one chose Cal over Harvey Mudd and Princeton.</p>
<p>Does Berkeley even send supplements to internationals at all?</p>
<p>Plus, UCLA didn’t send likely letters to just the top 1% of applicants. More like the top 40-50%.</p>
<p>Supplements are sent out in cases where the admissions committee wants to know more about the applicant. These cases are generally considered borderline.</p>
<p>As for the surge in likely letters, it is a publicly known fact that the UC campuses, especially Berkeley and UCLA, will be admitting a record number of internationals this year because of the budget crisis. The state of California has continuously been taking loans from the UCs, which has led to further complications, like more OOS students and fee hikes.
Sigh. The day California returns the amount it owes to the UC system, the whole fee hike cycle would come to a screeching halt.</p>
<p>
I’d rather take it with a grain :p</p>
<p>Tastycles, source? Definitely not 40%-50%. My current school valedictorian didn’t get one. My previous school’s valedictorian didn’t get one. They have decent extracurriculars ;)</p>
<p>It’s only for engineering right? Are you sure they applied for it?</p>
<p>7 people I know who have applied for engineering got it. One of them had NO EC’s in 11th and 12th. SAT 1990, SATII M780, P790, 11th marks 77%, 12th marks 81%, ICSE 90%. I highly doubt he is in the upper half of the admitted class.</p>