@west2east20: It is possible to hear from the waitlist before May 1 if there are spots available and they usually give 1-2 weeks to make the decision.
@dbrusoccer: I have not gone back to previous years threads, but it is possible to be admitted prior to May 1 if spots are available, however this year is unique so many applicants may wait until the last minute to SIR depending upon their situation.
I got waitlisted too and I need advice. I got a C last semester in AP Physics C Mechanics and I donât know if I should report my grades since itâs optional. But, my essay is about my growth in that class because now I have an A in that class and all my classes plus I received a leadership award at my school recently. Do you think I should still submit them so it doesnât look like Iâm hiding anything?
They probabaly do want to see the grade. Honestly, waitlist is such a shotgun that we shouldnât really bet our chance in it and think too much about it.
@Gumbymom If I got waitlisted off of the College of Engineering at UC Berkeley (I was automatically put down as General Engineering for my major because I was not selected for M.E.T.), what are the chances I get off? Is it harder for Engineering? Are there any extra things I should do?
@agusata: I would say getting off the waitlist for Engineering would be harder than for the College of Letters and Sciences. Based on last yearâs waitlist CC posts, the majority of admitted waitlist students were in L&S.
If our school is a semester system, then how are we supposed to fill out the grades section since it is separated by fall, winter, and spring?
Also, does choosing one of the two pathways give us an advantage if no spots on the traditional pathway remain?
Hi @johnjohnson87 Regarding your first question, I donât know how to enter the grades into the input fields, myself (my son uploaded his most recent unofficial transcript) but I would only enter grades for classes that are final. In your case, that would be only Fall grades. This has been echoed on this thread and the WL threads going back a few years.
Regarding your second question, someone just reported that they spoke to admissions, and were told selecting a pathway like FPF or GE will NOT help your chances of getting in off of the waitlist.
@Gumbymom Oh, okay, that makes sense, although itâs a hard pill to swallow⊠What are some recommendations you would give to help our chances and assure UCB that they are our first choice, as an Engineering female student? I finished my waitlist application the day-of (it was already mostly written), and have a LOCI as well (an essay separate from the wait-list application essay), although I couldnât find an email to send my LOCI to. I also tried calling admissions office, but they are not available right now because of COVID-19.
What is the best advice you can give to a student who got waitlisted and dreams of attending Cal? Also, does anyone have stats on the number of people who get off waitlist from College of Engineering?
@augusata: UCB does not accept LOCIâs since an applicantâs level of interest is not a consideration in the admissions process. By opting into the waitlist, you are showing interest for UCB. Do not submit anything beyond what they ask for as a waitlisted student. There is nothing more that you can do and the waitlisted stats for admitted students is not broken out by College or Major. Best of luck.
Hello everybody! Thanks for the author for creating this thread!
I am an international applicant for the College of Sciences and Letters, and received a waitlist decision as well.
I got admitted by UCSD, UCD, and USC, but Iâd really like to go to UCB for my major in molecular biology. I took 8 AP courses with an okay weighed GPA of 4.6, took SAT II exams and AP exams and got 740+ and 4~5 on each exam, got an SAT score of 1510, and received national prizes in my field of interest, yet my college counselor said my application to UCB had only a slight chance of being admitted.
I was feeling frustrated and confused about this, since I really donât know how these waitlists work, and how the administrations office chooses the applications; however, after reading the threads above and understanding how the waitlist works, I feel even frustrated and lost at my application and my counselorâs comments on it, since I donât know what to do to strengthen my application.
I understand that maintaining a high GPA and showing consistent effort in application essays can strengthen my application, but as an international applicant, I understand that I am in a different pool of applicants. Is there any way, specifically, to make an international application stand out of other international ones?
@JordWG - why would your college counselor tell you that. UCB in past years has accepted around 30-40 percent of the people that opted in for the waitlist though in recent years the number has come down a bit. And scores are not everything. It depends on how good your essays are and I believe thatâs the deciding factor.
Does anyone know which pathway to select if we would prefer to go the traditional route? I only checked FPF because I wouldnât be able to afford either the Global Edge or Hong Kong Dual Degree, but would prefer to go the traditional route. Should I just leave them all unchecked? Or will that hurt my chances of getting off? Thanks!
My daughter was waitlisted for CAS. She only has the options to check Yes for the FOF and Global Edge programs. Does this mean that she will not be considered for the traditional Fall admission? Thanks.
Thanks for the Info. Looks like Iâll have to improve my essays then.
Watched a couple of webinars today. In the College Confidential COVID-19 Admissions update, there was a specific question submitted to college admissions directors about how the pandemic will affect the waitlists. One participant stated that, due to lower than usual SIRs (Statements with the Intent to Register) so far at his school, âthis is a good year to be on a waitlistâ and that universities will utilize waitlists âearly and oftenâ. Please note that this is one admissions director from a middle tier school, so UCB may be getting a normal amount of SIRs so far. But just realize that all previous models are probably going to go out the window, and we donât know if that is a good or bad thing for the UCB waitlist.
Also, I just watched the Berkeley Global Edge Info session, and they are still going ahead as normal (as of now). The required summer session will be a virtual session (instead of on campus). The director was very informative, but could not comment as to whether the program will move forward. For it to move forward, it would meant that the UK would have to lift all shelter-in-place, travel, school and gathering restrictions by sometime mid summer. I personally think that itâs a long shot and that it will be cancelled. I donât know if that means that fewer students will get in off of the waitlist, or if UCB will institute a bigger Spring admission group.
So, Iâve clarified nothing in two paragraphs, basically.
Hey guys!
Do we input plus and minus grades when submitting the form or omit them like we did in the original application?
Thanks in advance.
Do we know if UCB ranks their waitlist or selects randomly off of it, which seems odd to do.
@west2east20 - I have no clue. tbh. thatâs a good question that hopefully, the admissions office could answer. On that note, does anyone know if UCB keeps track of how many people get in from a certain high school? I go to school in NJ and 5 people from my school got in who are all gonna commit to UCB., whereas I got waitlisted. I was wondering if UCB sets a cap on how many people get in from a certain school because if they do then I might be out of luck.
@Gumbymom do you have an idea to my question. I also plan to attach my transcript just in case as well.
@studentasking234: I would report the grades without the +/- like the UC application. If you attach a copy of your transcript, then they will see the actual grades so the point is moot.