The University of California - Berkeley
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The University of California - Berkeley - How to Get into UC-Berkeley (Undergraduate) | |||||||||||||||||||
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I suggest just being yourself in your admissions essay. The UCs do not ask for letters of rec. I wouldn't suggest doing something stupid and crazy for your essay, rather show off your real writing talent and showcase something you are proud of or some obstacle you've overcome (though don't do a sob story, focus on how it changed you and the way you think about the world, etc.)
Berkeley's pretty selective, so yes, you have to be good to get in. Especially for impacted majors I think. I came in as PoliSci but changed it later, actually, to something less impacted. I don't recommend trying to get in as, say, a development studies major when you really want to do Social Welfare or something. It might backfire; I don't know.
Berkeley's had some controversy lately about turning away people with really high SAT scores and taking people with lower ones, but it's probably because the 1600 people didn't do anything cool and the admissions people thought they wouldn't add anything to the school's environment. Cal wants a well-rounded class. What do you have to offer?
SAT: 1500 Female
If you're a prospective engineering major who just happens to be Asian and you attend a super competitive school in a rich city, TOUGH LUCK... but once you arrive, you'll belong to the smartest group of people that really makes Berkeley shine.
Look:
If you're of "disadvantaged" race, you live in a low-class city, you're HS's average SAT is a strong 800, 1% of your class go to college (mostly community college or state colleges, etc...), and you took that ONE AP class in your junior year and got that GOOOOOD 3 while working full-time + overtime and taking care of your 13 siblings and your sick mother/father. Your GPA just happens to be a 4.99 (reference: ur classmate who got a 4.98 went to a community college. ur sister who got a 4.97 even got rejected from a local community colllege and therefore is working as a full-time babysister). CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'RE AUTOMATICALLY ADMITTED TO CAL! WELCOME TO THE BOTTOM 30%!!! yay!!!
Case 2:
You're a hard-working son/daughter of a doctor+lawyer parents living in a respectable $6.8million house in an upper class neighborhood. ur HS's average SAT is 1410, and you got a 4.2 GPA after taking 12 APs, on which you received 10 5's and 2 4's. O yeah, ur Asian and u got a 1540 onthe SAT.
YOU'LL GET INTO BERKELEY, BUT ONLY AFTER BERKELEY ACCEPTS THAT "underpriviledged/HISToRicalLY DiSaDvanTAGed group" but once you get in, you'll be in the top 4%.
and the final result comes out to be...
11% acceptance rate for the ultimate asian major: EECS (electrical engineering and computer science)
13% acceptance rate for undeclared-engineering
overall 15% acceptance rate for engineering.
and easy% acceptance rate for anti-asian arts/humanities majors.
SAT: 1580 Male
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it!
Study, GPA'S, and SAT scores. Since it's a UC app, that's all they're going to care about, despite their goal for a more subjective review.
SAT: 1490 Male