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Tips for Completing the University of California Application

Each UC campus has tips on their respective website. We do our best to make sure this is as accurate as possible at time of printing, but changes to the application systems are inevitable. Please view the tips and instructions offered online through UC.

Explore campuses and list them in your Naviance account
Explore majors at UC Schools you are interested in. Also check the major for being "impacted" or "closed BEFORE applying. Applying to an impacted or closed major often result in denial or sometimes being put on a waitlist. Impacted Majors Page
You may apply online at http://www.ucop.edu/pathways
Questions about the UC Application along the way? Contact the UC help desk: ucinfo@applyUCsupport.net or (800) 207-1710
Read the directions. Each item has a specific instruction or tip to help with questions you may have.
Be sure to have a copy of your transcript, a list of your activities/dates, social security number, parent income and education, and the list of UC approved classes. When you enter courses you have taken, list them as they appear on your transcript.
YOU MUST HAVE YOUR SAT/ACT SCORES SENT OR APPLICATION IS NOT COMPLETE. You need to only send the SCORE REPORT to one campus and the rest will pick up the scores.
Deadline is November 30. Plan to electronically submit your application by the middle of November.
Choose an email you check frequently –this should not be your Cal High email address.

Term and Residency

Applicant Category: you are a freshman, even if you have taken college courses

Full Legal Name: Be sure the name you enter matches the name on your social security card and your transcript. If the name on your transcript is a nickname, you need to change it. See your counselor.

Social Security Number: This number identifies you, be sure to enter it. If you do not have a social security number, you will need to get your California Statewide ID number, which is on your transcript. You should still apply for a SSN number for financial aid purposes.

ELC (Eligibility in the Local Context): If you received a letter saying you were selected for the ELC program, determination for ELC selection will be later decided by the individual colleges based on number of ELC candidates who applied.

Campuses and Majors

Campus and Major: We suggest that you apply to more than one campus. The rule of thumb is to apply to your “dream” campus and then to a couple of other acceptable campuses that you think you can get in to. Historically, the most competitive campuses are UCLA, Berkeley, and San Diego.
If you are pretty sure of your major, indicate it. For most campuses, you can apply undeclared and that will not hurt you. Colleges of Engineering and Business want you to declare a major. Click here to check individual campuses for impaction status of majors – undeclared may not hurt you but may prevent you from getting into impacted majors later on.
UC San Diego Colleges: UCSD has different colleges that have different college graduation requirements. Get a San Diego catalog, or go to UCSD’s web site at http://admissions.ucsd.edu to get information about this or go to Naviance.

Scholarships

Go through each of the lists to see what scholarships may fit you. Cal High is even listed in the School or Geographic Affiliation scholarship section. There is something for everyone so check each area.

Personal Information

EOP (Educational Opportunity Program): EOP is for disadvantaged students, usually from low-income families or from families in which the applicant is the first generation to attend college. If you think you qualify, check the box and follow the directions. You will need to know your family’s income from last year. More documentation will be asked at a later date.
Although some of this information is voluntary, it is suggested you fill it out, especially if income is low, family size is large or parent education is low.

Academic History

List the schools you have attended starting with the 9^th grade. Cal High’s College Board Code is 053229 and this is your current school. We are not a block or year-round school. We are a semester term type. The only thing you put in the last section is that you will receive a diploma from California High School in May 2020.
When inputting classes, don’t forget to put in your math and world language from 7^th-8^th grades. You input these classes under 9^th grade, but type “7^th” or “8^th” next to the course title.
Look at your transcript and the A-G Course List (page 21 of this guide) to insure you list only those approved courses in your application.
There are courses that are not on the drop down list that you will have to manually enter. Some of the classes may not be in the year you took the class, but listed in another year. You will still have to type them in for the year you took the class.
After inputting all your classes, check for accuracy. It will not tell you if you are missing something.
You can list only the courses that are on the UC A-G approved course list. List the courses as they appear on your transcript. Remember that UC does not weight any of the advanced courses you took in the freshman or sophomore year unless they were AP or Honors classes. Courses taken in summer should be listed in the year after the summer session, except courses taken after the 11^th grade, which should be entered in the 11^th grade.
You must put down all D or F grades. You will list the repeat course and grade in the next year. Summer school courses go in the next year.
Students with International transcripts: You will still fill each subject area with the classes you took outside of the United States. Follow the directions on the online application. You will need to send a copy of your foreign transcript to the UC campuses you are applying to.
List all the history, English, math, lab science, visual performing arts, and world language classes you have taken that are on the UC approved list. List courses and grades for the 8^th (Algebra 1/Geometry and World Language only) 9^th, 10^th, and 11^th grades. List the courses you are taking and planning to take in the 12^th grade. If you list a course, they expect that you will complete it. If you list a course and then drop it later you must inform each campus to which you applied that you have dropped the course.
Electives: List only the courses on the UC approved list. Economics goes in electives.
For 12^th grade classes, they have preselected “In Progress” (for 1^st semester classes), “Planned” (for 2^nd semester classes), or “No Course”. You need to recheck these areas if they are not correct

College Courses

If you have taken courses at a college, be sure to list the name of the college in this section. Remember Diablo Valley College is in Pleasant Hill. They are also a semester type school. If you took a class during the summer, put start date as July and end date at August.
College courses should have the college course number (Hist 121 etc.) so that UC can tell exactly which course it is. When listing college courses, list the course as it is listed on the college transcript.

Activities and Awards

Do this first on a separate piece of paper. If you have too much, prioritize. Check the appropriate box for years of involvement. If you started an activity before you entered high school and continued it during high school, you can count all the years for number of years involvement.
Other Coursework Than A-G- You can list courses that are not on the A-G list that are related to your potential field of study (i.e. Child Development, Careers in Education, Leadership, Yearbook, Fashion Design, etc.)
Typically, the only Educational Prep Program our students participate in is AVID. It is not on the drop down menu, you will have to add it yourself.
Average your hours/week per year and round up. There are about 20 weeks in a semester, 10 weeks in summer, and approximately 13 weeks in an athletic season.
This is a place to boast.
Prioritize in each area/activity the activity of most importance and then list in descending order.

Test Results

Test Scores: Put in your highest total score. SAT Reasoning test scores must be from the same sitting. You can put the best SAT Subject test scores from different test dates. UC will take the best scores if you’ve taken the test multiple times. Be sure to have the testing services send your scores or they will not consider your application complete. If you send it to one UC, the others can get the scores. Complete all tests by the December test date. SAT subject tests are not required.
Only students whose native language is not English and who have come to the United States relatively recently take the TOEFL test. See your counselor if you think you may qualify.
AP Exams: UC has told us that they want to see the scores of all the tests you have taken, regardless of your score. AP tests will be taken in May.

Personal Insight Questions

The Personal Insight Questions: Do not get hung up on this. Do your best work. Type it in Word and cut and paste your answers onto the application. The university wants to get to know you better –this is where you tell your story. Choose four questions you feel you can relate to the most and can tell the university about your interests, personality and unique talents.

See the UC Essays/Personal Insight Questions page for detailed information about the questions.

Review and Submit

Go through and review your complete application before submitting. Pay particular attention to the Academic History Coursework Tally box. There should only be 0’s showing after each subject. If not, go back and fill in what you missed.

Authorizations: We recommend that you check all spots for release of information.

Make a copy of the finished application and confirmation code.

UC does not ask for letters of recommendation or transcripts during the application process time. They will require only a “final” transcript in June – upon graduation, and only to the college you have selected to attend. Occasionally, colleges audit applications and will request a transcript at a later time, in order to check validity of grades on the application.

And lastly….

Here’s the CHS “unwritten rule” – Both the UC/CSU applications need to be submitted prior to eating your turkey on Thanksgiving. Both UC/CSU websites have an annual history of ‘crashing’ the last few days of the month, due to a heightened level of website use.

DEADLINE: November 30. Do not wait until this date to submit!

Students who wish to attend a UC must fulfill A-G requirements in order to be eligible for admission. For more information on A-G requirements visit the University of California Admissions page.

Each UC campus provides a variety of virtual events where you can ask questions and engage with each school’s admissions department. You can find more information on virtual events at each campus via the following links:

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