Welcome to UC San Diego’s Admissions Reader Training!

These modules will introduce you to UC San Diego Admissions, our holistic review process, and the tools you’ll use to evaluate applications.

Please complete all modules in order. Each video builds on the last, guiding you from foundational information to hands-on application review. 

You can access each individually (links found below) or access the full playlist here. When accessing training materials or videos, you will be prompted to log in using your UC San Diego Active Directory (AD) credentials. Please make sure you can access your AD account before beginning the modules. 

If you are on the international team, you do not need to watch Module 7.

New readers are not required to complete the Returning Reader modules, but are welcome to explore them if they’d like a deeper look before the day-of training. 

Get to know the UC San Diego Office of Admissions and your role as an External Reader.

This video outlines:

• The scale of our work

• The structure of the upcoming read cycle

• What to expect as a member of our review team

Learn about the training expectations, deadlines, and how to stay on track.
 

This video covers:

• The certification process and quiz requirements

• Homework structure (2 bins, 20 applications each, plus a third if assigned)

• How to confirm completion and communicate with your Team Lead

Take a quick tour of UC San Diego’s application review system.
 

This video provides a first look at:

• The reader dashboard and file navigation

• Where to find academic and personal information

• How to enter scores and submit reads

Understand how we evaluate the “whole student.”

This video introduces the scoring framework used across all readers and begins building your calibration foundation.

Topics include:

• The meaning of “holistic review” at UC San Diego

• How we balance academic and personal factors

• Overview of the 1–5 scoring scale

Dig deeper into academic context and performance interpretation.

This module explains:

• How UC calculates unweighted, weighted, and UC-certified honors GPAs

• How to interpret percentiles (SCH-SD, SCH-UC, POOL-SD)

• When data may be incomplete and how to read fairly using what’s available

Explore how to evaluate students’ responses to the Personal Insight Questions (PIQs).

You’ll learn:

• What to look for in strong, authentic responses

• How to identify “value added” content versus general statements

• How PIQs complement the academic record

Put it all together with guided examples.

This final video walks you through real applications to see how the principles of holistic review, GPA context, and PIQ evaluation come together.

You’ll learn:

• How to evaluate a complete in-state file with full data

• How to approach more limited or complex out-of-state files

• How to assign a defensible score grounded in evidence