uc essay application prompt

These college essays are from students who got accepted at University of California – ​Berkeley. Use them to get inspiration for your own essays and knock the socks off those admissions officers!Most children acquire the same eye color or a similar shaped nose from their parents, but I’ve inherited much more: a passion for learning and an insatiable curiosity which has served me well throughout my academic career. My father, an electrical engineer, taught me to explore the world with inquis.Read moreDreams are shaped by ideals and families shape the beliefs we grasp so strongly. Someday I want to save and change lives through a medical career. Because my family has taught me that change can be positive and radical in altering lives, I hope to hold that ability someday. I seek the power to impro.Read moreI am an Internet entrepreneur. Since age 12, I have coded and designed websites -- for my school, the local community, and as a personal hobby and pastime. In fact, I started my own Internet business in 2004 and was hired as a webmaster by Intel Corporation this past summer. I also volunteer my free.Read moreMirrors exist to show our outer appearance but nothing beyond that. Only our actions, words, and ideas could possibly represent the personal qualities that matter. The true worth of a person is revealed in those glimpses of light in the midst of adversity and darkness. Those traits that are highly a.Read moreI'm a fifth generation Californian who's picked up a few of the habits of the region, among them surfing and computer programming. What does this mean? Having a foot in both worlds gives me a sense of balance and perspective. Beyond that, surfing has influenced my software coding and future.Read more Thank God for Starbucks, I mutter under my breath when I spot the all too familiar siren inspired logo as we walk into the hotel lobby. With my mocha in hand, I.
If you're applying to any University of California campus as an incoming freshman, then you have a special challenge ahead of you. Applicants need to write 2 UC personal statements, answering prompts that are different from those on the Common App. But not to worry! This article is here to help. In this article, I will dissect in detail the 2 UC essay prompts that all incoming freshmen have to answer. What are they asking you for? What do they want to know about you? What do UC admissions officers really care about? How do you avoid boring or repulsing them with your essay? I'll break all of these important questions down for both prompts. I'll also give you examples of how to make sure your essay fully answers UC's questions. Finally, I'll instruct you step-by-step on how to come up with your best ideas for both UC application essays. What Is the UC Personal Statement? If you think about it, your college application is mostly made up of numbers: your GPA, your SAT scores, the number of AP classes you took, how many years you spent playing volleyball. These numbers only reveal so much. The job of admissions officers is to put together a class of interesting, compelling individuals – but a cut and dried achievement list makes it very hard to assess whether someone is interesting or compelling. This is where the personal statement comes in. The UC college essay is your way to give colleges a sense of your personality, your perspective on the world, and some of the experiences that have made you into who you are. The idea is to share the kinds of things that don’t end up on your transcript. It's helpful to remember that you are not writing this for you. You're writing for an audience of people who do not know you, but are interested to learn about you. The essay is meant to be a revealing look inside your thoughts and feelings.  Though it’s called an essay, the personal.
Download printable version of this page What is the personal statement? The personal statement is more than just a mandatory part of your UC application; it's your one chance to explain to college admissions readers why you are a good fit for their school. This is where you become more than just another name - it's where you become an individual, and where you can share your personality, your goals, your experiences, and where you can explain any opportunities or obstacles that have affected your academic record. It's one element considered in UC's comprehensive review of your application. You will not be admitted based on only one part of your application, so you need to give equal attention to all sections. It's an opportunity to provide information that gives readers context for your accomplishments. The personal statement allows you to add information that you couldn't work into the other parts of the application. Think of it this way - the personal statement: adds clarity, depth and meaning to information collected in other parts of your college application. enables you to make the best possible case for admission. A Message from UC Faculty: While it is acceptable to receive feedback or helpful suggestions, applicants' personal statements should reflect their own ideas and be written by them alone. Never let anyone rewrite your personal statement. Others' feedback can help you hone your ideas, but the writing should be your own. Where do I start? A personal statement starts with reading - reading your completed UC application, that is. Before you write your personal statement, complete the application. When you're finished, ask yourself questions about it. Starting by completing the UC application instead of jumping right into the essays helps you identify key patterns in your academic record and extracurricular choices and anticipate the inferences that readers.
College Admissions Essays How to Answer Prompt 1 for the College Application Essay  for the University of California: “Describe the World You Come From” Only read this if you are applying to a UC (University of California school, such as UCLA, Berkeley, Santa Barbara, San Diego, Irvine, Santa Cruz, etc.). There are two college essay prompts for their required personal statements for incoming freshmen. Here is some advice regarding the first one: Prompt 1 (freshman applicants) Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations. Read this closely. Note that it asks you to describe one thing and then tell about another–so there are two points you need to address in your essay. When you describe the world you come from, think of this in a figurative sense. Do not just write about your hometown. Instead of the word “world,” try substituting it for the word “community” or “background.” As a “community,” almost anything can be your world (a mini-community of shared activities, people, passions or places), from your yoga class to your bedroom to your job washing dishes to your grandmother’s kitchen making tortilla soup to your two moms. It’s wide open. Just pick a topic. Also, the examples they give, “family, community or school” are just that, examples. Do not write a little about each of these. And do not just write about “my family” or “my school.” Way too broad. Write about your uncle’s magic shop in an underprivileged neighborhood, or the Scrabble club you started at your school even though you are the world’s worst speller, or the old movie theater in your town where you first fell in love with cinema and the power of a visual story. (Check out the link at bottom of this post to my Tumbler blog with images and quotes to spark ideas for what makes your world.) Quickie.