This presentation covers the topics indicated above.

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Before students begin, it is important that they understand the application

process, and what they can do to prepare to complete the application.

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For students, we recommend the following:

Prepare for the application now – don’t wait until November.

•Review/print out “Freshman Application Tips and Tools for CA Students” on our website.

• “Undocumented Student Resources” provides tips for applying for admission, financial aid; as

well as a range of programs, resources, and support services offered at UC campuses for

undocumented students and their families. Tips for completing the application are available on

the web.

• Have your students start researching the campuses now so they will know where they want

to apply, and for what major.

•For major selection, it’s a good idea to review the curriculum in the General Catalog

for each campus - the courses required/offered for the same/similarly named major

might be different from one campus to another

• Check for available majors at each campus by reviewing the pdf that shows majors

by discipline (same/similarly named majors) across the 9 campuses. Then check for

majors available for fall 2018 applicants- not all majors are open to freshmen

applicants, or for every term.

•Provide students, if necessary, with the academic materials they will need:

transcripts/academic records, list of current and planned courses, and test scores.

•Students should not use memory to report grades—they must refer to their transcripts.

• Brainstorm: Students should take time to remember all the important things they have done

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throughout secondary/high school, from club involvement, to volunteering, athletics,

leadership, and more. Then, make a list of awards and honors, volunteer program timelines

and hours, employment timeline and hours, etc.

• UC campuses are selective: Recommend that students apply to different types of campuses

throughout the system for a better chance of being admitted and finding a good match.

Information on each UC campus can be found on the web.

• The short answer responses to the personal insight questions are important!

•Students should write responses early and refer to online resources with writing tips

and a worksheet (a video is also available) to help them get started.

•Campuses use email to communicate with applicants during the application process: students

should create a personal email account and be sure that they check it regularly.

•All of the web pages referred can be found from the UC system’s Admissions website at:

admission.universityofcalifornia.edu

•Additional resources are provided at the end of the presentation to help you provide better

assistance to your students.

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To complete the UC admission application, go to: https://universityofcalifornia.edu/apply We encourage counselors to create an account and complete the application so you’ll have a better idea of the experience your students will have. It’s very important for students to thoroughly complete all sections of the application and to do so accurately. This is the students’ opportunity to tell the admission staff about personal details that make each applicant unique. Accurate Details: • Academic History: MUST be accurately reported--all enrollment, every school/college, all courses and grades (especially if a course was repeated). If a student accepts an offer of admission, UC requires official academic records to verify the information reported. UC does verify information that students report on the application. It is critical that students do not misrepresent or falsify information, as this is a serious offense and will result in serious consequences. Honesty is the best policy. Everything is self-reported. If discrepancies are found once we receive official records, it can be a reason for a student’s admission to be rescinded. Students will be asked to review the UC Application Statement of Integrity; which is on the login page and brought up again as the student begins to submit their application.

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Create Account • New users must enter a unique e-mail address and password • Passwords must be at least eight characters (and must have a combination of

uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and/or symbols) • Once “Create a New Account” is complete, an e-mail confirming the start of the

application will be sent to the student. • Campuses use e-mail to send critical, time-sensitive correspondence to

applicants, so providing an e-mail account that is checked regularly is important. • Remind students to adjust their e-mail filters to accept message from UC

addresses. Log In • First-time users start by clicking “New Account” • On return visits, enter e-mail and password information under “Sign In”

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Navigating the Application

• The progress bar across the top of the page shows the current section of the

application the student is working on

• Each page has an “Inside This Section” and “Questions” area

• Use the “Next” and “Previous” buttons on the bottom of the page to

save and move through the application. Don’t use the browser

navigation (i.e. Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Chrome)

• After the “Start Application” section has been completed, students then click

on any of the top navigation boxes or steps in “Inside This Section” to move to

the next step or jump ahead

• Navigating to another page will save your work

• If account information (e-mail, name, date of birth), needs to be

changed/corrected this can be done in the “My UC application” section at the

top

• “Sign Out” stores the information entered

Review • Common questions on each page • Open/closed majors

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Applicant Level

Students with college credit but haven’t graduated from high school must apply as

a freshmen

• UC will award credit for the transferable college work completed, but they are

still a freshman applicant. Student must not apply as a transfer student.

• December (early) high school graduates with planned college coursework in the spring

will lose freshman status.

• Important for students to stay enrolled in high school until the end of the academic

year.

Citizenship

• Permanent resident- If student currently holds a foreign visa, he/she is not a U.S.

permanent resident.

• Undocumented in U.S. (Includes undocumented students with Deferred Actions for

Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status)

• Must pick choice-No Selection

• DACA status does not automatically afford the student benefits of AB540 or the

California Dream Act. More information about eligibility for these benefits can

be found on the web site under the “Paying for UC” tab.

• AB540 students are eligible for the UC application fee waiver

Social Security Number (SSN)

• Disclosure of the SSN is required if students have one.

• SSN used to accurately merge official ACT and/or SAT scores received from testing

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agency AND if applying for financial aid.

• Don’t have valid SSN or Individual Tax Payer Identification Number (ITIN), leave

blank.

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• Students will select all campuses to which they want to apply. They can apply

to one campus or all nine using this one application. There is an application fee

for each UC they apply to. [$70 for citizens/permanent residents; $80 for non-

citizens]

• Once the student has selected the UC’s they wish to apply to, they will be

prompted to the individual school’s list of majors

• If the major the student selected requires a supplemental application, they will

see a beige/yellow box that will populate under the major after selection is

made. It’s important that the student reads the information listed in the yellow

box.

• If the student selected a capped major, they will be notified the same way.

- A capped major means that while a student might be accepted to the

university, they are not guaranteed the major they selected because of

the competitiveness and number of applicants. We strongly

recommend the students list an alternate major, when available, if they

are interested in one of the capped, or selective, majors at UC.

• Some majors recommend SAT Subject tests. These are not required, but can

add value to an application

• Undecided majors: Students who are unsure about a major can select

‘undeclared/undecided’

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UC San Diego College System

• College assignments not based on major

• When we ask the students to “rank” the Colleges, we are asking them to state

their preference for College assignment, should they be offered admission to the

University. The rankings will not affect the evaluation of the application for

admission--students are not applying to the Colleges; students are applying to

the University.

The student will not be able to move forward on their college selection

until reviewing the LEARN ABOUT UCSD COLLEGES link.

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Only the scholarship opportunities available at the campus or campuses the student has applied to will be displayed for them to select.

- Students can select up to 16 options.

• Personal Information

This section provides context to the student’s educational opportunities and

resources.

Students will provide information if they are a military dependent; or if they

are current or previously were in the foster care system.

EOP: Educational Opportunity Program - First-generation college students,

and/or from low-income and educationally disadvantaged backgrounds

interested in receiving campus support services, should provide a short

statement discussing the reasons for applying. In addition, they need to fill

out their parents’ level of education, family size and household

income. Parental Info, Education, Family Size and Income – optional but

helpful when provided

Students should speak with parents/guardians to gather information on

parent/guardian occupation, income, and education level.

If parents are divorced, enter the employment, income and level of

education of the custodial parent or parent that claims them on income taxes (if

student lives with a guardian, list guardian’s information).

Family size, family income and single parent status helps us understand a

student’s unique family situation.

- Response to income has no bearing on financial aid determinations

- Info required if applying for a few waiver

- Household size should include the student, parent or guardian,

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siblings, and any other dependents of the family (grandparents etc.).

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Seventh/Eighth Grade

• Students who completed high school-level advanced math or a language

other than English course(es) in middle school, and earned a letter grade C or

better, can use these courses toward the ‘a-g’ requirement.

-Caution: Under California Common Core Math Standards, Middle School

courses might be named Integrated Math I, II,III but are not high school-level

math courses. Students should only record high school-level math in the

7th/8th grade.

Note: A course in geometry (or a series of integrated-style math courses which

include geometry content) must be completed; UC accepts a geometry course completed in middle school.

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Select a location – “In California,” “U.S. (not CA)” or “Outside the U.S.”

• If applicable, indicate specialized curriculum/year-round information

• Start typing the name of the school; after three characters, matching

schools will begin to appear

• Select school name/code/location, click “Add”

• If no matches are present, complete typing the full name of the school and

click “Add”

• NOTE: Students will be asked for any colleges attended while in high

school later in the application

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High School Attendance

Enter the dates of attendance

• If this is same school the student is going to graduate from, enter the

diploma information

• Enter the grading and term system for the school

• Click “Add” to save the information

• The school information entered will appear in a table for edit/review

What is your school’s term system?

- Students can select multiple term systems for each school and by each

year.

- Example: If a student has a block, semester, and trimester, they can

enter each grade term system within a year.

• NOTE: Students will be asked to list any colleges attended while in high

school later in the application.

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• Students will click on a subject area to see all the list of courses offered CA high school (and Online Schools) have an A-G Course List. They will select courses they complete and enter the grades earned.

• If academic courses aren’t listed, or your student was enrolled in a non-California high school, they’ll type in the name of the course as it appears on the student’s academic record.

• Remind students that UC does not want them to include non-academic courses such as PE, Health, Office Asst., etc.

• For courses that are only one semester long, select “No Course” for the term for which the course was not offered (e.g. Economics offered fall term, for spring term enter “No Course”)

• If the school offered a Pass or different/non-traditional grading scale, select “other” as the grading option and self-enter the grades.

• For 12th grade courses, first semester grades should be listed as IP (In Progress) and PL (Planned)

• Remember that although senior year grades are not used to calculate GPA, campuses take into consideration coursework reported in 12th grade.

For students who attended high schools outside of California –

Self-Reporting Courses: There is no pre-approved course list for schools outside of California. Review the subject area headings for the required “a-g” course pattern: a. History/social science, b. English (for international students, the language of instruction for composition/literature courses), c. Mathematics, d. Laboratory science, e. Language other than English (for international students the “foreign language”), f. Visual and performing arts and g. College-preparatory elective (courses that not fit into the subject categories of a-g above). Referring to the A-G Course List can provide guidance on the types of courses that have been UC-approved.

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Official Transcripts

The most important question about college courses is whether a student will receive

an official college transcript.

• If an official transcript will be generated, the student must report enrollment

(college name, dates of attendance, courses and grades) on the UC

admission application separately from the high school. The course should be

entered in the college course section. (NOT high school section)

What if college courses are taken that were offered at the high school?

• If any college/university-level courses were completed while in high school, add the

college information AFTER the high school information

• The process is very similar to entering the high school information

How can one determine if a California Community College course meets an “A-

G” subject requirement?

• If courses were taken at a California Community College (CCC), a UC-transferable

course list will appear

• You can also find CCC A-G courses on the A-G Course List website

• Select the course(s) taken, grade received (IP for In Progress, PL for

Planned), and the “a-g” subject area for the course

• If the CCC course is not UC-transferable enter the courses in the table provided

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If college/university courses were not taken at a CCC, enter each course and grade

earned as it appears on the official academic record

Are all College Courses given an honors point?

• All UC-transferable college courses are awarded one honors point in the UC GPA

calculation within the honors point limitation. [Explain the honors point limitations if

asked.]

• One course, one grade, one honors point

Early High School graduates:

Again, we’d like to remind you that students who have graduated then enroll in

college courses (like students who graduate after the first semester of the senior year)

will lose freshmen status; and for most campuses who accept only junior-level college

transfer students – the student would have to complete a number of years/courses at

the college before being eligible to apply to UC as a junior. Whenever possible, it’s

best for students to graduate at the end at the academic year.

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Double-Dipping is acceptable.

• What that means is, a high school student who completes college classes can use

them to meet freshman admission subject requirements (provided the course fits

into one of the ‘a-g’ areas) and if the course is transferable to UC, the student can

also earn credit toward the UC degree.

• For UC’s purposes, the same applies whether a student enrolls in a summer

course on their own or is participating in a dual enrollment or concurrent enrollment

program.

Perception: College Course is better than an AP/IB Course

RE: Perception (“debate”) on whether AP courses versus college courses (for college

credit) and how they are viewed by admissions officers

• Any rigorous course above high school college prep level, for UC: defined as a

school-created honors course, an AP, IB – Higher Level, and/or UC-transferable

college course, are all considered the same by UC.

• One does not “look better” than another.

• UC faculty want to see students challenge themselves, with balance, to take the

highest level of courses available in areas of interest to the student.

• A common misperception is “this looks better than that” or “greater weight is given

to X over Y”. Rather, what is important, is that students take courses that are

available to them, ones in which they have interest, and ones in which they believe

they will do well.

• What is “best” for one student may not be “best” for another student.

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What should a student include in the Academic History Comments?

• Admission staff will look to this section for an explanation of abnormalities in a

student’s academic record, for example:

• Break in attendance

• Poor grades in a particular course or year, or explaining something specific

about the school environment/policies that affect the academic record and/or

choices for classes.

• Grading system at their school

What is the CA SSID?

• Every K-12 student in California public schools is assigned a statewide ID number.

The unique 10-digit number enables the state Department of Education to comply

with federal data-reporting requirements as students progress from year to year

and school to school. Providing this number is optional

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Here are just a couple of examples of the questions in two of the categories:

● Coursework Other than A-G - Academic courses that do not fit in the categories “a-

g” of history/social science, English, math, laboratory science, language other than

English (foreign language), and/or visual and performing art should be reported in

this section. For example, leadership course, or religious studies courses. But do

not include non-academic courses, such as PE, office/teacher assistant, etc.

● Educational preparation programs including but not limited to: AVID, Upward

Bound, and Gear Up. A list of common programs appear in a drop menu. If a

program is not included, manually enter it.

● Community Service – consistent participation over time may indicate commitment

and dedication

● Choose experiences that have meaning, illustrate interests, and/or demonstrate

leadership.

● Work Experience – demonstrates time management, responsibility and perhaps

leadership.

● Awards & Honors – significant in nature – county-wide, state-wide and national

awards indicate a high level of achievement with significant competition. School-

based awards are more meaningful to readers if context is provided, such as: X

number of X to earn award, but even “perfect attendance” can be insightful

● Extra Curricular Activities – depth and time – continued participation over time

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• Great worksheet PDF available online.

• 160 characters available to provide more detail and information about each activity. • If an applicant did not have the time/opportunity to participate in school and/or

community activities, volunteer/paid employment, it is helpful to application readers

to know why – how else did the applicant use their time and explain if it was a

choice or a requirement for example: caring for siblings, elder-care, commitment to

doing homework (research projects, papers, etc.)

• Applicants should not exaggerate or make things up because the information

submitted is subject to verification, and if an applicant is unable to provide proof of

the information provided, the application will be cancelled.

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Reminder: ACT Plus Writing and/or SAT with Essay or SAT Reasoning (SAT Reasoning only for high school graduates before 2020) scores (and SAT Subject Test if an applicant chooses to take them although they are not required) must be completed by December of the senior year (last year of secondary school) Reminder: If a student releases ACT Plus Writing, SAT with Essay or SAT Reasoning, TOEFL scores to one UC campus, they will be shared with all the UC campuses. IB, AP, IELTS test scores still must be sent individually to each campus. Report completed test with date(s)/scores or planned test date(s) on the admission application. If an examination was completed more than once, enter highest score from one sitting, do not super score. UC only uses SAT subject tests, which are not required, but may be recommended for specific programs at some campuses, as an additional piece of information as a part of the application. SAT Subject Test Recommendations can be found at: admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/requirements/examination-requirement/SAT-subject-tests/index.html UC does not recommend that applicants use the College Board’s Score Choice function because it delays delivery of test scores. If official scores are/were sent to UC prior to an applicant filing an admission application, please note that the UC system office maintains scores received for three

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years. So, for example, if official scores were submitted for an examination date for a student’s sophomore year then the student applies during their senior year, the UC system office will still have those scores.

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In the Test Score section, students report results of their AP, IB, and TOEFL/IELTS

exams, if applicable.

Official TOEFL scores can be submitted to ONE UC campus and we will share the scores with all campuses to which the applicant applies. NOTE: IELTS scores must be sent to each campus.” The official score report must be submitted no later than January.

We have added a new section for international students to report their national or

external examination results as well.

Just like AP, IB, and TOEFL, if the exam is not applicable to the student, they can just

click through the section.

IMPORTANT: Official AP/IB scores are not required until after a student has

accepted an offer of admission; do not send scores at time of application submission.

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The application is not ready to submit unless all solid green circles are shown on

the right.

Use the navigation buttons on the top banner to jump to the section(s) that needs to

be completed.

Use the View Application button to see and print the entire application.

Additional Comments should only be included when appropriate

Student must Click Submit

Updates

Students are to return to the application to make updates

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The application performs a completeness check, drawing attention to any course

deficiencies.

• Students reporting a High School Level course in Language Other than English or

Math in the 7th or 8th grade year should make sure it is entered correctly. This can

cause a flag to trigger if the course is not entered correctly and needed to meet the

subject requirement.

• If an applicant plans to use a test score to meet a subject requirement, self

reported scores must be included in the Test Scores section of the application.

• If you are using an exam for an a-g requirement, it may appear that a

student is missing coursework in the subject area. Student should not

panic! Student should check the box that is what he/she intended to submit

and that it’s accurate.

Students are expected to complete the courses “In Progress” and “Planned” during

12th grade. If any changes occur to 12th grade courses, students must notify each

campus that they applied to.

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• This is a new addition to the Fall 2018 UC Application. It is asking for the

contact information of the applicant’s parents if they would like to provide

that information.

• Applicants can provide up to 2 parents

• Providing parent contact or choosing to not provide parent contact

information will not affect the review and application decision for the

applicant.

Why does UC need contact information for parents?

• This section is optional. By filling out this section, students’

parent(s)/guardian(s) may receive information about special parent- or family-

focused programs and/or events and other information about the University of

California. This information will not be shared with parties outside the

University of California community.

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• For U.S. citizens or permanent resident students, the application fee is $70 per campus.

• For International and non-immigrant applicants the application fee of $80 for each campus selected. If an international or

non-immigrant student currently attends school in the U.S., however, they may be eligible to pay the lower application fee of $70 per campus. The application tool will advise of the fee requirement on this page.

• Payment is required and non-refundable.

• Payment may be submitted by credit card in the application tool; or by mailing check or fee waiver if a student

didn’t qualify for the UC application fee waiver but meet criteria established by the provider.

• Fee Waiver:

• For U.S. citizens or permanent residents or students who have attended a CA high school for at least 3 years, if

students meet the low-income criteria used to qualify for free and reduced lunch, they will qualify for a UC

application fee waiver for up to 4 campus choices but will be responsible for payment for any additional

campus(es) to which they choose to apply.

• If a student is denied the UC online fee waiver, a written request with corrected income and family size

information can be submitted to the UC Application Center. UC also accept the College Board fee waiver. Only

one waiver can be used.

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Previously, after the student clicked the fee waiver button, the decision was final

• Mistakes (on family size and/or income) could not be corrected

New Process

• Immediately displays if the student qualifies for the waiver

• Allows the student to verify the information provided in the Family Size and

Income Section

• If there is an error, the student can edit their Family Size and Income

• Fee Waiver is recalculated

Finally, the application cannot be submitted without the electronic signature

and acknowledgement of the Statement of Integrity.

Students are asked to provide authorization to release information. Without

this authorization, UC is not allowed by law to discuss or share information

with anyone. So be sure to check off the appropriate box(es).

Signature Releases

• Review and check the release authorizations to share application information

with scholarship agencies, parent/guardian, counselors and/or UC

organizations and alumni groups.

• Electronically sign and date the application to verify accuracy and

acknowledge that the applicant is the author of their the personal insight

question responses.

• The electronic signature also authorizes the release of official examination

score(s) to all UC campuses to which the student applied.

•Official examination scores for the ACT Plus Writing, SAT, SAT Subject

Test, and TOEFL only need to be sent to one UC campus. Scores will

be provided to all campuses to which you apply.

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• Information in the application is subject to verification. If an applicant is

selected for verification, non-compliance will result in cancellation of the

application and the application fee is not refunded.

UC feels very strongly about student integrity on the application. The

Statement of Integrity is to affirm that all information in the application is

accurate and the personal insight question responses were written by the

applicant. If information is withheld, such as poor grades, or falsification is

detected, the application is subject to cancellation.

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When the applicant is at the “Submit” stage, they must carefully review all

information and the personal insight question responses entered into the

application.

While it may seem like a very simple step, don’t forget to click the submit

button. Failure to do so, especially on the last day of application filing period,

will lead to disastrous results.

Once “submit” is selected, that’s it, the application is gone and applicants will

not be able to say “Oh no, I forgot to include X” or “I pasted in the wrong

personal insight question” or “I made a mistake on one of my courses or

grades”.

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The following are key resources that are great to reference.

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