University of California Personal Insight Questions2dtmj21mi5063k0al93l1nkp-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/... · Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively

Early AcademicOutreach Program

University of California Personal Insight Questions

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Cristina FloresUC Irvine Early Academic Outreach Program

Early AcademicOutreach ProgramEarly AcademicOutreach Program

Comprehensive Review

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UCCOMPREHENSIVE REVIEW

Academic

● Grade‐point average

● Test scores

● Performance in and number of courses beyond minimum A‐G requirements

● UC‐approved honors courses and advanced courses

● Eligibility in the Local Context (ELC) – CA residents only

● Quality of senior‐year program in study

● Academic opportunities in California high schools

● Outstanding performance in one or more academic subject areas

Non‐Academic

● Achievements in special projects

● Improvement in academic performance

● Special talents, achievements and awards

● Participation in educational preparation programs

● Academic accomplishment in light of life experiences

● Geographic location

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Holistic Review & Comprehensive Review

Holistic Review

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● Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Diego & Santa Cruz: Incorporating the 14 faculty‐approved comprehensive review factors with no fixed weight on any factor.

● Every achievement, academic or non‐academic, is considered within the context of opportunities available to the applicant.

Comprehensive Review

● Riverside: Fixed weight incorporating the 14. faculty‐approved comprehensive review factors considering GPA, SAT or ACT exam, number of AP/IB courses taken and first‐generation and low‐income designation to calculate an Academic Index Score.

● Merced: Fixed weight incorporating the 14 faculty‐approved comprehensive review factors considering both academic factors weighted at 75% and non‐academic factors weighted at 25%.

● Santa Barbara: Fixed weight incorporating the 14 faculty‐approved comprehensive review factors roughly weighted at 50% academic criteria and 50% supplemental information.

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UC Santa Barbaraexample of comprehensive review


UC Personal Insight Questions

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Guidelines

●8 questions to choose from

●Choose your best 4

●Maximum word count: 350

●No minimum

●No wrong question

●All questions have the same value

●Same answers go to all the campuses you apply

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The Basics

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Not an essay

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Not a Writing Sample

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Two Parts to all PIQs:1. Details2. Reflection

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Unique Perspectives

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1‐2 examples per response

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Do not repeat examples

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Process in more important

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Why Important to them

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They are the leading actor

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The Questions


#1: Leadership

●Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time.

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Leadership

Strong Responses

● Provide concrete example● Beyond titles, a trait ● Reflecting on what learned ● Including contributions ● Focus on solutions and

results

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Common Mistakes

● Not defining their leadership

● Focusing on tasks only● Focusing on topic vs.

themselves


#2: Creativity●Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.

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Creativity

Strong Responses

● Provide a concrete examples

● The “how” is critical ● Describe your process

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Common Mistakes

● Creative writing ● Does not relate only to

Visual & Performing Arts


#3: Talent/ Skill

●What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?

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Talent/ Skill

Strong Responses

● Provide a concrete example

● Answer both questions

● State the talent or skill

● Focus on: Development & Demonstrated

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Common Mistakes

● Excluding “process”● “then one day”


#4: Educational Barrier or Opportunity

●Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.

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Educational Opportunity or Barrier

Strong Responses

● Only choose one ● Educational Challenge

● How did it impact you?● What personal

characteristics did you call on to overcome?

● What did you learn?● Educational Opportunity

● Why did you join?● What did you learn?● What did you

contribute?● Transferable skills

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Common Mistakes

● Listing challenges and accomplishments

● Not explaining how it impacted academics


#5: Personal Challenge

●Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?

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Significant Challenge

Strong Responses

● Most significant challenge

● Provide steps and results on how they overcame their challenge

● Impact on academic achievement ● positive● negative

● Briefly explain the situation

● What did you learn?

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Common Mistakes

● Timeline of challenges● Situations from the past

that are no longer their context


#6: Academic Subject

● Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom.

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Favorite Subject

Strong Responses

● Outside the classroom experience

● Does not have to be chosen major or subject students excels in

● Why interested in that cause (make it personal)

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Common Mistakes

● Technical responses


#7: Service ● What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?

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Service

Strong Responses

● Why did you connect to that issue?

● What did you complete?

● What did you learn about yourself?

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Common Mistakes

● Focusing on tasks

● Not substantial involvement


#8: Open Ended

●Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you stand out as a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California?

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Open Ended

Strong Responses

● It is okay to answer

● Must be clear why it is so important

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Common Mistakes

● Listing accomplishments

● Using it as a “conclusion” or ”summary” paragraph


PIQ Theme Review

1. Leaderships

2. Creativity

3. Talent/Skill

4. Educational Opportunity or Educational Challenge

5. Personal Challenge

6. Sevice

7. Favorite Subject

8. Open Ended

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Common Mistakes

●Writing an essay

●Acronyms

●Quotations and Dialogue

●Storytelling (excessive background information, flowery language)

●Creative writing (poems, clichés)

● Inappropriate use of humor and language

●Generalities: Stick to the facts and personal examples

●Repetition: Give us new information that we can’t find in other sections of the application

●Asking philosophical questions: Get to the point and tell us what you mean

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Show vs. Tell

● Students are trying to capture the picture (a moment in time) and then relay it to us.

● Instead we want them to tell us what about themselves – their whole selves.

● We may want to know moments in time that constitute a struggle.

● But even in those cases, the goal is to learn how that struggle changed them and how they overcame the moment.

● On that same vein, admissions does not require a sob story or struggle.

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Additional Comments Section

● There are two Additional Comments boxes within the UC application: one is within the Academic History, under "Other Academic History ‐ Additional Information" and one within the Personal Insight section.

● Use these to provide information to supplement or explain what's already in your application or to include relevant information that doesn't appear anywhere else or that you feel should be brought to a reader's attention.

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Additional Comments box within Academic History

●Use the Additional Comments box within Academic History for academic‐related information. This is a good place to explain any fluctuations in your academic performance and what you did about it. You also can:

● Explain a course choice●Highlight or explain grade trends (Example: C’s to A’s, or vice versa, over a period of time)

● Share anything about your academic record not yet covered in the application

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Additional Comments under PIQ Section

● In the Personal Insight section, use the Additional Comments box to report any meaningful extracurricular activities or volunteer work you want to elaborate on or that you were not able to include in the Extracurricular section of the application.

●Show us how you made a difference, showed leadership, or took initiative.

● For example, ● explain more about how you showed leadership as a team co‐captain

● saved money for your employer● solved a major IT problem when you volunteered at a nonprofit organization.

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Advising Students

• Suggest they not overly focus on style or structure. Admissions does not grade on style – creativity, entertainment, or uniqueness – we place value on content.

• Does the student make his/herself the focal point? Are they using “I” and “my” statements?

• Is the student providing new information in a response? Are they repeating?

• Remember that all freshman reviews are comprehensive.

• Admissions does not consider personal insight responses in a vacuum.

• Remind students that the personal insight responses are NOT reviewed in a vacuum. All freshman review process is comprehensive.

• UC uses the responses to support and/or explain other information in the application.

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Tips for Staff

• Remove the word essay from your vocabulary.

• Read personal insight responses with a student’s transcript and resume, know the whole picture.

• Encourage the student to stick to facts and think, “will a stranger understand me and the context of my situation?”

• Applications readers don’t google things.

• Students should be clear, avoiding acronyms & text talk.

• Admissions staff cannot make assumptions.

• Analogies, metaphors, dialogue and creative writing is subjective.

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Evaluate

Missed Opportunity

● Did not provide much context about the student’s experience

● Focused more on structure than content

● Centered others narratives rather than their own

Added Value

● Focus was on the impact on the student, and/or impact they had on others

● Centered self in the response

● Provide specific examples

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Questions?

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Cristina Flores,Assistant [email protected]

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Documents

University of California Personal Insight Questions2dtmj21mi5063k0al93l1nkp-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/... · Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively