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Academic
preparation is the most significant factor in admissions decisions,
and eligibility for freshman admission to the UC is based solely
on grades in required high school courses and/or standardized test
scores — minimum criteria that must be met before any other
factors are considered (See “Eligibility Defined,” page
29). UC-eligible students make up the top 12.5 percent of California’s
graduating seniors, the group for whom a UC education is assured
by the California Master Plan for Higher Education. But UC eligibility
alone does not automatically qualify a student for admission to
one of the more selective campuses such as UCLA, Berkeley or San
Diego. Thus, a student’s achievements in combination with
academic qualifications can become a very important factor in making
admissions decisions at those schools.
“UC’s
definition of high-achieving students goes beyond academic measures
such as grades and test scores to values such as leadership, community
involvement, honors, awards and so forth,” says Tran. “Academic
criteria alone are not sufficient.”
Such
personal achievement can be demonstrated in everything from special
research projects to community service to accomplishments in athletics
or maintaining a challenging job. For applicants to UCLA, the personal-achievement
bar is high.
Look
again at the example of the two students, both highly qualified,
one successful in winning admittance to UCLA, the other not.
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