@CalBearsMom
I am sorry. I think I am asking you too much question, but I hope you can understand me. Thank you for always giving me anwers whenever I asked you.
mywifeisUM Are you a US citizen? Any hooks/URM/1st generation to go to college?
If you’re a US citizen and you got 3rd place on a recognized and respected national math competition, yes, that’s good. USAMO Qualifier is likewise impressive as there’s only a few hundred who get that distinction. AIME Qualifier is a marker of demonstrated interest in math competitions and ability in advanced math – so you’re correct, not super impressive – but still demonstrates interest and some ability.
For UCB College of Engineering, I don’t think that the chemistry 680 will be particularly helpful.
OK, no more off-topic or chance type questions. Let’s let this thread get back on topic – UCB requested LORs.
Requested OOS applicant
29 ACT
3.83 UW GPA
URM - Hispanic
I know I’m way below the average but I am really hoping this is a good sign
The suspense is killing me. I was requested and am waiting until this Thursday! I am truly going to be devasted if I got requested for LOR but still get denied 
LoRs will have zero weightage in admissions process this year. This was only a pilot study to measure the effectiveness of using LoRs as an evaluation tool. Period.
@khanam How confident are you in that statement because I really wish that is true since I did not submit a LOR even tho requested. Did you get it from an admission officer?
It is logistically impossible to make the letters count for nothing as long as they are read, as the reading of the letters itself will change, to whatever degree, how the admissions officer views the student.
But then again, there is no guarantee that anyone will read the letter, albeit that would defeat the purpose of this entire process.
LOR at other selective colleges have minimal effect unless they’re earth shatteringly stellar because top students tend to have good recommendations anyway. So if you’re a great applicant who wasn’t asked or didn’t submit a letter of recc, you won’t be penalized, but might just have one less thing pushing for your acceptance. That being said, if you’re a below average applicant, unless your LOR is incredible, I doubt it would push you over the edge. It’s unlikely a letter of recc would be the deciding factor for admission in my opinion, unless a student had a really awful one.
@Desiree2 I was at a UCB admissions session last July with my daughter and they clearly said it was a pilot study. If it was not, everyone would’ve been asked for recommendations. Because not asking everyone and then having either a positive or a negative bias in judging those with LoRs would create statistical preferences that would undermine the selection process.
This year they will see what the scores of the test group will be with and without LoRs and will determine the selection bias implied in LoR scores in order to calibrate the holistic scoring methodology for next year onwards.
There is zero predictive value in being asked to submit LoRs.
For more information there’s a page on the website that talks about LOR http://admissions.berkeley.edu/freshmanpolicy
The link posted by @Momobear seems inconsistent with what @khanam heard. I find this very interesting: “We will request letters of some students after we initially review their applications, if we feel additional information would be helpful in our selection process. Only a fraction of applicants will be selected to submit letters, and they can choose to submit letters or not to do so. Not doing so will not harm them in any way.” Saying that they are selecting students “if we feel additional information would be helpful in our selection process” is far from a random statistical survey process. I have no horse in this race and no idea what the answer is, but I would not totally write off the request as meaningless. Note, however, that this referred to letters being due by January 15. If you received a request after that date, I think khanam’s take is correct.
I believe the due date on my son’s was January 15th.
@Momobear : Yes. I saw that. But, given how close we are to Decision Day, the simplest and most logical answer (Occam’s razor) from my point of view is that the latest requests are a statistical sampling to see if letters would have made any difference in decisions that had already been made. Now, where the date dividing line might be and whether the January deadline was moved back, I have no idea. Just as I have no idea whether the “last updated” mark reflects laziness, ineptitude, or an unchanged deadline.
Okay, I didn’t realize there was another request sent out.
UCB has been requesting LOR’s from certain applicants for years, so this is not a “pilot program.” My daughter was high school class of 2013, and her good friend was send a request. My son is a HS senior this year, and he was sent a request as well.
However, if LOR carries weight. Isn’t it unfair to send them to some applicants and not the others?
And we know that they are not sent only to borderline applicants, as 7 of the 9 early admits I know was requested LOR.
@parsi7 That is not possible, 20% is bigger than UCB’s entire acceptnaace rate lol
@Desiree2 : I’m not trying to defend the practice; just trying to make sense out of seeming contradictory statements.
@AboutTheSame Well, if you Occam’s Razor it a different way, wouldn’t another answer be that they are sending them to borderline students? Berkeley is intensely competitive and relatively holistic, so there should be no real “shoo-ins”.
@Merppity : But that doesn’t account the firsthand report of it being a pilot program. I actually gave trying to make sense out of Berkeley admissions practices years ago. I shouldn’t have bothered trying again. I-)