<p>Hello, I'm a California Resident and I wanted to know what the difference between applying online and applying through mail was for all the universities of california. Online, it says that you don't need to give a transcript or letter of recommendation until they accept you. Why is this? </p>
<p>any help would be greatly appreciated! thanks!</p>
<p>I believe it says not to send recommendations unless specifically asked to do so after admission. </p>
<p>They probably only need the transcript for official purposes. Many state universities have a section of their application that basically asks applicants to enter all of the information generally found on their transcript. So, once they accept you, they see verification (i.e. your official transcript). It is probably an effort to reduce paper waste and clutter. This is just a guess though.</p>
<p>thanks for the reply!</p>