On October 7, the University of California Newsroom republished an article in which two campus admissions directors explain how applications are read, with Fall 2026 figures added: the nine undergraduate campuses received 205,431 first-year applications. Irvine seniors must submit their Fall 2027 UC application by November 30, and the article answers who reads an application after it is submitted and how.
Who Is Affected by the UC Application Review Process
Every senior applying to any University of California campus. The article features the admissions directors of UC Davis and UC San Diego, and its main points follow.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Framework | Comprehensive review has been in place since 2002, and systemwide policy allows up to 13 factors |
| Two approaches | UC Merced and UC Riverside use “comprehensive review,” which gives slightly more weight to quantifiable factors such as GPA; the other seven campuses use “holistic review,” in which each application receives a holistic score and no component has a fixed weight |
| Fall 2026 applicants | UC Davis 104,850; UC San Diego 141,752; UC Merced 48,499; UCLA 146,672 |
| Reading teams | The UC Davis admissions team grows from 65 to almost 150 for application season, and UC San Diego grows from 50 to nearly 300; a new UC Davis reader scores about 100 sample applications first |
| Quality control | Blind test applications are mixed in during the reading period, scores that differ by a set amount go to another reader, and every application is read more than once |
| Campus independence | Each campus conducts its own full review, and campuses do not share admission decisions |
Every application is read, including those that do not meet the GPA or A-G course requirements, and a few such students are admitted “by exception.” UC stopped using standardized test scores in 2021, and the review process did not change as a result.
What to Do Now About the UC Application Review Process
Use the Personal Insight Questions for information not found elsewhere. The article states that the Personal Insight Questions (PIQs) carry no fixed weight and help most when they explain the impact of an activity or the reason behind a dip in grades. The prompts and word limits are summarized in the EDUBUS brief UC PIQs Remain Four of Eight, 350 Words Each.
Do not let AI write the PIQs. UC does not use AI to review applications, but the article states that a PIQ generated entirely by AI with unattributed sources is equivalent to academic dishonesty and can lead to disqualification from UC admission. Essay coaching is available through the EDUBUS College Essay Bootcamp.
Check how competitive the campus and major are. As an example, the article notes that four UC Davis majors have admission rates below 25 percent: design, computer science, mechanical engineering and psychology. Pairing a college list with majors is covered by the EDUBUS College Admissions Planning service, and the eight admissions myths UC addressed earlier are summarized in a previous EDUBUS brief.
Sources
- University of California Newsroom: How the University of California evaluates student applications (accessed October 8, 2026)
- University of California Admissions: How applications are reviewed (accessed October 8, 2026)
- Caltech REA Closes November 1, Five EssaysCaltech REA closes November 1; materials are due November 6 and testing by November 30. This brief covers the five STEM essays, the AI rules and the UC exception.
- DHS Proposes $70,000 Fee per Student for OPTA DHS proposed rule would charge schools $70,000 before recommending an F-1 student for initial OPT and $30,000 for each later OPT; comments are due November 9.
- Half of UC In-State Undergrads Pay No TuitionUC published ten financial aid facts on October 7: 52 percent of California undergraduates pay no tuition and the average grant is $24,000. This brief lists them.
- Columbia Early Decision Due November 1Columbia Early Decision closes November 1; testing is optional this cycle and required again next cycle. This brief covers deadlines, binding terms, and supplements.
