Fall 2014 Freshman Waitlist/Appeal/Cancellation Numbers

Looking for more recent stats? Find them here.

These numbers were obtained during the UC Counselor Conference back in September 2014 … I got up and asked for the numbers at the end of a panel presentation from admission directors of each campus. Remember that the waitlist numbers can change dramatically from one year to another and the Fall 2014 numbers are not predictive of what will happen this year.

CampusWaitlistAppealCancellation*
Berkeley3,375 offers
2,143 opt-ins
437 admits
249 SIRs
Less than 30 admits9
Davis6,352 offers
2,177 opt-ins
8 admits
7 SIRs
608 appeals
7 admits
148
Irvine3,260 offers
1,479 opt-ins
1,170 admits
967 appeals
68 admits (mostly errors in initial screening or death)
57
UCLA3,700 offers
2,100 opt-ins
150 admits (120 CA; 30 OOS)
1,200 appeals
61 admits
30
MercedNo waitlist30 admits97 condition
97 document
Riverside4,600+ offers (only certain selective majors)
58% opt-ins
257 admits
448 appeals
58 admits
76
San DiegoNo admits629 appeals
54 admits
35 condition
109 document
Santa Barbara142 admits925 appeals
95 admits (66 were already on waitlist)
28 condition
Santa Cruz1,400 opt-ins
0 admits
305 appeals
54 admits (half were already on waitlist)
356 condition
215 document

* Failure to meet conditions or submit required documents.


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74 Comments

Join the discussion and tell us your opinion.

Nickireply
March 15, 2015 at 2:42 pm

Can I call UCSD Admissions Office to find out why I was rejected?

Nickireply
March 15, 2015 at 2:56 pm
– In reply to: Nicki

If I appeal, I know UCSD will look at the entire application again. But will they also look at the supplement I filled out again too?

Ms. Sunreply
March 15, 2015 at 6:25 pm
– In reply to: Nicki

They should. The submitted supplemental questionnaire becomes a part of your application file.

Ms. Sunreply
March 15, 2015 at 6:25 pm
– In reply to: Nicki

You can try.

Cecilyreply
March 16, 2015 at 2:55 pm

Do the different UC campuses “share” application information? So if I was rejected from Davis, could it be because admissions knows another campus (UCLA?) will accept me?

Ms. Sunreply
March 16, 2015 at 3:03 pm
– In reply to: Cecily

Not in the way you describe. Each UC campus makes admission decisions independently. Trying to coordinate the decisions between the nine campuses would be a logistical nightmare and, quite frankly, the UCs don’t have the money, time, or enough staff to deal with something like that.

chowreply
March 21, 2015 at 9:09 pm
– In reply to: Ms. Sun

My daughter has been wait listed for UCLA. She has been asked to submit a wait list statement within 200 words and her fall grades. Her fall grades are better than what she submitted at the time of applying. She has been accepted in UCSD. But she is interested to go to UCLA. Please advice how you can help. I am Chow and my email address is mclbd1@gmail.com. Thank you.

Ms. Sun
March 22, 2015 at 10:17 am
– In reply to: chow

The UCLA waitlist statement should be capped at 7,000 characters. I offer a Waitlist Statement Service if you are interested in having me work with her directly. If not, you can find free resources to get her started on her waitlist statement in my blog entry UC Freshman Waitlist Information + Waitlist Statement Guideline.

stressedtothemaxreply
March 19, 2015 at 10:00 am

Maybe I didn’t read about this before, but do the admissions staff consider wait listed students before students that appealed their rejection, or are the two lists independent of each other?
It seems that wait listed students would have priority because they are technically qualified for admission but due to space constraints weren’t admitted, while those students that appeal didn’t even make the wait list cut. Is this right?

stressedtothemaxreply
March 19, 2015 at 12:21 pm
– In reply to: stressedtothemax

Also, if I appeal, does the admissions staff consider my grades for Fall semester to be “new and compelling evidence”? At the time of the application, I could only enter that my classes were in progress, so now I have the grades. I did pretty well, getting a 3.9 – does this make any difference at all?

Ms. Sunreply
March 19, 2015 at 3:06 pm
– In reply to: stressedtothemax

Senior year grades are not considered for admission evaluation and they are not considered for appeal either because that would give you “unfair advantage” (an extra piece of information that other applicants didn’t have a chance to present for admission evaluation). What the admissions office says is that you need to have compelling information that is previously unknown to the admissions office (so not new like recent, but new to the admissions office). In reality, I’ve seen a student here and there getting admitted on appeal with the thinnest “new” information imaginable. I don’t know why that happens, only that it does happen. So my mantra is “appeal if that’s what you want” (whether you want to pay me money to help you is a different issue).

Ms. Sunreply
March 19, 2015 at 2:59 pm
– In reply to: stressedtothemax

The campuses claim that waitlisted students have priority. But in practice the two pools seem independent (if you look at the waitlist vs. appeal numbers).

UC application is known to have technical glitches that would scramble student information (thus the “errors in initial screening” … a roundabout way of saying “we screwed up”), so I can see how some appeals would be considered compelling (perhaps the student is really a valedictorian who started two nonprofit foundations). In such a case, the “correct” profile of the student may be significantly more competitive than students placed on waitlist.

Jessreply
March 20, 2015 at 9:35 pm

With budget cuts this year, do you think that the chances of getting accepted through the wait list for UCI are slim? Also, is the wait list for UCI a first come first serve basis? Like whoever accepted a spot on the wait list first? How does the wait list work?

Ms. Sunreply
March 21, 2015 at 11:15 am
– In reply to: Jess

Opt in now since you don’t have to do anything other than saying yes. The campus claims the waitlist is not ranked or time-stamped, but who knows what the admissions office does behind closed doors? Supposedly the admissions office looks through everything again when pulling students off the waitlist, but I’m skeptical since they often make waitlist offers to several thousand students.

Zachreply
March 21, 2015 at 12:12 pm

Hello! I was accepted into Irvine, Davis, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz, wait listed at San Diego, and rejected from Los Angeles yesterday. I am planning on writing an appeal to the university even though the numbers show that the chances of admittance are slim. I also opted in to the San Diego wait list. As for the appeal, would explanation of grades through clinical depression be considered new and compelling information? I mentioned going through a tough time in the additional information section, but was only recently given the diagnosis after submission of my application.

Ms. Sunreply
March 21, 2015 at 12:45 pm
– In reply to: Zach

That is fine. Rather than just generally attributing your grades to the depression, try to quantify how your depression affected your academic performance (provide detailed examples).

Nelida Almeida-Bryantreply
March 22, 2015 at 9:24 pm

What does SIR mean?? I’m not sure if I’m reading this correctly, did Davis really only admit 7 students out of 2,000 – some odd people?

Ms. Sunreply
March 24, 2015 at 8:30 pm
– In reply to: Nelida Almeida-Bryant

Statement of Intent to Register; basically a form you fill out to commit to enroll at the campus. Davis actually said publicly that no one was admitted, but in reality a handful of people were admitted. I was kind of shocked that the director of admission gave me the actual numbers instead of going with the “press release” the campus had.

Matthewreply
March 23, 2015 at 12:40 pm

How exactly do I write an appeal letter to UCI? Also, does becoming Valedictorian in the fall semester qualify as “new information”?

Ms. Sunreply
March 24, 2015 at 8:36 pm
– In reply to: Matthew

I’ll post the appeal resources soon. I think becoming valedictorian is pretty significant.

Stressedstressedanddepressedreply
March 23, 2015 at 6:48 pm

In a comment above, you said several thousand students usually get admitted from the waitlist. Do you mean the waitlist for the UC’s in general or just Irvine?

Ms. Sunreply
March 24, 2015 at 8:38 pm
– In reply to: Stressedstressedanddepressed

The campuses often make waitlist offers to several thousand students, not admit.

Brookereply
March 23, 2015 at 9:26 pm

I was waitlisted at Davis and after submitting the 200 word statement it says “please update your fall grades and provide your estimated spring grades”, so do I actually put the spring grades I think I will get at the end of the semester, or do I leave the spring semester classes as “in-progress”?

Ms. Sunreply
March 24, 2015 at 8:47 pm
– In reply to: Brooke

I think the instructions actually say to put the estimated spring grades in “additional comments.”

Therresareply
March 23, 2015 at 10:57 pm

My dream school has been UCI for as long as can remember, however, today after about a week of stressing out about my application status, I was finally notified that I had been declined. I would like to appeal their decision but am unaware of how to actually appeal to them. Could I include my new leadership positions or further explain my application? I really don’t know how to go about this…

Ms. Sunreply
March 24, 2015 at 8:51 pm
– In reply to: Therresa

I will post free appeal resources on my blog soon or you can sign up for my appeal service.

Omarreply
March 24, 2015 at 3:54 am

How do I know if there was an error in the initial screening of my application?

Ms. Sunreply
March 24, 2015 at 8:53 pm
– In reply to: Omar

Log back into your UC Application and check to see if there are any errors on it. If there are, appeal.

Mikereply
March 25, 2015 at 7:49 am

I opt-in UCI waitlist last week. Now, I would like to submit the letter of continued interest to UCI admission office. Can I send it through message center? Is it too late for it? Thanks

Ms. Sunreply
March 26, 2015 at 4:11 pm
– In reply to: Mike

Go for it.

shirleyreply
March 26, 2015 at 10:42 pm

Hello, I am waitlisted for UCR. After seeing the stats & your reply to Jess, I’m worried that I won’t have a chance because they will pick the best off the wailist.. I saw people with better stats than me got waitlisted too..I applied for Neuroscience. My GPA is average but my SAT is below average :/ UCR is my last hope or I’ll have to go to CC..

Ms. Sunreply
March 27, 2015 at 3:00 pm
– In reply to: shirley

Try appealing and provide information that you think will boost your qualification as an applicant to UCR.

sharreply
March 26, 2015 at 11:08 pm

My son was wait listed at UCB for EECS and opted in. Are there any statistics for acceptance from the waitlist? The good thing is that he is accepted to UCLA for EE.

Ms. Sunreply
March 27, 2015 at 3:04 pm
– In reply to: shar

Berkeley is more secretive than the other campuses (the situation has improved with the new director of admission, but not enough for me to get numbers for the previous application cycle), so I have trouble even just to get the overall numbers.

sharreply
March 26, 2015 at 11:19 pm

P.S. I’m assuming there’s a separate waitlist at UCB for EECS and probably less likely than the regular wait list.

Ms. Sunreply
March 27, 2015 at 3:05 pm
– In reply to: shar

Engineering admits by major, so my guess is that each engineering major has its own waitlist.

March 27, 2015 at 8:08 am

What does opt in mean?

Ms. Sunreply
March 27, 2015 at 3:13 pm
– In reply to: MP

opt in
phrasal verb [intransitive]
to decide that you want to do something or be involved in something

Source: http://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/dictionary/american/opt-in

Shirleyreply
March 27, 2015 at 5:33 pm

How does the UCB waitlist process work? Do they already have students they will immediately admit if there is space or are students chosen randomly?

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 5:40 pm
– In reply to: Shirley

That’s a good question, I haven’t tried asking the admissions office yet (I didn’t think they’d answer honestly).

Shirleyreply
March 28, 2015 at 12:33 am

I don’t know exactly how to appeal because I don’t have any new information:/

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 5:46 pm
– In reply to: Shirley

Think of something to say.

Melreply
March 28, 2015 at 12:39 am

Will talking about my parents’ divorce and how that affected me academically be considered new and compelling information? Or would it be too much of a sob story?

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 5:46 pm
– In reply to: Mel

I’d consider that compelling. Don’t make it into a sob story.

Diane Hartness-Derasreply
March 28, 2015 at 11:26 am

When appealing would it benefit if you change your major? My son applied under Bio engineering to Berkeley and was rejected, I assumed his 4.27 GPA and taking JC classes not AP classes would benefit him but apparently not.

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 5:49 pm
– In reply to: Diane Hartness-Deras

Most UCs do not honor requests to change major in the appeal, but it doesn’t hurt to ask (leaves the option open if the campus decides to make an exception). Community college classes are as good, if not better, that AP classes. Engineering majors are evaluated differently than other “regular” majors, so specific academic preparation is required to be competitive for admission.

Suereply
March 28, 2015 at 7:35 pm

My son is wait listed at UCI, and opted-in last week.
Even though they don’t require anything, do you recommend to send a kind of appeal letter with senior’s grade(4.1)?

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 5:55 pm
– In reply to: Sue

UCI allows appeal from students who are on the waitlist.

Alokreply
March 29, 2015 at 2:32 pm

In UCSD, it shows 0 admits – was there a waitlist there?

Also would like to talk to you to seek your services – what is the best way

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 7:37 pm
– In reply to: Alok

There was a waitlist but the campus didn’t take anyone off it. Please use the SERVICES tab above to locate the service you need and follow the instructions to contact me.

sallyreply
March 30, 2015 at 10:27 am

My son has been wait listed at UCB. Can you please help? His first semester grade has changed from 3.8 to 4 unweighted. Can we talk?

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 7:48 pm
– In reply to: sally

Berkeley is not reviewing appeals from students offered waitlist option. His best bet is to opt in and wait.

Stephaniereply
March 30, 2015 at 5:18 pm

Hi Ms. Sun,
I was waitlisted at UCSD and have decided to appeal on the basis that my father passed away unexpectedly shortly after submitting my application. But I realize that most of my “new and compelling” information is that I maintain good grades in spite of this and I saw that you send senior grades are not considered for giving an unfair advantage. While I understand that, do you think I can still appeal on that basis? If not, do you have any suggestions?

Thank you

Ms. Sunreply
April 6, 2015 at 7:50 pm
– In reply to: Stephanie

I’m just repeating what I hear from the admissions office. You won’t know unless you try.

Brianreply
April 9, 2015 at 4:18 pm

Hi Ms. Sun,
Is there any benefit of SIRing early for any UC school or is it the same as SIRing a few days before May 1st?

Ms. Sunreply
April 11, 2015 at 2:39 pm
– In reply to: Brian

You can SIR any time before May 1st.

Alireply
April 16, 2015 at 11:48 am

Hi Ms. Sun! I was flat out denied to UCSB with a 3.5 GPA, so I decided to appeal my application because I’m more of the creative/artsy-type. My appeal letter overall is pretty strong and presents a lot of compelling information, along with examples of my art pieces that will hopefully get the admissions committee to reconsider their choice. I was just wondering if you could tell me how often/if its common that UCSB admits appeals to students who have a lower than average GPAs but have lots of talent in the arts, as a way for them to diversify the community? Also, do you know around what time appeal decisions will come out? I know its after May 1st.

Ms. Sunreply
April 18, 2015 at 10:56 pm
– In reply to: Ali

Appeal decisions are difficult to predict as they are largely depended on space availability. You’ll most likely to hear back in the month of May, although I have heard of occasional cases of pending appeal decisions into June or July.

Samireply
April 20, 2015 at 4:42 pm

Hey so I have been wait listed for UCI, do you think I should send a letter of appeal as well, or should my spot in the waitlist be sufficient enough for me to not send the letter? Would the appeal make any difference to my wait list decision?

Ms. Sunreply
April 22, 2015 at 11:22 pm
– In reply to: Sami

The freshman appeal deadline was April 15th.

Sarareply
April 21, 2015 at 7:53 pm

Do you happen to know how the UCI waitlist admission works? I know for some colleges like UC Davis you’re required to write a 200 word essay on why you want to attend the school. I was told if you accepted the waitlist for UCI, they just review your application again. Is it mainly based off of how many spots that are available after everyone submits their SIR?

Ms. Sunreply
April 22, 2015 at 11:46 pm
– In reply to: Sara

That would be my guess. UCI had a lot of issues with enrollment numbers the last couple of years, so I think not requiring a waitlist statement is meant to lower the barrier for opting in, since the campus tended to pull a lot of students off waitlist. I think the campus is still tweaking its admissions policy to get better yield (more admitted students to choose to enroll), but until the campus finds the right “formula” (maybe it’ll be this year) we can expect to see large number of students coming off the waitlist.

Robreply
April 22, 2015 at 9:36 pm

My son was wait listed at UCD and UCSB, he’s an Eagle Scout, Vintner, ER volunteer with a 3.9 GPA. Do you think he has a shot at the wait list or is it impossible from a realistic point of view? Also, do you think the UC’s wait listed a lot more people than normal because of their budgeting issues? Because I hypothesize they wait listed more than normal just in case they don’t have a large enough budget.

Thanks

Ms. Sunreply
April 23, 2015 at 12:04 am
– In reply to: Rob

This year is anomalous so I won’t even try to make a prediction. Davis made 9,000 waitlist offers this year, which is a 50% increase from last year (closer to 6,000). I had assumed the UCs made more waitlist offers because the campuses were super conservative in the number of students they admitted, so that they will HAVE to go to the waitlist (or simply to compensate for any fallout/backfire from this adjustment).

Yassminreply
April 28, 2015 at 12:30 pm

Hi Ms. Sun,
I was waitlisted for both UCSB and Davis and in my appeal letter to UCSB and 200 word statement to Davis, I talked about two new internships I’d been admitted to in January. These internships tie into my career goals, which I talked about in one of my UC essays, and also the major I selected for both campuses. Would you say that’s new and compelling information and will give me a boost?
Thanks.

Ms. Sunreply
April 28, 2015 at 12:32 pm
– In reply to: Yassmin

Sure.

Mindyreply
April 29, 2015 at 10:17 pm

Hi, Ms. Sun
I opt-in UCI waitlist. Most of my teachers suggested me do not do extra work, like sending email or recommendation. However, I think my personal statement do not show all of my strong points. Should I send email to their Admission Officer or it is too late? What will you suggest to do since UCI is my first choice? Thank you for reading my comment.

Ms. Sunreply
May 1, 2015 at 9:00 am
– In reply to: Mindy

Your only other option is to appeal and the appeal deadline has passed. You can try emailing the campus if you want; it may not help but it won’t hurt your waitlist status.

Valreply
April 30, 2015 at 10:22 am

Hi I was wait listed at UCR and I know it’s not possible to find out accurately but what do you think are the chances of getting accepted?

Ms. Sunreply
May 1, 2015 at 9:06 am
– In reply to: Val

Whether anyone gets off the waitlist has to do with UCR having room to accommodate more students. This is dictated by the number of admitted students who opt to enroll; something that is somewhat unpredictable and influenced by numerous external factors (economic trends, tuition increases, etc.). This is entirely out of anyone’s control.

Meryreply
March 31, 2018 at 1:20 pm

How can appeal for uci freshman 2018

Ms. Sunreply
April 1, 2018 at 12:13 am
– In reply to: Mery

You can find UCI freshman appeal instructions here.

ANDREreply
April 21, 2020 at 11:09 am

Hey I got rejected by UCI but I surpassed the grade requirement and completed all the required courses for transfer. Nonetheless I cannot help but think that the reason for this rejection is due to a failure to submit a requested transcript. Will the inclusion of my transcript be considered new information when appealing?

Ms. Sunreply
April 21, 2020 at 11:52 am
– In reply to: ANDRE

If you failed to respond to a transcript request, then your application is likely considered incomplete. You should check with UCI on what appeal process you need to use.

Questions or Comments?