1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which
you have positively inuenced others, helped resolve disputes, or
contributed to group eorts over time.
How do you dene “leader”? List three words that you think describe
what a leader is:
1.
2.
3.
Do any of these words apply to you? How? Is there a time in your life
when you displayed any of these traits?
2. Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many
ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically,
to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.
Can you think of a time your viewpoint was unique compared to
others? What was the issue or problem from your perspective? Now
think of the same situation from the perspective of another person
who was there with you. How was your approach dierent from that
other person’s?
Was there ever a problem where your imagination and intuition
guided you to the solution?
Do you have a passion for music, theater, visual art, dance, etc.? What
have you gained from it that has aected other parts of your life?
3. What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have
you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?
List three of your talents or skills:
1.
2.
3.
Were these talents or skills the same a few years ago? What changed?
What improved?
Which one of the three talents or skills you listed is the most
meaningful or important to you and why? Does the talent come
naturally or have you worked hard to develop this skill or talent?
Getting started
This worksheet is designed to help freshman applicants start the writing process for the personal insight questions in the undergraduate
admissions application. Additional hints and suggestions can be found on UC’s admissions website at ucal.us/personalquestions.
What are the personal insight questions?
These questions are about getting to know you better — your life
experience, interests, ambitions and inspirations. Think of it as your
interview with the admissions oce. Be open. Be reective. Find your
individual voice and express it.
While this section of the application is just one part we consider when
making our admission decision, it helps provide context for the rest of
your application.
The basics
• You will have 8 questions to choose from. You must respond to any
4 of the 8 questions.
• Each response is limited to a maximum of 350 words.
• Which questions you choose to answer is entirely up to you: But
you should select questions that are most relevant to your
experience and that best reect your individual circumstances.
• All questions are equal: All questions are given equal consideration in
the application review process, which means there is no advantage or
disadvantage to choosing certain questions over others.
Freshman questions & brainstorm exercise
The following exercises are suggestions to help you get started.
Remember, you don’t have to answer all eight questions – you only
need to answer four. So if some questions aren’t the right t for
you, that’s OK. The important thing is expressing who are you, what
matters to you and what you want to share with UC.
personal insight questions:
guide for freshman applicants
4. Describe how you have taken advantage of a signicant
educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational
barrier you have faced.
Feel free to speak about either an opportunity or a barrier. It’s OK if
you’ve experienced one and not the other.
educational opportunities:
List any programs or additional classes that have better prepared you
for college:
1.
2.
3.
How did you nd out about these programs or classes? How did you
take what you learned and apply it to your schoolwork or other aspects
of your life?
educational barriers:
Have you faced any barriers or challenges related to school and/or your
schoolwork? How did you overcome or strive to overcome them? List
three personal characteristics or skills you had to call on
to overcome this challenge:
1.
2.
3.
5. Describe the most signicant challenge you have faced and
the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this
challenge aected your academic achievement?
Have you had a dicult experience in your life? How did you get
through it? What did you learn going through this experience? If you’re
currently working your way through a challenge, what are you doing
now and does that aect dierent aspects of your life? For example,
ask yourself, “How has my life changed at home, at my school, with my
friends, or with my family?”
6. Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe
how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the
classroom.
Think about all of the classes you’ve taken at school. Now ll in the
blank: I would go to [class name] even if I didn’t have to.
It doesn’t have to be a class in which you’ve earned good grades –
the important thing is you enjoyed the subject and it impacted
you in some way.
(#6 continued)
Maybe there’s a course you haven’t taken at school that you wish you
did take or are looking forward to taking in college. How have you
pursued your interest in that subject outside of school?
7. What have you done to make your school or your community a
better place?
Did you contribute to a positive change at your school or in your
community? What steps have you taken to accomplish this? Remember,
even small changes can have a big impact. Why were you inspired to
act? What did you learn from your eort?
8. Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do
you believe makes you stand out as a strong candidate for admissions
to the University of California?
From your point of view, what do you feel makes you an excellent
choice for UC? Don’t be afraid to brag a little. Here are a few lists to
help you get started.
What do you value in your life? What’s important to you? List three
of them here:
1.
2.
3.
What are you passionate about?
1.
2.
3.
When you attend UC, what three things are you most looking
forward to?
1.
2.
3.
Does anything overlap? Is there anything from the lists that you want
to expand on?
Next steps
As you lled out the worksheet, were there any topics that seemed
particularly interesting? You might consider answering those questions
as part of your application. But the choice is yours! Take your time in
selecting which questions to answer and how to answer them. For more
information, visit our website at ucal.us/personalquestions.
personal insight questions:
guide for freshman applicants
