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Separate PS for Berkeley?
Posted: Thu Aug 23, 2012 11:08 pm
by SaintsTheMetal
Just wondering, do most people write a much longer version of their PS for Berkeley?
Since they say 2-4 pages, is the 2 page standard PS going to be looked down upon, like you're not putting a lot of effort into your app with them or whatever
Re: Separate PS for Berkeley?
Posted: Fri Aug 24, 2012 10:54 am
by smittytron3k
FWIW, I applied there during the 2010 cycle, used my standard 2 page PS, and got waitlisted. I had numbers that suggest a YP (175/3.93) but I think that I might have gotten in if I had a statement that more specifically explained "Why Berkeley?"). Just my 2 cents.
Re: Separate PS for Berkeley?
Posted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 1:17 am
by Ti Malice
smittytron3k wrote:FWIW, I applied there during the 2010 cycle, used my standard 2 page PS, and got waitlisted. I had numbers that suggest a YP (175/3.93) but I think that I might have gotten in if I had a statement that more specifically explained "Why Berkeley?"). Just my 2 cents.
Berkeley doesn't really YP. They just care strongly about "fit" (whatever that means to them). And you might have been at a disadvantage for submitting a PS of exactly two pages.
OP, you might not be in a position to do this, but my PS was exactly two pages in 11-point Garamond. For Berkeley, I submitted the exact same essay in 12-point TNR, which pushed it to around 2.75 pages. I got in nine days after my app went complete.