Week 04
Choosing your PIQs
"Remember, the personal insight questions are just that — personal... You should use our guidance for each question just as a suggestion in case you need help. The important thing is expressing who you are, what matters to you and what you want to share with UC."
Instructions
If applying as a freshman: You have 8 questions to choose from. You must respond to only 4 of the 8 questions.
If applying as a transfer: There is 1 required question you must answer. You must also respond to 3 of the remaining 7 questions.
Each response is limited to a maximum of 350 words.
Which questions you choose to answer is entirely up to you. However, you should select questions that are most relevant to your experience and that best reflect your individual circumstances.
Step 1: Review the PIQ prompts on the UC Admissions page. What prompts speak to you? Why? Do they bring up any specific memories from your life?
Step 2: Reflect on the topics you brainstormed last week. Do any of them relate to the PIQ prompts? Have you thought of any new topics today after reviewing the prompts?
Step 3: Enter 2-3 prompts that you’d like to focus on and your topics for those essays into the linked Google Form.
Step 4: Begin writing your first 2-3 essays. Remember each response is limited to a maximum of 350 words.