The best strategy to writing a winning UC Davis appeal letter starts with understanding admissions statistics. Let’s take a look at UCD’s appeal stats below for the 2023-24 admissions cycle.

During the 2023 admissions cycle, UC Davis had an appeal rate of 0.37%. 2 out of 536 students got accepted. This is dreadfully small. That’s why it’s especially important to write an appeal letter that stands out from the rest of the admissions pool.

But make no mistake.

Just because most UC appeal processes, like Berkeley’s, have abysmally low chances of acceptance does NOT it’s not worth trying. Appeals are a second chance at getting into your dream school.

Here’s more information on what UC Davis has to say about appeals.

“Can I appeal my admission decision?

Appeals are rarely granted. Consideration for appeals is based on new and compelling information, extenuating circumstances and your overall academic record. As part of your appeal, you must include a statement describing your special circumstances, as well as any additional documents such as unofficial academic records and letters of recommendation. All appeals and supplemental documentation must be submitted online—interviews are not granted and appeals received through any other channel will not be considered.”

UC Davis Official Website

You heard them. Appeals are rarely granted. But, if you want to get accepted into UC Davis by appeal, you’ll at least one of these 3 things…

1. New and compelling info that would have made a significant difference to your application if reviewed again. (Example: awards, honors, projects, work experience, and leadership positions you didn’t mention.)
2. Extenuating circumstances that make your achievements look more impressive. (Example: having a high GPA despite being diagnosed with ADHD)
3. (Hopefully) an uptrend in academic performance.

The prompt is quite simple:

“…include a statement describing your special circumstances, as well as any additional documents such as unofficial academic records and letters of recommendation…”

With that said, let’s get to it. Here are 5 ways you can write a successful UC Davis appeal letter that doesn’t suck.

Table of Contents

1. How to Write a Successful Appeal Letter to UC Davis
   • No Hyperboles and Crocodile Tears.
   • Be Concise and Get to the Point.
   • Explain WHY Your New Information Changes the Way Admissions Officers Should See Your Application.
   • Remember to Prove to Admissions Officers Why Your New Info Makes You a Valuable Asset.
   • Don’t Forget to Prove That You’re Choosing UCD as Your #1 School to Appeal to Their Retention Rate.
   • What to do if You Don’t Have Anything to Write About in Your UCD Appeal Letter.

How to Write a Successful Appeal Letter to UC Davis

We based these 5 points on the tips we often give our clients to help them get accepted through UC appeals. And, if you’re looking for help with your UC Davis appeal letter, feel free to reach out for a free consultation!

No Hyperboles and Crocodile Tears.

A few decades back, it was common practice for teachers, consultants, and parents to tell students to write about “some dead grandma.” The goal was to get admissions officers to feel sorry for students and their bad background.

While this may have worked in the era of white-picket-fence atomic era families, it’s no basis for appeal today. In fact, attempting to guilt trip admissions officers in an appeal letter is a surefire way to get your application rejected.

Your goal here is not to be over the top or hyperbolic. Don’t overexaggerate the things you’ve done or even the information you’ve left out to persuade admissions officers. There’s a difference between writing your UC appeal letter well and twisting the truth via exaggeration. The latter is unacceptable.

Instead, tell the truth to the best of your degree. Be as honest and forthright about your reason for appeal and explain why your additional information makes you a qualified candidate. You can be persuasive without twisting the truth.

For, if you can articulate a reasonably solid argument for why your application deserves an appeal without bending the truth, admissions officers would be more likely to consider your case.

Think of the UC Davis appeal letter as a business proposal. Business proposals worth their salt don’t hide their statistics behind fancy buzzwords and business jargon. They tell you flat out why their company deserves seed capital because they have the confidence their reasons are rock solid.

Like a successful startup, think about how you deserve an appeal; and, present your case well without appealing to emotion with crocodile tears!

Be Concise and Get to the Point.

You’d be shocked just how many people struggle to be concise!

This may seem like an insignificant point. But, admissions officers truly appreciate it when you’re being concise and cut to the chase. After all, admissions season is technically over. Admissions officers take extraordinary courtesy by reconsidering your application. So, being brief shows admissions officers you appreciate their time!

Remember: manipulation of language involves twisting words to try to “force” admissions officers into a certain direction. Your goal is not to manipulate them into accepting you. Instead, be as concise, articulate, and forthright as possible in your words; then, let admissions officers come to their own conclusions. This openness to judging the “real you” will leave a better impression than a “fake mask.”

Explain WHY Your New Information Changes the Way Admissions Officers Should See Your Application.

One of the things people forget when writing their UC Davis appeal letter is explaining WHY their new information makes them suitable for appeal.

And no. You can’t just talk about the spike in academic performance you had from Sophomore to Junior year. You would need to elaborate on WHY that spike is relevant enough to make you a worthy candidate for appeal. Perhaps the sudden increase in grades was a reflection of your ability to use grit and determination to overcome burnout. Or, maybe you didn’t get the chance to talk about your sudden improvement in mindset and relationship with academics, which played a major role in your academic experience. Perhaps it was an adaptation to learning disabilities such as ADHD or Dyslexia. (By the way, if you plan to write your UC Davis appeal letter about learning disabilities, we suggest checking out our sister article here!)

Whatsoever the reason is, you need to elaborate on WHY the additional info makes you a great candidate. Be sure that admissions officers don’t need to make inferences on their own. None of the information should be implied. It should be clear as water.

Here’s an example:

Bad example: During my junior year, my mother suffered through chemo therapy for her cancer treatment. It led my grades to dip dramatically. And, I was depressed for a lot of the academic year during that. I found myself sad, aloof, and ultimately feeling unmotivated.

Good example: I believe my application to UCD painted my junior year light in an unfairly bad light. For, it was during this time my mother had struggled with her cancer chemo treatment; and, I spent much of my time taking care of her. It was inexorably the case my academic performance would dip compared to my Sophomore year, as I had a personal, moral, and familial obligation to take care of my ailing mother. However, it was also during this time that I strangely learned how to manage my time very well and hyper-efficiently. So, in a strange manner, I also came out of my junior year learning how to become hyper-efficient due to the unexpected tragedy of my mother’s chemo.

The first example doesn’t actually connect why the depression would lead to lower academic performance. While this sounds like something that should be obvious, admissions officers need you to be very particular about the WHYs. So, don’t skimp out on elaboration.

Remember to Prove to Admissions Officers Why Your New Info Makes You a Valuable Asset.

Just like in our first point about hyperboles and crocodile tears, we’re going to use business analogies here. Think about your UC Davis appeal letter in the context of business.

Does UC Davis want liabilities or assets? (definitions here for reference.)

UC Davis, like most schools, value students whom they consider positive assets to their school. That doesn’t mean “I’m rich, let me in.” Rather, they want students who they know will be a positive addition to their campus. This is especially true if their incoming class has a particular deficit.

Think about what kind of major you’re applying for. It can be English, Management, Biology, etc; regardless, any major is going to be deficient in a particular group of people. For instance, computer science programs often lack women of color. English and other liberal arts programs often lack men —even more so Asian men.

While we can’t “predict” what the admissions officers want and need in their incoming class, we can guesstimate what they’re deficient in. Think about the school or major you’re applying for; then, consider what unique attributes your additional information would provide for the incoming class.

If you’re fortunate, admissions officers will see this as a plus for their campus and they’ll be more likely to admit you as a great asset to the school.

Don’t Forget to Prove That You’re Choosing UCD as Your #1 School to Appeal to Their Retention Rate.

All colleges make predictions during the admissions process. They forecast everything from student dropout likelihood to student success likelihood. One factor you’ll need to consider is retention rate. During appeals, admissions officers at UC Davis will read your statement to measure how much you really want to attend the school.

Are you someone who is just appealing for the sake of it? Or, are you someone who truly wants to attend if accepted?

Often, students who have very solid applications AND have many incentives to attend UC Davis will likely attend. This ensures the admissions office keeps their retention rate high. That is, when a student is admitted via appeal, they don’t back out of their decision and leave the admissions office hanging dry.

While this is a smaller factor in the overall admissions decision, it’s still an important one. So, when crafting the UCD appeal letter, be sure to write a sentence or two persuading the admissions office that Davis is truly your #1.

Oh, and don’t be cheesy or hyperbolic about it either. Remember: trust is worth its weight in gold. And, in the context of college admissions, a process where trust is sparse and cheating is plenty, you’re going to need to gain UCD’s trust.

This isn’t easy, but don’t fret. Be organic. Don’t lie. And, be forthright in all your writing.

What to do if You Don’t Have Anything to Write About in Your UCD Appeal Letter.

This is probably one of the hardest parts about writing your UCD appeal letter. In fact, it’s probably the hardest thing about writing ay UC appeal letter. “What do I say if I have nothing to write about in my appeal letter?!”

First, let’s start with this: you’re not alone.

A lot of other students applying for the UC appeal process also lack viable reasons for appeal. In fact, many of them are just angry they didn’t get in; so, they’re just grasping at straws at this point!

But, here’s the good news. Almost every student applying for appeal who we’ve talked to had more “new and compelling information or extenuating circumstances” than they expected! They just didn’t look hard enough!

In other words, if you don’t think you have anything worth writing about in your UCD appeal letter, look harder! Scour through your transcripts, academic background, potential extenuating circumstances, and more. You may think you have nothing; but, most students just forget that they have things worth talking about!

Some of the most common additional information pieces students miss include but are not limited to the following…

1. Noise issues at home.
2. Lack of proper work and learning environment at home.
3. Financial issues which impacted academics.
4. Injuries or psychological diagnoses.
5. Learning disability diagnoses such as ADHD or Dyslexia.
6. GPA boosts.
7. Unofficial personal projects that had more work or labor in them than expected.

One final thought: if you still don’t know what to write about in your UC Davis appeal letter, you should consider speaking with an advisor or consultant. Here at PenningPapers, we’ve helped a plethora of students get accepted into strong UC schools via appeal. And, a good number of them initially felt lost due to a lack of topics. Consider scheduling a free consultation with us, and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours with free advice!