After submitting a UC first-year application, organize your follow-up around saved records, campus messages, changes, and required materials. Keep working on your courses while tracking each request from the universities.
Save the Submitted Application and Confirmation
UC's first-year after-you-apply guidance recommends keeping a copy of your application. Store the confirmation, submitted content, and list of campuses somewhere you can find them. If a campus asks you to verify information, refer to the version you submitted instead of relying on memory.
Check that your phone number, email, and mailing address are accurate, and update them through the permitted application options when needed. Make sure you monitor the email address you used to apply. Use our undergraduate application process page to connect these follow-up tasks to your existing checklist.
Follow Each Campus's Account Instructions
Watch for confirmation messages from the campuses you applied to, and follow their instructions for accessing applicant accounts. UC's campus portal guidance explains that campuses send access instructions and that applicants should check their portals frequently. Completing a task for one campus does not mean you have completed it for the others.
Check your inbox, spam folder, and campus account tasks regularly. UC Davis's after-you-apply checklist also reminds applicants to keep contact details current and monitor email. If access instructions are missing, review the campus website and use its official contact channel for help. Keep the campus access links together on your checklist.
Handle Academic Changes Campus by Campus
If you change schools, adjust your courses, or encounter a grade problem after submitting, consult the campus instructions on UC's official after-you-apply page. Determine whether your situation requires a report, when to send it, and which channel to use. Do not assume the original application provides a shared place to update all coursework.
UC Davis directs applicants to report school, course, and grade changes through MyAdmissions. UC Berkeley's application FAQs distinguish unsolicited additions from correcting information that is no longer accurate, and require prompt written notice of changes such as a dropped class or grade change. Reporting a change does not guarantee another application review; after receiving an offer, confirm that the admitting campus knows about relevant course changes or deficient grades.
When reporting a change, explain the original entry, what changed, and when. Save the submission and any response. Ask the relevant campus about unclear instructions instead of substituting another campus's procedure.
Turn Material Requests into Specific Tasks
Read requests for additional materials or verification carefully before preparing a response. Work from the deadline in the actual notice rather than assuming all campuses allow the same response time. For each request, record:
- The campus, the information requested, and the deadline.
- The documents needed, who will provide them, and the submission channel.
- The submission date, any receipt, and remaining follow-up.
Berkeley, for example, asks applicants not to send extra documents unless requested and says it will contact them if it needs more information. Respond to the request you received instead of resending an entire application. Organize the current versions alongside our application writing and materials page.
Separate Review Tasks from Enrollment Tasks
Continue your coursework while waiting for decisions, and respond to campus requests. UC's transcript submission guidance says not to send sixth- or seventh-semester high school transcripts unless a campus asks for them.
After accepting an offer and choosing where to enroll, arrange the final official transcripts, required exam results, and other documents. The final high school transcript should show your graduation date; arrange official college records as required if you took college courses. Check your admission conditions, official document deadlines, and the campus's receipt status. Keep “delivery requested” separate from “received by the university” on your checklist.