What Reviewers Look For in the Undergraduate — Additional Information
This rubric evaluates whether your response gives the reader the specific context needed to understand an experience, qualification, responsibility, disruption, course, or award. It also checks that the reader can understand the reach and timing of a change when that matters. This space can be a factual paragraph or bullets; it is not a second personal statement, and hardship or sensitive details are not required.
Undergraduate — Additional Information review
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What We Check
Whether the response supplies information that helps the reader understand the application.
Whether the account identifies the extent of the circumstances it describes.
Mistakes We Flag
- Naming a circumstance without connecting it
- A reader may not know what part of your application the circumstance helps explain. Identify the related experience, qualification, or part of your record.
- Turning it into another personal essay
- A life lesson can crowd out the factual information the reader needs. Keep the response centered on the context itself.
- Repeating an unfamiliar course or award label
- A reader outside your school may not know what the label means. Briefly explain the arrangement or qualification behind it.
- Describing a disruption as affecting everything
- The reader needs to know the identifiable part of school or daily life that was affected. State its reach rather than making it seem unlimited.
- Leaving the timeline unclear
- If you describe an interruption or change, the reader may need to know where it occurred in your studies or responsibilities, or whether it is ongoing. Exact dates are not required.
How this rubric reads your essay
- Built from published reader guidance — the sources are listed below.
- Scored per section against defined criteria, not general impressions.
- Calibrated for consistent scoring, so a better draft shows up in the score.
References
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to write this as an essay?
No. A factual paragraph or bullets can fully provide the needed context.
Do I need to disclose hardship, a diagnosis, or supporting documents?
No. Hardship is not required, and you do not have to provide a diagnosis, supporting documents, counselor confirmation, recovery story, fault admission, exact date, transformation, or future plan.
What kinds of information can I explain here?
You can provide context about a course label, qualification, available opportunity, responsibility, or disruption. An unusual course or award label may need a brief explanation of what it means.
How much should I explain about a disruption?
Identify the affected part of school or life and, when relevant, the period involved or whether the situation is ongoing. A course-label or qualification explanation does not need a timeline, recovery story, or causal account.
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