Interviews
We don't offer interviews of any kind as part of the admission process at UVA. The application provides the information we need to make a decision. As someone who stressed out about a few college interviews and spent a bit of money to get to them as an applicant myself, I like that we don't use them.
Resumes
We have turned off the resume upload feature in the Common App. UVA does not accept resumes. This is in the application instructions and on the contact page if you want to show someone our directions on this.
When information is presented in the systematic format of the Common App, we can quickly identify the important information. If everyone submitted their awards/activities in their own document, we'd probably miss some things. Don't make more work for yourself! Use the Common App to share this information.
Portfolios that aren't Art Supplements
We have guidelines on our website for submitting art supplements, but some students want to submit other things, such as writing portfolios, news clippings, certificates, or photos of a student engaged in an activity. Due to our application volume, we are not able to review portfolios that don't adhere to the guidelines. Please don't send anything that doesn't fit the guidelines.
Research Abstracts
You should definitely tell us if you are engaged in research by putting it on the Common App activity list, but do not send us an abstract. A line or two telling us the subject of the research is sufficient. We will not be reading research papers or abstracts.
Emails showing interest
As application numbers increase, so do the emails from students who want to express their interest in UVA. We are happy to answer questions, but emails showing interest aren't necessary, we don't use demonstrated interest in our review.
By the way, submit updates through the student portal instead of by email. Please follow the application instructions on this! We want our staff to be dedicated to application review, not tending to a constant stream of emails. Following directions helps the process move quickly. Not following directions slows us down...and I know you all want us to work efficiently so we can get decisions made!
We ask for the things we know we need to make our decisions. The application includes a lot of information: transcripts, recommendations, pieces of writing, and an activity list. If someone is telling you that UVA needs things that aren't listed in our application instructions, they are mistaken.