Upon completing the BWA, a $196 fee will be charged and applied to your Billing Summary account under My Finances in your CalCentral dashboard. Payment is due by Friday, May 30, 2025. If you previously qualified for the UC Application fee waiver, an automatic fee waiver will be applied.
Once you enroll in College Writing R1A, you forgo the opportunity to take the BWA. You may only satisfy the ELWR with a grade of C or higher in College Writing R1A.
Yes, the Berkeley Writing Assessment will be offered two times each year: the May administration (primarily for incoming students) and once during the fall semester. Note that you may take the Assessment only once. If you do not receive a qualifying score the first time you take the Assessment, and you have no other qualifying scores or acceptable transfer course completed prior to stating Berkeley, you should enroll in COLWRIT R1A
No, you may enroll directly in COLWRIT R1A without an assessment score. Many students appreciate taking the course as a way to improve their reading and writing skills in a small class environment (College Writing classes have only 14 students per section). The class is designed to set you up for success with your future writing assignments at Berkeley.
It generally takes around 3 weeks for your essay to be scored and for the score to be submitted before it appears in your records. You can find your BWA scores on your Cal Central dashboard under the "My Academics" tab.
Fee waivers for the Berkeley Writing Assessment are only granted to students who qualified for the UC Application fee waiver. The Berkeley Writing Assessment fee waiver will be automatically processed if you have already qualified for the UC Application fee waiver.
This is not an exam in the traditional sense. The Assessment doesn't have passing or failing grades. Instead, it will tell you which composition class is best for you given your skills and experience. If you receive a combined final score of 8 or higher, you will be recommended to take a 4-unit Reading and Composition Part A course in the department of your choice, including College Writing Programs. If your score is lower than 8, you will take College Writing (COLWRIT) R1A, a 6-unit...
If you are a newly admitted first-year student who has accepted the offer to attend Berkeley, you will be assigned a Task in your CalCentral Dashboard to complete an Entry Level Writing Evaluation form. If you are a continuing Berkeley student, there is a registration link on this page.
You may take the Berkeley Writing Assessment only once.
