The fifth began reading last year. The training includes a thorough review of Berkeley's admissions policies and process and a careful examination of the campus's applicant pool. They read, score and discuss a large number of applications to build validity and reliability into the reading process. If the two readers reviewing a particular application each assign it a different Academic Score or Comprehensive Score and the scores are more than a single point apart, then the file goes to a third reader for the determining score. Of the applications read in the fall 1997 reading process, only 7 percent required a third read.
Many readers read files at home.
These sessions provide an opportunity to hear other readers' experiences and perspectives. Readers jointly review and score a set of applications picked by the reader group's team leaders that pose compelling issues that make assigning a score complicated. The scores are tallied on a grid for the entire reader group to see, and a discussion follows about individual applicants. She considers the new admissions policy a boon for all applicants. Admissions officers and faculty agree that the new policy is certain to be improved upon.