Continued Academic Notice Letter

In addition to helping the review committee understand aspects of your experience that your academic record alone cannot communicate, the process of writing a CAN letter might be the first time you have stopped to examine why you have struggled academically. Alternatively, you may know well why you are struggling, but be unsure of what resources are available to help you overcome your challenges. 

We recommend reviewing our Common Causes of Academic Difficulty and Connect with Academic Support pages to help you reflect on your experience so far and to identify options for moving forward. 

A common question students ask regarding CAN letter is, “What are my chances?” or “How often do students get continued on notice?”

Each case is truly assessed individually. The chances of being disqualified are higher if your GPA is significantly below a 2.0, if your grades have been on a downward trend, or if you are struggling significantly in your major direction without plans to change. Your CAN letter is a chance to add your voice to the decision and CAN letters have changed the way a decision might have otherwise gone. 

It is important, though, to know that even if you follow all of the advice and tips on this page, it does not necessarily mean your chances of being continued on notice will be improved. This page is meant to provide insight on what kind of information is useful to present and to help you understand how to present it.

Remember that it is better to be honest and be disqualified than present something you think the committee will want to hear only to get trapped on a path you do not want to be on. For example, if you spent your first year struggling in your intended major direction and are not ready to give up trying to succeed in that major, you could use your terms away to work on your study skills for your intended major at a community college and show readiness to continue in that direction when you return. On the other hand, if your CAN letter outlined a plan to change your major direction, you could be continued but restricted from a schedule that would allow you to pursue that major direction.

Sometimes when students write a CAN letter, they realize that the best option for their situation is to take a break from attending school or at least from attending school at UC Berkeley. We have found that timing is one of the most important factors in a student experiencing academic success. If that is your conclusion, it can still be worth putting that into your CAN letter and submitting it anyway. If you are approved to be placed on continued on academic notice, this would mean you can take a break and return on notice. If you are disqualified, you would need to take extra steps before returning to Cal. Read more relevant information on the following pages: 

• Withdrawal
• Readmission
• Readmission after Disqualification