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How do folks know which schools to provide an optional addendum stating why X? I was reading that it is important for a few, and that on the other hand.. a few schools dislike receiving them. Yet most schools don't indicate which camp they fall into.
This seems unnecessarily non-obvious is there a consolidated list of schools that prefer the addendum?
Comments
My advice is to send a "why X" to any school that offers one explicitly, (Berkeley, Michigan, Duke, etc.), and to UVA. In most other cases, I would recommend that you either write a few "why X" sentences at the end of your personal statement (especially if the school's prompt seems to ask for one) or omit the "why X" material completely.