Another Scholarship Question, Please-

<p>Does anyone know when/how the scholarships that dont require the Honors/Scholarship application are awarded- are they indicated on the Admissions letter- My OOS D was admitted this week with no mention of any scholarship $- She did send in the Honors/Scholarship app and I know those awards come later, but what about the ones that dont require the App- ie Mckissick, I think-- I am really hoping for that in state tuition(!!)and an admissions rep at a large local college fair made it seem like my D would def. qualify- 3.47 GPA at Very competitive large public HS- SAT--> 1260- Girl Scout Gold award; 5 time athletic letter & 2x accademic letter- captain of cheerleading team- Vp Mock trial, Officer in latin Club and a bunch of other stuff-
if it didnt indicate on the admissions letter, is she out of luck unless she qualifies for something else later?
anyone have ideas on her chances for honors/scholars</p>

<p>if what my rememberance of the timeline is correct:
admissions first
honors college acceptance second (early January)
initial scholarship notification after that but separate from admissions/honors/capstone notice
lastly,invite to McNair/Carolina Scholars weekends
perhaps someone with a background in Capstone or general admittance with a scholarship could chime in as well?</p>

<p>I went back and looked at old archived CC posts to refresh my memory.</p>

<p>D is a sophomore McKissick and Capstone. She was was admitted to USC in November and got her McKissick letter on Feb 24th and the Capstone letter a week or two later. I do remember having to scramble to get reservations for Scholars day at the end of March with only 2-3 weeks notice.</p>

<p>Hope this helps.</p>

<p>eadad,
what is "Scholars Day" ?</p>

<p>It is/was an all day event held on a Saturday in late March where everyone who had been offered a scholarship was invited to get a closer look at USC...attend sample classes, meet dept heads and professors, have lunch etc....essentially designed to make you feel wanted and get more attached to the school so that you accept the offer of admission.</p>

<p>eadad,
Was the Scholars Day well attended? My rough math estimates that there are over 800 general university scholarships granted.</p>

<p>PMaz
Scholars Day is very well attended.S was scheduled to go until he was awarded the McNair his year of acceptance. Its also exceptionally well run so don't worry about being lost in the shuffle(so we've been told). You'll get plenty of attention especially in the major area you are interested in and if accepted to Honors, from the Honors College faculty and staff itself.</p>

<p>thank you Cathy; your always a wealth of information.</p>

<p>TheFiveOfUs,
Don't get discouraged! Scholarship offers definitely come later than the admissions letter. Son (Capstone scholar - freshman this year. Loves USC!) got admissions letter, then got a notice from Financial Aid that he was not receiving any aid. Sadly, he cancelled his dorm reservation and told another college he would attend there. Suddenly, a week of two later, a scholarship came in..then another! He quickly and happily reinstated his dorm fee. Apparently, the letter from financial aid had to do with Pell Grants, not scholarships. Also, departmental scholarships can come very late...even into late May/early June if I remember correctly.
Also, I would recommend attending Scholars Day if you get a chance. Very nice day, students get good insight into their dept.</p>

<p>Thanks Greenville-Well see how it works out- I guess i am impatient, but she has received 5 acceptances so far and the offer of a schoalrship and/or honors/capstone would certainly go a long way towards making a final decision!</p>

<p>does anyone have a guess as to her chances for a scholarship or capstone based on the stats above//.also is it based purely on numbers or do they consider the whole student?</p>

<p>Five -
Capstone does have a minimum SAT. Last year, I believe it was somewhere around 1250. I know how you feel about the acceptances and scholarships. Son was accepted as several schools: USC had a great scholarship offer, another school made a similar offer, and 2 schools offered nothing! (Go figure!). I have only great things to say about USC. Son is in engineering and loves his classes and the Capstone program. Capstone dorm is a suite-style dorm and the students are housed by major. Everyone on his floor is in engineering--great for studying and meeting people with similar interests.
Son has also had some leadership opportunities in his major that I don't think he would have had at another school. I think your daughter has a good chance for Capstone...seems like some of her stats were similar to my son's.</p>

<p>TheFiveofUS - </p>

<p>my daughter is in roughly the same situation - her stat's are similar. 600/660 SAT's and was told as well that she would be a good candidate for scholarships etc...</p>

<p>basically if she doesn't get Capstone and instate tuition (or close to it) she probably won't go. The other acceptances are coming in some with really good money.
I am hoping we find out within the month. sounds like it may be later than that.</p>

<p>Thanks Greenille and JustaMomof4-
USC wasnt even on my daughters radar until the admissions rep told her with her stats she would qualify for instate tuition- (he didnt mention capstone) that put the school immed on my radar!! but he made it seems like everyone who has these stats automatically get it-- but who knows- But I like what I see- we are visiting in January so we can get a better idea - I like the idea of capstone- my daughter is a real achiever but shes very social too so i think Capstone and its rewards would keep her focused- she is used to being in a very very competitive HS and that worked for her-capstone might provide the same kind of feel-
Greenville, my sense is that USC has been almost a sleeper school of sorts in the past but in the last couple of years has really tried to push themselves to the next level nationally, one way by offering great scholarships to attract higher caliber students, a real upward trend, which would be great- is that your sense as well-
JustaMomof4, what other schools is your D looking at?</p>

<p>Five</p>

<p>Not Greenville but you are correct in your assessment; USC is definitely a school on the rise and rapidly losing the "sleeper" designation. By creating the Capstone Scholars program three years ago they found a way for high scoring top achievers who in the past had failed to matriculate after being turned down for the Honors program, to attend USC after all. The first year they were surprised when over 500 students accepted the Capstone offer and the number of Capstones has risen each year as has the bar to become one. Test scores and GPAs are up each of the last three years and in fact, last year they had to shut down rolling admissions early because so many people had accepted their offers by late January or early February as I recall.</p>

<p>What impressed us then and continues to impress us is the level of personal "touch" and attention that they show whenever the need rises to talk to anyone about anything.</p>

<p>My sophomore D could not be happier with the school, her major, social life, sorority etc. Being in Capstone was a plus for an OOS student since the program is roughly 50/50 and her program (Sports Management) is over 70 percent OOS. Her floor in the dorm was mostly SM majors so she had an instant connection with a number of people from day one.</p>

<p>She turned down UGA, Clemson, Auburn and others to attend USC. The McKissick Scholarship and in-state tuition was a big factor in her decision with law school costs in her future,and Capstone was the icing on the cake.</p>

<p>Five-
Eadad is exactly right. My son also turned down acceptance to Clemson's engineering program and others also to attend USC. Saw in the paper today where USC made # 37, I believe in the Kiplinger rating of "100 Best Values in College Education." USC's SAT admission stats have been climbing each year, and I believe people are waking up to the fact that USC is a great school with really quality programs. Capstone also has some programs geared toward study abroad that your daughter might be interested in. Students can compete for scholarships specifically to fund the study abroad. I think this year the Capstone abroad program is going to be in China.</p>

<p>Thanks Green and Eadad!! I am looking forward to visiting, myself- hopefully they will come through with some $ and Capstone and make it easy!</p>

<p>Five -
I don't know how much time you will have when you visit, but when we visited, we called ahead to the admissions office and they were able to set up appointments with a prof in son's department, a tour of the engineering building, and an appointment with the head of the Capstone program. They also showed us a room in the Capstone dorm. Everyone at USC has been absolutely wonderful and helpful. (I wondered if that would stop after son was accepted, but it hasn't! Everyone I've had contact with - bookstore, bursar's office, etc. has been friendly and wonderful to deal with.)
If you are staying overnight, there is the Carolina Inn - like a bed and breakfast - operated by the University, right there on campus. Also, there's a rotating restaurant (Top of Carolina) on the top of Capstone dorm - I hear they have a great Sunday brunch, but you might want to call for reservations. Are you going down for an Open House?</p>

<p>the on campus hotel is called the Inn at USC.Its really nice but pricey.
there are other nearby ,less pricey options as well when the time comes to book.</p>

<p>We also arranged for my D to attend several classes the Monday after Scholars day; the admissions office can handle that for you if you think it's something that might help with your decision.</p>