Ask a USC Alum!

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>Bizarre being back here so many years later. </p>

<p>Let me brief you youngsters before I begin. I was a poster on CC back in Fall 2005 as an applicant for the Class of 2010. (Yes, a LONG time! I'm shocked I remembered my login, more embarrassed at my user name. I went through a slightly obsessive Fitzgerald phase back in the day.)</p>

<p>Anyway, to make a long story short, I ended up attending USC. I graduated in May 2010 and actually just applied back to USC for my Masters. Yes, I loved the school that much. (I also fell in love with Los Angeles, but I won't get into that unless anyone asks.)</p>

<p>I thought I'd return the favor by logging back in here and helping out a few of you prospective Trojans with your questions about USC. (I hoped the grad forums here would be more active, but they seem pretty science-focused -- not my intended area of study.)</p>

<p>As far as admissions go, things changed A LOT from the time I applied/was accepted to USC to now; from what I know, it's much more difficult to get in. (Not to say I was a poor applicant; browse my old posts for my stats, if you dare.) I can't offer MUCH in terms of "Are my stats good? What are my chances?" but I'll do my best.</p>

<p>What I can do, however, is answer questions about your programs, life at USC, living in Los Angeles, etc etc etc. As I said before, I absolutely enjoyed my time at USC and I really want to make sure you know how great of an institution it truly is. (My boyfriend, another USC alum, and I are pressuring his younger brother who is a senior in HS to attend the school, even!)</p>

<p>So, ask away! I'll do my best!</p>

<p>Kat</p>

2

<p>how much in debt are you from the school? lol</p>

3

<p>haha i can help out with this thread too seeing as i just graduated in may 2010 as well.</p>

<p>btw beyphy i graduated with 14k debt in loans. about 10k was subbed and the remainder was unsubbed. with my job i’ve managed to pay off all my unsubbed.</p>

<p>USC gave me an extraordinary finaid package that involved around 40k/year in grant money and for my last 2.5 years i didn’t have to pay for housing or mealplans because i worked as an RA.</p>

4

<p>I also applied to the class of 2010 (will graduate this spring as I added some programs).</p>

<p>The amount of debt USC students will graduate with varies wildly. Some will graduate with a full ~$200K in loans, others will be able to just pay out of pocket. Some, like me, will receive extremely generous financial aid and graduate with a few thousand dollars in debt, but most will fall somewhere in between. It all depends on your financial situation.</p>

5

<p>how much does usc consider class rank/gpa compared to test scores and extracurriculars?</p>

6

<p>As someone above mentioned, debt is across the board for all students. Since I took summer courses and was never an RA, I incurred a slightly higher cost than the two posters here. USC cut my financial aid grant in my last year – it was a big controversy, I remember; freshman got first cut at financial aid, causing some juniors and seniors I knew to leave school. </p>

<p>In all, I left with about a full year’s worth of debt – somewhere between $50,000-$60,000. </p>

<p>As you see, some people are luckier than others. My roommate is about $100,000 in debt, my boyfriend about $40,000. Depends on your scholarships and aid and study plans. (If you stay at school over the summer and/or living in non USC housing, cost goes way up. Keep that in mind if debt is important to you.) </p>

<p>I have a job myself and I am slowly paying off my loans. Could be worse – I could be unemployed with $100k+ in debt. To me, the amount of debt I incurred is totally reasonable given the education.</p>

<p>As far as GPA/tests vs. EC’s, I can’t say much to that since I applied close to 6 years ago. I do know and remember, however, that USC LOVES diverse students – those with unique skills, interests and involvement. If you look too across the board in terms of your EC’s, that could hurt instead of help you. </p>

<p>GPA/scores are still really important, though. But, I have to stress, having a high GPA/near perfect test scores does nothing for you if you come across as generic and boring on your applications. How can you make yourself stand out?</p>

7

<p>Were you or any of your friends Engineering majors and, if so, how were the intern opportunities, particularly in-state?</p>

8

<p>I knew a lot of engineers, but I can’t really speak to internship opportunities, sorry!</p>

<p>But, I do know that JPL works with a lot of USC students and they are pretty close by. There’s also a few Lockheed branches around Southern California. (Most of the Viterbi kids I knew ended up having summer internships in DC with the government, though…)</p>

9

<p>I had an internship at JPL, and there are many other opportunities for engineering internships at USC.</p>

10

<p>If you don’t live in LA now, what do employers from out of state think of a USC graduate?</p>

11

<p>Have you heard anything about the Music Industry program? I have about a 3.5 and recording studio internships…I’m still wondering how I will compare to other applicants, and what the program is like…</p>

12

<p>We just visited the USC campus last week when our son went for his Trustee Scholarship interview and overnight. We all thought the campus was beautiful and vibrant, but after a few hours there, the constant press of humanity seemed somewhat overwhelming. Granted it was mid-day on a Monday – but I can’t remember ever having seen a campus that was so congested with people - walking, riding bikes, skateboarding. It was hard to find a place where one could just be quiet and contemplative.</p>

<p>I’m wondering whether this is pretty typical of how the campus is. Does the atmosphere change at all in the evenings and on weekends, when commuters, professors and staff go home?</p>

13

<p>The crunch of humanity is particularly evident when students are switching from one class to another. Campus tours are scheduled frequently so you always see people coming to learn more about USC. Things definitely calm down on campus, especially during the evenings and weekends. My daughter tells me that there are very few people at the Lyon Center (campus gym) early in the AM.<br>
The other very busy time on campus is right before a home football game. Students, alumni and neighborhood fans gather to picnic and tailgate on campus and then walk across Exposition to the Coliseum for the game. Magically when you return to campus after the game, all remnants of the tailgating are gone and the campus once again is sparkly clean.</p>

14

<p>Campus is absolutely packed between classes on weekdays. Walk around at 11:00 and watch out for everyone around you trying to get places. But then when 11:15 rolls around, suddenly everyone is gone. And then they all appear again at 11:55.</p>

<p>Evenings and weekends are much less crowded than during class time, since people go home, go off to do other things, etc.</p>

<p>And even when it’s busy you can find quiet contemplative places. You just have to find them yourself though, I’m not giving away my good spots!</p>

15

<p>haha agreed, plenty of quiet spots… just we’re not apt to reveal them somewhere where hundreds can see (because they wont be quiet anymore)</p>

<p>they’re not too hard to find, you just have to do some exploring</p>

16

<ol>
<li><p>Considering that over half of the USC population consist of in-state students, what is life like for out-of-state students? </p></li>
<li><p>After graduating, do many out-of-state students stay in California rather than return home?</p></li>
<li><p>Do the dorms close during holidays, forcing students to vacate? If so, does this policy include short holidays such as Labor Day and Thanksgiving or just the long holidays? If the dorms close during the summer, how could I stay in the area during the summer for an internship, a job, or other endeavors without having to pay for an expensive apartment?</p></li>
</ol>

17

<ol>
<li><p>Out of state student usually don’t have a car, which most in-state students do. Otherwise, there really isn’t much difference. It’s not like there’s an in-state elitism or anything.</p></li>
<li><p>Depending on what your field of study is, you may move to California, move away, stay in California, stay away, etc.</p></li>
<li><p>The freshman dorms close for winter break, and are open for all other holidays. The USC-owned apartments stay open over winter break. over the summer, there are many people subletting their own apartment (not owned by USC) or other houses in the area. You’re going to have to pay for a place to stay, but there are cheap places. Some fraternities and sororities rent out space in their houses for anyone who is looking for a place to live in the summer.</p></li>
</ol>

18

<p>if you’re needing a place to stay over the summer you can find someone subletting at an apartment north of campus (probably either on menlo or ellendale) for $400-600/month.</p>

19

<p>"Have you heard anything about the Music Industry program? I have about a 3.5 and recording studio internships…I’m still wondering how I will compare to other applicants, and what the program is like… "</p>

<p>YES! I was a music industry minor and my boyfriend was a music industry major!</p>

<p>You still need to have decent test scores to get in, and I believe for majors you require some sort of portfolio. It is really awesome that you have internships at studios. I think my boyfriend had a couple recordings he did in his basement on ProTools under his belt along with his internships; pretty sure he sent those in with his application way back when. If you had some supplemental materials, you’ll be good.</p>

<p>I have no bad things to say about Thornton and the Music Industry program. (Wish I could say that about the school/program I majored in…) All the professors I had were amazing and I learned a lot. Are you looking at the tech or business track? Feel free to PM me if you want to take this offline.</p>

20

<p>“I’m wondering whether this is pretty typical of how the campus is. Does the atmosphere change at all in the evenings and on weekends, when commuters, professors and staff go home?”</p>

<p>Other posters answered this, but I’m confused why this may be construed as a “bad thing.” Wouldn’t it be worse to send your kid to a school where the students all vanish every weekend and there’s no hustle and bustle to the campus? (I’m thinking about UCLA here. It’s a ghost town on weekends…)</p>

<p>The campus is a bit nuts Monday - Thursday, 10am-1pm because this is when most classes take place. It’s not a big deal in any way. I enjoyed it, actually; you always manage to run into a few friends. And yes, there are PLENTY of silent spots on campus.</p>