Does USC only look at GPAs and test scores?

Colleges & Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>Does USC only look at GPAs and test scores? Do they take extracurricular activities, letters of rec. or essays into deep consideration?</p>

2

<p>as a transfer, i would say that they dont just look at gpa because mine was 3.28, whereas most students had 4.0</p>

<p>i didnt have much extracurricular either.</p>

<p>but my high school and college were both had high reputation maybe that was the thing.</p>

3

<p>I’m a student in a regular high school, and also I’m taking a college credited (3.0) summer course at USC over the summer, would that help? I heard some people say that connections with the professors and teachers there can help a lot</p>

4

<p>[College</a> Search - University of Southern California - USC - Admission](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)</p>

<p>Taken from the above link:</p>

<p>A note about the college’s admission requirements: Academic achievement, curriculum and test scores most important. Recommendations, activities, essays/writing samples are also very important.</p>

<p>Very important admission factors:</p>

<p>Application Essay
Recommendations
Rigor of secondary school record
Standardized Test Scores
Academic GPA
Important admission factors:
Extracurricular Activities
Talent/Ability</p>

<p>Considered:</p>

<p>Alumni Relation
Character/Personal Qualities
Class Rank
Interview
Racial/Ethnic Status
Volunteer Work
Work Experience
First generation college student</p>

5

<p>Good extracurrics/letters of rec/essays can help make an academically solid app stronger, make a maybe into a yes or a yes into a scholarship; however, extracurrics/letters of rec/essays will rarely, if ever, pull an academically unqualified student into the “yes” zone. </p>

<p>Think of it this way: You can polish a bar of gold and make it shine brighter, but no matter how hard you polish a pile of turd, it will not shine.</p>

6

<p>They put weight on them, but if you’re applying to a specialty college or have a really, really awesome talent they can choose to overlook it. I’m sure I’ve parroted this story already, but I got in with a 2.6 GPA but had an amazing portfolio and letters of rec to make up for it - that’s SCA, though, I’m sure other departments are different (save for Thornton or Roski).</p>