Fall 2015 (class of 2019) USC DECISIONS STATS ONLY THREAD

[monochrome13]

[ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted with Merit Scholarship**[/color]

Date applied: Before December 1 Deadline

Date decision postmarked/received: January 27

Which school/major at USC: Roski School of Art and Design

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2150
ACT (breakdown): 33
SAT II (place score in parentheses): 770 Math II, 650 Literature
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.16 weighted (I don’t know my unweighted)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parentheses):
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:
Class council president (9, 10, 11)
Founder and president of National Arts Honor Society (11, 12)
National Honor Society
French Honor Society
Quill & Scroll Honor Society
Editor in Chief of the school yearbook
Varsity golf team
Editor of the official school publication
Art delegate at an international schools art convention
Facilitator at the Global Issues Network
Model United Nations (attended 5 major local and international conferences)
Kumon Philippines Advanced Student Honor Roll Award (TOP TEN in the Reading Program in the nation)
AP Scholar
Outstanding Student Award (In Leadership and Academics)
Service Award (Leadership and Participation in Service)
Hosted the NAHS Art Auction to raise funds for Filipino scholars, earned a total of $9,000
Service work: Visited provinces in the Philippines for a week every year to interact with and work for local communities

Essays (rating 1-10, details):: common app essay about about art and serivce
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: 10
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: 9
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: none
Interview: On campus, portfolio-based

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Merit Scholarship
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Asia (won’t specify)
School Type: International Private
Ethnicity: Korean
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection
Strengths: Essays and ECs
Weaknesses: Scores
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong essays, ECs that were meaningful
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Yale Brown Cornell NYUAD UC Berkeley UCLA UCSD
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: I honestly didn’t think I would get the scholarship because those who get scholarships are usually on par with regular ivy league students… But this really showed how it’s not all about the scores and they really have a holistic admission process.

[monochrome13]

Decision: Accepted with Merit Scholarship

Date applied: Before December 1 Deadline

Date decision postmarked/received: January 27

Which school/major at USC: Roski School of Art and Design

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2150
ACT (breakdown): 33
SAT II (place score in parentheses): 770 Math II, 650 Literature
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.16 weighted (I don’t know my unweighted)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parentheses):
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:
Class council president (9, 10, 11)
Founder and president of National Arts Honor Society (11, 12)
National Honor Society
French Honor Society
Quill & Scroll Honor Society
Editor in Chief of the school yearbook
Varsity golf team
Editor of the official school publication
Art delegate at an international schools art convention
Facilitator at the Global Issues Network
Model United Nations (attended 5 major local and international conferences)
Kumon Philippines Advanced Student Honor Roll Award (TOP TEN in the Reading Program in the nation)
AP Scholar
Outstanding Student Award (In Leadership and Academics)
Service Award (Leadership and Participation in Service)
Hosted the NAHS Art Auction to raise funds for Filipino scholars, earned a total of $9,000
Service work: Visited provinces in the Philippines for a week every year to interact with and work for local communities

Essays (rating 1-10, details):: common app essay about about art and serivce
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: 10
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: 9
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: none
Interview: On campus, portfolio-based

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Merit Scholarship
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Asia (won’t specify)
School Type: International Private
Ethnicity: Korean
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection
Strengths: Essays and ECs
Weaknesses: Scores
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong essays, ECs that were meaningful
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Yale Brown Cornell NYUAD UC Berkeley UCLA UCSD
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: I honestly didn’t think I would get the scholarship because those who get scholarships have an average of 2200+ and are usually on par with regular ivy league students… But this really showed how it’s not all about the scores and they really have a holistic admission process.

[monochrome13]

Decision: Accepted with Merit Scholarship

Date applied: Before December 1 Deadline

Date decision postmarked/received: January 27

Which school/major at USC: Roski School of Art and Design

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2150
ACT (breakdown): 33
SAT II (place score in parentheses): 770 Math II, 650 Literature
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.16 weighted (I don’t know my unweighted)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parentheses):
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:
Class council president (9, 10, 11)
Founder and president of National Arts Honor Society (11, 12)
National Honor Society
French Honor Society
Quill & Scroll Honor Society
Editor in Chief of the school yearbook
Varsity golf team
Editor of the official school publication
Art delegate at an international schools art convention
Facilitator at the Global Issues Network
Model United Nations (attended 5 major local and international conferences)
Kumon Philippines Advanced Student Honor Roll Award (TOP TEN in the Reading Program in the nation)
AP Scholar
Outstanding Student Award (In Leadership and Academics)
Service Award (Leadership and Participation in Service)
Hosted the NAHS Art Auction to raise funds for Filipino scholars, earned a total of $9,000
Service work: Visited provinces in the Philippines for a week every year to interact with and work for local communities

Essays (rating 1-10, details):: common app essay about about art and serivce
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: 10
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: 9
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: none
Interview: On campus, portfolio-based

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Merit Scholarship
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Asia (won’t specify)
School Type: International Private
Ethnicity: Korean
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection
Strengths: Essays and ECs
Weaknesses: Scores
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong essays, ECs that were meaningful
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Yale Brown Cornell NYUAD UC Berkeley UCLA UCSD
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: I honestly didn’t think I would get the scholarship because those who get scholarships have an average of 2200+ and are usually on par with regular ivy league students… But this really showed how it’s not all about the scores and they really have a holistic admission process.

[katcon]

Decision: Accepted

Date applied: October 2014
Date decision postmarked/received: Postmarked 3/24/15; Received 3/26/15

Accepted at which school/major at USC: Dornsife; Psychology major, Pre-Medicine pre-professional emphasis

Stats:
SAT Total: N/A
ACT: 34 C; 36 English, 35 Reading, 32 Science, 31 Math
SAT Subject Tests: N/A
GPA-UW/W: 4.0 UW/ 4.7 W
Rank: 1/155
AP/IB classes: (9 total) AP Psychology (5), AP English Lang (5), AP U.S. History (4), AP Human Geography (4)
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lit, AP Calculus AB, AP Environmental Science, AP Macroeconomics, AP U.S. Government and Politics

Subjective:
Essays: I wrote about how I love the city, diversity, etc. They were very well written, but I was super anxious to submit my application, and I definitely feel like I could have done a better job exhibiting my personality.
Teacher Recs: Amazing! 10/10. I read both recs, and they were absolutely phenomenal. I was blown away by the praise they gave me. A very successful USC alum also wrote a letter for me, but he sent it on his own far after I submitted my application.
Counselor Rec: Not sure. She is a new counselor (this is her first year), but I talked with her many times, and she knows about all of my accomplishments, so it was probably pretty good.

Job/Work Experience: Nothing special. Just a carhop at Sonic Drive-in
EC highlights & community service: Track & Field (4 years; captain 2 years), Beta Club (4 yrs; Vice President 2 yrs), Student Council (3 yrs; junior class secretary and senior class vice president), Drama Club member and acted in several plays, Model United Nations (3 yrs), Varsity Cheerleading, Habitat for Humanity, Link Crew, Science Bowl, pioneered a jeans drive, spearheaded a community fundraiser (raised $3,000 for American Red Cross), helped coordinate a book drive for the elementary school in my community, lots and lots of tutoring hours! (I also coordinated the tutoring program for my school as VP of Beta Club), some others.

Major Awards: National Merit Commended, AP Scholar, Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from my Congresswoman, first place in a national math competition, first place in state-level Beta spelling competition, first person in school history to accomplish many sports-related things, 5 other school-wide “student of the year” awards

Location/Person:
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes.
State or Country: Tennessee
School Type: small public school
Income Bracket: low income
Ethnicity: Unknown. My father was adopted, and I wrote in my essay how not knowing my ethnicity has shaped me.
Gender: Female

Strengths: Test scores, GPA, ECS/leadership, and lots of APs. Probably being National Merit Commended, as well.
Weaknesses: Essays. Could’ve included more about my personality, motivations, goals, etc. Not that much community service and no outstanding summer activities or research endeavors.
Other Factors, hook?: No hooks. Maybe living in a rural town? The USC alum rec may have helped, but I wasn’t involved in that, so I really have no idea.
General Comments, scholarship chances, status info, going to USC…?: 100% going to USC! It is my absolute dream school and I have been stressing over this for so long; it is the best feeling ever to be accepted! My income bracket should land me some generous aid, and I’m very thankful for that because I would never be able to pay the cost on my own. I can’t wait to officially join the Trojan Family! If I could give any advice to future applicants, it would be to put an abundance of thought and energy into the essays because those are what I have been stressing over the past few days waiting for my decision!

[irskyj]

Decision: Accepted

Date applied: January 14th (I think?)

Date decision postmarked/received: March 26th

Which school/major at USC: Annenberg/Broadcasting and Digital Journalism Major

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2160
ACT (breakdown): 31 (did not submit)
SAT II (place score in parentheses): N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.67
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Maybe top 15%? School doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parentheses): AP World (5), AP HUGS (5), AP Lang (5), APUSH (4)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Env. Sci., Gifted Magnet Math, Journalism III, AP Lit, AP Macro, PE
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Eagle Scout, AP Scholar with Honors, National Merit Semi-finalist

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Boy Scouts (Eagle Scout), NHS, School Newspaper (Editor/Webmaster), Varsity Soccer (captain), Student Government Association (11th and 12th grade president), Club Soccer, Lead in school musical (tried out on a whim and actually enjoyed it, even though it is totally outside of my realm)
Job/Work Experience: Lifeguard during summers, so nothing major
Volunteer/Community Service: Tons through Boy Scouts
Summer Activities: Attended the Georgia Governor’s Honors Program for Communicative Arts (it’s a governor’s school where you essentially spend four weeks immersing yourself in an area of study)
Essays (rating 1-10, details): I’d like to think 8.5-9/10. For my CommonApp, took a very, very different approach. Supplements were talking about why I liked Annenberg.
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 9/10. My APUSH teacher, who is widely regarded as the top guy to get a rec from, wrote me one, as well as my journalism advisor. I waived my rights to read them, though, so who really knows?
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details): probs 8/10. I have a very good relationship with my counselor, but don’t know if she went above and beyond. Again, didn’t read it.
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details): N/A
Interview: N/A

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
State (if domestic applicant): Georgia
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Middle class-ish, extremely diverse magnet school (appx. 1600)
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 90k<, >100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection
Strengths: EC’s, essays, SAT(?)
Weaknesses: undoubtedly GPA, but showed strong upward trend
Why you think you were accepted: I’m still in disbelief, to be honest. I was rejected from Northwestern, Davidson, and Pomona. I had accepted going to UGA. USC decided to spice things up (my attendance will be contingent upon the amount of benjamins they’re willing to throw my way). In the end, though, I think it was my EC’s, as they sort of matched the Annenberg profile. Also, geographic diversity might have played a part
Where else you are applying or have already applied: See above.
General Comments: As much as I loved Birdman, I felt that The Grand Budapest Hotel was a greater cinematic achievement. With TGBH, it seems to me that, if possible, Wes has finally found his distinct voice. Only improvement would be Owen Wilson.

[Jessdilla2015]

Decision: Accepted

**Date applied: ** by Dec 30th deadline

Date decision postmarked/received: Today! March 26th 2015

Which school/major at USC: Broadcast Journalism at Annenberg

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Did not send
ACT (breakdown): 29 (34 writing, 32 reading, 26 math womp, 24 science womp womp)
SAT II (place score in parentheses): none
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): UC gpa is like a 3.83 not sure of my school one lol
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): like top 15%, about 70/500
AP (place score in parentheses): Apush (3). AP psych (3), AP physics (didn’t take), AP world (uh a 2…), AP English (TBD)
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP English… yep thats it… besides some regular courses and electives
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Poem published in book because of contest

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): NHS (VP), UNICEF (President), Youth Broadcast and Media Association (President), Broadcast Journalism course/newscast (Main anchor, sound, manager, treasurer etc. i do it all :p) Varsity Track and Field, Girl Scouts, Model U.N. (PR), Key Club (activities director)
Job/Work Experience: none
Volunteer/Community Service: lots ^^
Summer Activities: having fun with my friends you feel?
Essays (rating 1-10, details):: P.S.- 8, was about growing up with a cleft lip and surgeries and how broadcast journalism boosted my self esteem. Non-academic pursuit: 8 wrote about traveling and being open-minded and cultured. “Why USC?”- 10 I’m really proud of this one, I wrote it in first person as a flashforward to my freshman year. I researched different courses, libraries, clubs, professors and even restaurants on campus and tied it all together to really prove my love for USC
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: Good, but their writing skills were not great save for one of them.
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: pretty good, she loves me!
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: Broadcast journalism teacher, writing skills were weak but I came across well
Interview: Amazing if I do say so myself! We totally clicked and I even sent her a handwritten thank you note

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? of course!
State (if domestic applicant): California, baby!!!
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: medium to large semi competitive public
Ethnicity: black
Gender: female
Income Bracket: 200k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM kinda

Reflection
Strengths: my writing and writing scores on ACT
Weaknesses: I have 3 C’s on my transcript y’all…
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Truly believe what sent me over the edge was my “Why USC?” essay, my ACT isn’t bad but on the low end of their ranges, by my essays and ECs you can really tell that my life is centered around broadcast journalism
Where else you are applying or have already applied: accepted: pepperdine, cal poly, UNR, ASU, Howard U, Sac state, USF, chapman, etc etc, rejected: UCLA, UCB waitlisted: UCSB. I applied to 18 schools but this was my favorite acceptance
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: Surprised I got in considering some of my legacy friends didn’t, super lucky and thankful can’t wait to join the trojans this fall!!! Also I am living proof that kinda average kids can have their dreams come true #fighton!!!

[travelinspace]

Decision: Accepted

**Date applied: ** Dec. 29

Date decision postmarked/received: Postmarked March 24, received today (March 26)

Which school/major at USC: Electrical Engineering!

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 770/760/800/9
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Same, 2330 (I took it twice but EVERYTHING was better the second time. I went from a 2040 to a 2330 in 1 month because my writing went from a 600 to an 800!)
SAT II (subject, score):
Math 2: 790
Biology E: 760
Chemistry: 730
English Language: 730
US History: 720
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: like a 4.4? don’t quote me on this haha
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/1, I’m homeschooled (I take online classes and classes at a charter school though, so my grades are official)
AP (place score in parentheses):

AP Human Geography: 4
AP Biology: 4
AP English Literature: 5
AP USH: 5
AP English Lang: 5
AP Macroecon: TBD
AP Physics C MEM: TBD
AP Calculus BC: TBD
AP Environmental Science: TBD
Senior Year Course Load:
AP Macroecon
AP Calc BC
AP Environmental Science
Spanish 4
British Literature
AP Physics C MEM
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Nothing big in this category, I did win the President’s Gold Volunteer Service award though
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): A bunch of senate certificates for pageantry, hosting my own benefit concert, volunteer service, etc. AP Scholar with honors, can’t remember exactly what I put down (sorry).

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Robotics (9th and 12, mentored a team this fall), Piano (9-12), Violin/Youth Symphony (9-12), Speech and Debate (9-12, taught a speech class to junior high kids), Kickboxing (11-12), Beauty Pageants (10-11?), plus all my internships. (There’s probably more I’m forgetting here, sorry)
Job/Work Experience: Worked at Subway the summer after Sophomore year, JUST got a job at Starbucks (not on my application though)
Volunteer/Community Service: Over 900 hours, I had a ridiculous amount of volunteer hours mainly from my internships
Summer Experience:
Summer 2011:
Organized and hosted my own benefit concert, raised over $3k
Interned for a local senator, gave presentations in the community and networked with officials

Summer 2012:
Went to China for a month on my own for a summer camp at a university

Debate camp

Summer 2013:
Worked at Subway
Interned at a local Chamber of Commerce

Summer 2014:
Interned at the UCSD Supercomputer Center
Interned at Kramer Engineering
Attended an all female construction camp!!!

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Essay 1: Wrote about construction and how I like to fix things at home. 6/10
Essay 2: Academic interest, wrote about my learning style and “why USC” 7/10
Essay 3: Benefit society, wrote this from a really interesting perspective (as a news article from 2023), and I thought it was REALLY creative and interesting! I wrote about surgical nanobots from the perspective that I had invented them, haha. 9/10
Essay 4: Geek or Nerd, I wrote about lipstick! I really love makeup so much and I’ve done a lot of beauty pageants and stuff like that. I talked about being a nerd and how I can “have it all.” 10/10, one of my best college essays.
Teacher Recommendation #1: Math teacher - he tends to write very brief recommendation letters, but he thought I was one of the best students he ever had, if not the best. I also had him as a biology tutor during my freshman year, so I’ve known him for a while. 6/10
Teacher Recommendation #2: Spanish teacher - she absolutely ADORES me. She texts me all the time and we have so many inside jokes (“I louuuve it”)! She’s honestly like a mom to me, and she considers me her third daughter. I’m sure this was really great. 10/10
Counselor Rec: Written by my mom (I know, awkward). She wants me to be happy and do well, so I’m sure it was good. 7/10
Additional Info/Rec: I asked my mentor at UCSD to write me a letter of recommendation, and he did. Really nice guy, he was incredibly impressed with our project and the progress my team made, so he probably wrote something nice. 5/10
Interview: N/A.

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? I can’t remember
State (if domestic applicant): CA
School Type: Homeschooled
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: High
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection
Strengths: My essays were creative and really fun. I also had a blast working on the section where you fill out your favorite movies, musical artists, and other interests.

Weaknesses: Was worried I would come off as too superficial.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I had great scores and I think I’m an interesting person?
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Accepted at Olin, Wellesley, UCLA, UCSB, and RIT so far.
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: I honestly almost didn’t apply to USC because the application was SO LONG, but I’m really glad I did! I’ll probably be visiting soon!

[Sidkane]

D was Accepted in LAS Undecided
GPA UW 3.7/W 4.08
SAT 2200/2270 Superscore
Good Essay, ECs, volunteering and leadership
California
White Female
Did not apply for financial aid

Accepted: Michigan, Boston College, UCSB, UCD, Colorado
Waitlisted: Northwestern
Rejected: WashUStl, Duke, UCLA

Very painful waiting for the snail mail, but my D really loved the package.

[benc17]

accident sorry…

[dreamchaser123]

Decision: Accepted

**Date applied: Jan 10th

**Date decision postmarked/received March 26th

**Which school/major at USC: Chemistry at Dana and David Dornsife College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 32
SAT II (place score in parentheses): Math II (670) Chem II (580)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 25%
AP (place score in parentheses): N/A
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: All my courses are Honors: Drawing and Painting 3, Global Studies, Physics 2, Critical Issues, English, Calculus 2, Chemistry 2, Spanish 5
Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Questbridge Finalist (didn’t rank Princeton)
Bausch and Lomb Honorary Science Award
Kenyon College Book Award

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):
Class President, 10th and 11th, Student body president 12th
National Honor Society
Head Camping Associate, leadership position at my school’s unique outdoor program
Varsity Soccer and Track
Judicial Commitee Member
World Language Alliance member
Job/Work Experience:
Job at smoothie shop, have worked the past two summers at a camp
Volunteer/Community Service:
Volunteer at local food bank
Summer Activities: Worked summer job, volunteered
Essays (rating 1-10, details)::
Common App essay: balancing Asian culture with American culture 8/10
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: Chem teacher, my favorite, knows me well 10/10 History teacher has me this year and had me in 10th grade, also knows me pretty well 8/10
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: He knows me super well, I regularly drop in for random talks 10/10
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: N/A
Interview: N/A

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Sí
State (if domestic applicant): NM
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Vietnamese
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Around 65,000 for family of 5
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First generation

Reflection
Strengths: Essays, recommendations
Weaknesses: HAHAHA my scores for sure, especially SAT II
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Kind of a surprise, considering I’m an Asian with low test scores.
Where else you are applying or have already applied: 14 other schools including Ivies, Stanford
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: Wow! I’m super lucky.

[Storian]

**Decision: rejected **
Forgot when I applied, decision came today in the mail.

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2150 (750 CR 660 M 740 W)
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] SAT II: 680 Lit. 780 USH
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.88
[] Weighted GPA (if available):
[] Rank/percentile (if available):
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 APUSH 4 APENG
[] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Art History, Newspaper, Speech & Debate Tm, AP Comparative Govt./Economics, AP Literature, Japanese 3
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): only minor awards

[/ul][ b]Subjective:**[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Newspaper (EIC), Speech/Debate Tm (Historian), NHS (Activities Director), Environmentalism Club (President), Peer tutoring (Historian), Student Council Historical Commission, HONY-esque FB page, school’s ambassador program (Media Commissioner)
[] Job/Work Experience: Freelance photographer, private tutor APUSH/APENG
[] Volunteer/Community service: Peer Tutoring, school ambassador program, NHS
[] Summer Activities: Summer school classes to get ahead: Contemporary Journalism, Algebra II, Chemistry, BYU Bio 100 200. SAT Boot Camp
[] Essays: forgot, but I think I mentioned writing for the Daily Trojan in there!
[] Teacher Recommendation: One teacher whose had me for four years straight in HS and my lovely APUSH teacher from last year!
[] Counselor Rec: Assistant Principal wrote it, don’t know her much and vice versa though
[] Additional Rec: n/a

[/ul]Other[ul]
[] Applied for Financial Aid?: no
[] Intended Major: History
[] State (if domestic applicant): CA
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: public
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: M
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): not that I know of; Asian with an interest in humanities?

[/ul]Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: leadership, strong history background
[] Weaknesses: that SAT I score and SAT II Lit. score
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Don’t know
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: accepted at UCR, Humboldt, Fullerton, Cal Poly Pomona, UCSD, UCSB, UCSC, UCD, UCB waitlisted: WUSTL rejected: USC, UCLA, Northwestern, Duke

[/ul]General Comments:[list]
Congrats to those who were accepted!

[trojanregiment]

color=red]Decision: Rejected[/color]

**Date applied: ** 12/1

Date decision postmarked/received: 3/24, recieved 3/26

Which school/major at USC: leventhal school of accounting/ marshall

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 680 CR/ 690 M/ 730 W (2080)
ACT (breakdown): nah
SAT II (place score in parentheses): chem (680) lit (690) math ii (700)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.72
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 33/550
AP (place score in parentheses): chemistry (2) APUSH (4) euro (5) english language (5)
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: ap calculus bc, ap gov/econ, ap literature, ap spanish, physics, wind ensemble
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): national merit commended, national merit hispanic recognition, ap scholar

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Congress club (founder/ VP), Quidditch Club (founder/ VP), Music Students Service League (VP two years), marching band 4 years (drum captain), wind ensemble 4 years, jazz band 4 years, all county san bernardino honor band 4 years, all southern california honor band 3 years, pianist in independent city jazz band since middle school, went to disneyland jazz festival and won gold, beating nationwide bands
Job/Work Experience: n/a
Volunteer/Community Service: around 75 hours through music students service league and independent jazz band
Summer Activities: summer school, jazz ensemble, european music tour
Essays (rating 1-10, details):: common app essay was very well written and humorous but maybe didn’t work for usc
usc essay was thoughtful and outlined exactly why usc was perfect for me
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: didnt read one, generic, 6/10. another was fantastic and very long, 9/10
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: generic, didn’t read, probably 4/10
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: from professor/ piano instructor. 7/10
Interview: they were all gone when i tried to sign up

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? no
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: medium public, about 2000
Ethnicity: latino (mexican american)
Gender: male
Income Bracket: >500k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): minority, lots of band stuff?

Reflection
Strengths: extra curriculars were pretty good i thought, winning gene lottery couldve helped, essays were good i thought
Weaknesses: no community service, low gpa, average test score
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: my low numbers didn’t let my talents shine
Where else you are applying or have already applied: rejected from UCLA, berkeley, claremont mckenna. waitlisted at Pitzer. accepted at u of redlands, cal poly pomona, ucsd, occidental with 10k/year scholarship, UCSB “top applicant”
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: i thought i had an alright chance, just goes to show how hard this year was. i definitely shouldve worked harder for grades, especially junior year i had C+ first semester/ C- second semester for AP chem. i’m convinced if those were B’s or if I took an easier ap science and got A’s i’d have much better chances. I also wish my SAT was higher. going into it i had gotten 2150 on two practice tests, superscored for a 2200, so i was very disappointed with a 2080. i wish i had more community service. nothing i can do now i suppose, usc was my dream school the last 2 years in high school and I really wish i’d worked harder. any usc hopefuls reading this thread, please don’t skimp on doing anything, try your hardest and don’t settle for "good enough, it really takes all you have to get in. congrats to all who got in. i’ll be happily attending ucsb this fall

[HughJanus]

Date applied: 1/15/2015
Date decision postmarked/received: 3/27/2015

Which school/major at USC: Business Administration/Marshall School of Business

DENIED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Nope
ACT (breakdown): 35E 34S 32R 28M 32C
SAT II (place score in parentheses):
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.30 (3.6W)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 40th
AP (place score in parentheses): Euro (4), Comp Gov (4), AP Lang (4)
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Statistics, Chorale Choir, AP Physics 2, AP Lit, AP Psychology, AP Macro/AP Micro, AP Calculus AB
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar, Boys State Citation

Subjective:
Extracurricular (place leadership in parentheses):

• Speech and Debate (leader, 3 years, won awards at several tournaments including 1st place at one, finals in many, and 4th at districts)
• Chorale Choir (president, 3 years)
• Jazz Choir (leader)
• Won Heritage Anaheim Choir Competition with two first place awards
• Film Club (VP, 2 years)
• Improv Club (leader, 3 years)
• Business Club (VP, 2 years)
  Job/Work Experience:
• Internship at Business Communications company
• Work at pie company
• IT work at real estate company
  Volunteer/Community Service:
  Summer Activities:
• Boys State (nominated Secretary of State)
• Summer work
  Essays (rating 1-10, details):: Common App: 8.5/10, USC Prompts: 10/10, To be frank I genuinely feel like I blew the USC portions out of the park, talked up the college and my experience with the place and how the city and culture would give me experience towards my goals in life. My CA essay was graded by several people and they all felt it was extremely well written and (eh) moving. I would rework it a little if I could though.
  Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: Gov/Psych teacher (7/10) Was pretty generic but talked about my abilities in an academically challenging environment; Science teacher (probably 9/10) Don’t know exactly what he wrote but he absolutely loved me in his classes and I did well in them so ye
  Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: Didn’t see but I have a good relationship with her and she spent time with me on figuring out what to say so I’m gonna say (8-9/10)
  Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: N/A
  Interview: I wish, too bad the weekend I chose got snowed in the day before.

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yep!
State (if domestic applicant): Oregon
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White (the)
Gender: Male (combo)
Income Bracket: 45-60k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): If I told 'em a few jokes, maybe.

Reflection
Strengths: ACT, recs, great dedication to EC’s, 4th (or 5th) generation Legacy
Weaknesses: G P A, turns out it’s pretty hard to recover from a lackluster freshman/first half of sophomore year
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
Where else you are applying or have already applied:

• University of Oregon (safety as fuck, accepted)
• Waitlisted at Chapman, USD, Santa Clara
• Denied at Claremont McKenna (lol)
  General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: Just a testament to the fact that trying later in the game doesn’t get results. Though, I wish my GPA didn’t bring me down that hard. Legitimately worked my ass off and became a much better person/worker and didn’t get much at all from admissions.

[laurenpx2015]

Decision: Accepted

Received March 24th

Which school/major at USC: Viterbi School of Engineering, Biomedical Engineering

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t send
ACT (breakdown): 32
SAT II (place score in parentheses): Nope
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parentheses): 9 APs
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lang, AP Comparative Gov., AP Physics C, AP Calculus BC, Biotech., Anatomy
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): No.

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):

• Community service club president
  -Captain of 2 varsity teams
  Job/Work Experience: NONE
  Volunteer/Community Service:
  -Hospital Volunteer
  -Children’s Science Museum Volunteer
  Summer Activities:
• Hospital Volunteer

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9/10, talked about living abroad my whole life
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Probably a solid 7/10-- new to the school and teachers didn’t know me as well in the beginning of senior year
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details): 8/10? I love my counselor, but she didn’t know me as well at the time she wrote it
Interview: None

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? YES
State (if domestic applicant): HI
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 200 k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM?

Reflection
Strengths: GPA, unique background, URM
Weaknesses: My ACT math score as a prospective engineer (28!!!)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I guess my essays really helped drive home my interest in the school
Where else you are applying or have already applied: (Accepted)- Northeastern, U Miami, U New Mexico, Lewis & Clark, UCSB, UCSD (Waitlisted): Northwestern, Tulane (Rejected)- UCLA, Duke
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: Let your essays reflect what you’ll bring to the school!

[CaliCash]

Decision: ** REJECTED**

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): CR- 670 M-630 W-670
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: None
Unweighted GPA: 3.7
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Lang (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP World
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Scholastic Art and Writing Awards

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Newspaper, Debate, Tutoring, Writing Program, Published author
Job/Work Experience: Working with kids
Volunteer/Community service: 500+ hours with children
Summer Activities: Summer Job
Essays: Pulitzer worthy
Teacher Recommendation: Amazing
Counselor Rec: Great
Additional Rec: Didn’t submit
Short Answer Questions: Wrote about stigma around women in my prospective job field. Maybe I wasn’t specific enough.
Interview: Thought it went well

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Journalism
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Multiracial
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: $200,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection:

Strengths: Supplements and essay
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: Stigma around women in by desired job field.
Weaknesses: SAT Score
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’m really not sure. Maybe I had a bad interview? I thought it had went. Kirk Brennan did say the acceptance rate was lower for those who did the interview, but I figured it was because of those who were trying to compensate for deficiencies in other areas. I would not say my test scores were a factor. I think the decision would’ve been the same even if I broke 2000.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

Accepted: Northwestern (but rejected here?), UFlorida, UMiami, Northeastern, UMinnesota, UAlabama, SUNY Albany, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Stony Brook, Syracuse- Newhouse (but rejected here?)

Notes: Was definitely surprised that I got rejected, but oh well. I believe that everything happens for a reason. I guess they thought I wouldn’t be a good fit. That’s okay though

[whudduphomies]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): didn’t take
ACT: 31
SAT II: n/a
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.83
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
ELC?: what
AP (place score in parenthesis): apush (4), apes, ap chem, ap calc ab
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chem, French 4, AP Calc AB, Biotechnology, film study, Psychology
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): (not sure if this is academics only but…) 2nd place USA National Championships (Track Cycling), 3rd place USA National Champs

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): cycling for singapore nat team internationally/at World champs, International Issues Club (Founder, co-president), HOSA (volunteer coordinator), National Honor Society
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: mechanic at local bike store, library
Personal Statement: Can’t remember much except I liked what I wrote, and I still do.

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: yup
Intended Major : genetics
State (if domestic applicant): WI
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public, Large
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): N/A

Reflection
Strengths: I really liked my essays! I was banking a lot on my extracurriculars. I know my stats aren’t competitive at all so I wasn’t expecting to be admitted.
Weaknesses: literally everything
Accepted: UW-Madison
Schools you were rejected from? USC lol
Schools you are waiting for? Tulane
General Comments: Wasn’t expecting anything, I just figured I’d at least try. Still a Trojans fan, and since I can’t be a part of the USC cycling team, I hope I get to race with them in the future:)

[avix215]

Hope this helps someone!

Decision: Accepted

**Date applied: Jan 15 yikes **

Date decision postmarked/received: decision checked on the 27th at noon (IST).

**Which school/major at USC: Biological Sciences in Dornsife CLAS , not accepted to my first choice of Undeclared. Will probably switch majors eventually. **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2210 Superscore (M 770 CR 730 W 710); CR+M 1500
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II (place score in parentheses): BioE 780, Japanese with Listening 670, MathII 690
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): N/A,

Cambridge International Examinations-

9th: AAAAAABC
10th (IGCSE): AAAAA*AAA
11th (Int. AS Levels): ABBCD
12th (Int. A Levels, predicted): AAAB

Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A, class size 12
AP (place score in parentheses): N/A
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Math, Biology, Chemistry, Physics
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):

My school has no clubs and does not offer sports after 10th grade.
Published in my national school newsletter.
12,000+ views on my poetry and prose on DeviantArt.
Selected to give a speech to the graduating 10th and 12th graders.
Member of a 2nd place team of three in a citywide science and math competition while in 9th grade. (we beat 78 other teams from 40 schools)
Interschool swimming and track/field awards.
I ran a triathlon in 11th and came 4th place in my category.
Amateur coding, writing a book, rock climbing.

Job/Work Experience: N/A b **
Volunteer/Community Service: N/A b **
Summer Activities: Japanese immersion, Coursera classes, baking, writing, teaching Japanese teenagers English informally over Skype

Essays (rating 1-10, details):: Ratings are provided by friends, teachers, and my fair judgement. PM me if you want to read them, I’d be happy to share.

CommonApp- talked about growing up in the US, skipping a grade, moving to India, my interests and development and dreams and how they’ve changed me as a person. (9.5/10)
Non-Academic Pursuit- How I taught myself Japanese to proficiency within a year without using textbooks and spending next to no money. (9/10)
Academic Pursuit- Explaining that I am both a scientist and artist, and neither; stating how undecided I am and how I trust in USC to guide me. Risky essay. (Either 9/10 or 5/10)

Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details)::
English- (8.5/10) Described me as unique and mentioned that she reads my submissions last “just to savor them”.
Biology- (6.5/10) Described me as a good student and complimented my lab skills.

Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: (5/10) Generic and bland, for a “typically good” student
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: N/A
Interview: N/A

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes and need quite a bit
State (if domestic applicant): Pune, India
Country (if international applicant): US Citizen living in India
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Indian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $60k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Graduated high school at 16? Don’t know.

Reflection
Strengths: Know 5 languages, decent SAT scores, dabbled in a lot of things, stand out a bit from the typical Indian applicant
Weaknesses: Bad grades, weak school reports, no work or volunteer experience, paltry EC’s
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Blind luck and guidance from the Flying Spaghetti Monster, may we all be touched by His Noodly Appendage.
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Accepted Clark, UCSD, UCSC, UMiami; Waitlisted Kenyon, Colby; Rejected Macalester, UCSB, UCLA, UCB. Waiting on Stanford and Wesleyan, the only schools I’d want more than USC.
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: Screamed when I saw the decision. I was so depressed from all the rejections and don’t understand how I got into USC at all with the lower acceptance rate this year. Let this be a lesson to us all- no matter how messed up you think you are, there is always hope.

[stahboy]

Decision: Accepted

Date applied: 12/1

Date decision postmarked/received: 3/24 3/27

Which school/major at USC: Viterbi/ Electrical Engineering

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):
ACT (breakdown): 33 C 33 E 34 M 31 R 33 S 8 W
SAT II: 800 Math II, 730 Chemistry
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/311
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Spanish Lang (5), APES (5), APUSH (4), APSTATS (4), APCHEM (4), WHAP (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, AP Spanish Lit, AP Psych, AP Calc BC, English 4
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

**Subjective: **

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Summer Internship, Math Club (President), Teen Summer Volunteer, Volunteer Club (President), Tennis, NHS, Rotary, Church Choir, Spanish Club
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service: Over 300 hours for Volunteer club and over 600 hours total
Summer Activities:
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App (8), I liked one of my supplements a lot! It was the nerd engineering essay!
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): They were really good! I got it from my english teacher I had for 2 years! He’s awesome!

Teacher Rec #1: Awesome! (8)
Counselor Rec: Idk, did not read

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yup
Intended Major: Electrical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): CO
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Did not report
Gender: Male
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Not many hooks, extracurriculars and internship

Reflection

Strengths: Math Level II, Leadership Positions, Extracurriculars, One supplement essay I loved
Weaknesses: No special ECs
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think my essays and my extracurriculars helped a lot! Make sure to spend a lot of time with the supplements! Also show leadership and creativity! They are very important!
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to some Colorado schools and Minnesota Twin Cities, Northeastern, Notre Dame. Waitlisted to UMichigan. Rejected to Northwestern

General Comments: I am so happy! Found out on the portal! Waiting for the gold packet now! Fight on!

[rainydayeveryday]

Decision: Accepted

Date applied: 1/15

Date decision postmarked/received: 3/27 Online

Which school/major at USC: Dornsife - Comparative Literature

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2300 (730R/770M/800W)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: Lit710
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.7+
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc AB, AP Euro, AP English Lit, French, History & Science electives
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Visual arts, tech theatre, school magazine, culture clubs, YOGA!
Job/Work Experience: Internship in congressional office
Volunteer/Community service: Local food bank
Summer Activities: Art Camp
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common app essay: probably a 8, talked about supporting LGTBQ community. My supplement essays were average but I thought that I had creative answers for the short questions on common app. (Q:favorite fictional character? A: “Thee” from Shall I Compare Thee to a summer’s day? by W. Shakespeare)

Teacher Rec #1: Did not read
Counselor Rec: Did not read

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Comparative literature
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private college prep
Ethnicity:
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Does not qualify for aid
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Not really

Reflection

Strengths: Test scores maybe?? I’m international, 119 TOEFL and 2300 SAT, so yeah.
Weaknesses: Everything else?
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: To be honest, I don’t really know. I submitted a fine arts portfolio even though I didn’t apply to major in art; I wonder if the “special talent” helped.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Waiting on more decisions

General Comments: Good luck to yall.

[lethallydia]

Decision: Accepted
Date applied: November 24, 2014

Date decision postmarked/received: March 27, 2015 (via youSC)

Which school/major at USC: Viterbi School of Engineering/Computer Science

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 33 (Math: 35, English: 33, Reading: 33, Science: 32)
SAT II (place score in parentheses): Not sent… but they were awful.
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parentheses): N/A
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: I’m dually enrolled in a university and take all my classes there. This year I had Calc II, CS II, Intro to College Chemistry + Lab, CS III, Engineering Physics I + Lab, English 300, and Intro to Religious Studies.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
National Merit Commended Scholar

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Computer Science Research, Hackathons.
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community Service: Tutored in CS and Trigonometry, taught taekwondo.
Summer Activities: Computer Science research internship
Essays (rating 1-10, details):: I’d give my essays like a 7/10. I didn’t spend as much time as I should have on them, but I talked a lot about why I love CS and the gender gaps I’ve observed in the field. With my short answers I was just really honest.
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: I got a recommendation from my research mentor and my English professor. I am very close to both of them and I suspect they were both pretty good recs, so we’ll say 9/10 for both.
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: 9/10. My counselor and I are extremely close and she thinks entirely too highly of me.
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details):: N/A
Interview: N/A

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes.
State (if domestic applicant): Kentucky
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Residential/Dual-Enrollment Public High School
Ethnicity: White/Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: <$60K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): first generation college student, female in CS, from an underrepresented region.

Reflection
Strengths: I talked about wanting to pursue research/internships at USC, and I’ve already had some experience in the field, so I think they knew I really was passionate about my major and about pursuing it there.
Weaknesses: I was sort of focused on school and other applications and didn’t get to give my essays a lot of attention.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: My gender and major may have played a role, but I would hope they could tell that everything I said in my application–about what I wanted to do and why USC was the best place to do it–was genuine.
Where else you are applying or have already applied:
HMC (Rejected)
Vanderbilt (Waitlisted)
Kenyon College, UNC Chapel Hill, Georgia Tech (Accepted)
Waiting to hear back from Stanford, but I don’t have high hopes there.
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight:
A staff member at my school always said, “If you can be more specific, do so.” I think that’s great advice for college essays because it forces you to really look into the programs you’re applying to and show that in your essays. Readers will know that you’ve done your homework on their school and that you know exactly what you want.

Also, I thought I got rejected because I live in the 2-Day Priority Mail delivery area, but my acceptance letter still hasn’t arrived. I just found out through the portal. So, don’t freak out if your acceptance doesn’t show up when you expect it to.