<p>Does USC allow letters of recommendation from family members. Common app won't let me assign my family member, but there standards are... "All first-year applicants should submit one Counselor/Teacher Report and letter of recommendation. You may submit additional forms and letters"</p>
<p>You “can” submit recommendations from anyone you please, but a letter from a family member would carry no weight (there would be absolutely no objectivity) and I would not recommend doing so. Your recommendations should be from a counselor and a teacher.</p>
<p>As long as you have counselor and teacher, an additional letter from a family member is fine if he/she offers information specific to your situation but not found elsewhere in your application. USC values connections. Here are examples used by students in the past (they are currently attending USC): an uncle for whom the applicant worked–he owns a small business and showed a different side of the student’s work ethic; a grandfather who shed light on family issues and character; an aunt who employed the applicant as a nanny.</p>