<p>wut is the criteria for getting called up for presidential/trustees scholarship? As a high school senior, wut rank do you need to be at, wut's the minimum GPA/SAT...Do you need to sign up for these scholarships when you apply, or is it automatic when you turn in the apps? Thanks</p>
<p>I don't know what minimum GPA, SAT, rank, etc they have in order to get an interview; in fact, there probably isn't a minimum that would guarantee you an interview even.</p>
<p>you need to apply by the scholarship deadline (december, I guess?) in order to be considered.</p>
<p>The ONLY way I know of to be assured of 1/2 tuition Presidential Scholarship at USC is to be a National Merit Finalist. My S wasn't even selected for an interview, but because he was a NMF, he did receive a 1/2 tuition Presidential Scholarship at USC, even tho he was barely the top 1/2 of his class of 230 & had a weighted GPA around 3.5. </p>
<p>Below is the website about merit aid for USC, including the portion for NMFs.
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/admission/fa/sg/entering_undergrad_meritbased/%5B/url%5D">http://www.usc.edu/admission/fa/sg/entering_undergrad_meritbased/</a></p>
<p>National Merit Finalist Presidential
Amount: Half tuition (approximately $16,750)
Number of Awards: Varies
Selection Criteria: Selected on the basis of PSAT performance. Entering freshmen are considered if they have been designated as National Merit Finalist and name USC as their first-choice college with the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.
Application Process: Students will be contacted by the sponsoring agency.
Notification: April 2, 2007</p>
<p>There's really no criteria, but I do believe that USC focuses a lot on essays. I talked to someone who works in the admissions office and he told me that they glance over SAT scores and rank to see that you are qualified in that aspect, but they spend a lot of time reading over your essays and seeing just what kind of person you are. So spend a lot of time on your essays, turn your app in by the scholarship deadline, and good luck :)</p>
<p>i think the interview is key</p>
<p>The interview is key once you are nominated, but by no means do you need it to GET nominated. I certainly didn't have one, and I have the trustees scholarship. Adding to the info about NMF, also if you are a national hispanic scholar, you will usually get a half-tuition scholarship as well. You can be considered for higher ones as well, as I was.</p>
<p>Our son received the PS. How did he get there? That is a tough one. He did have high ACT and SAT scores, was ranked in top 3% of high school, and had a 4.43 GPA, but who knows if those were the stats that mattered. </p>
<p>He did spend a lot of time on the Essays. He had a few teacher read them and offer suggestions. He put effort and energy into the Letters of Reference. Early on, he sought out those who he asked to write them, and made sure that they had plenty of time to write them (and provided them will pre-addressed envelopes to mail them. )</p>
<p>He also went to one of the December Interviews, when Viterbi (Engineering) went around the country to different cities. </p>
<p>To actually "receive" the PS or TS probably does relate directly to how well you do on the "Interview" for the PS/TS. However, if you do not are not invited to the Interview, then it matters little how well you may or may not do IN the interview. Overall, "getting invited" to the Interview is probably more important that how well you do in the Interview.</p>
<p>Good luck to you.</p>