@anaray money aside, USC’s campus is pretty. They have great school spirit. They’re well-endowed so research comes more easily. And because they’re private, faculty:student ratio is manageable. You don’t really have to fight for class registration. The school spirit is amazing because football rules. Surround area isn’t as great as UCLA, but it is SoCal and the social scene is fun. Their engr school is solid. Premed classes are always weed out classes wherever you go but there’s no grade deflation at USC. I’m not sure how many they pick from their undergrad but Keck School of Med is a great med school.
Here’s an article about precisely that: Mike Meru Has $1 Million in Student Loans. How Did That Happen? - WSJ
I apologize in advance but I need to rant about this: I just don’t get why so many kids are interested in biomedical engineering. Even if your goal is to work in biomedical engineering, I think you are better off majoring in electrical or mechanical engineering. In any case, job prospects are way better in either of those fields.
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Keck Schoolbof Medicine
Class of 2024 Profile
Class Size: 186
Median MCAT at Admission: 517
Average GPA at admission: 3.8
Gender
52% Males
48% Females
Total Underrepresented in Medicine (UIM): 49 (26%)
States of Residence
California: 149 (80%)
Other States: 37 (20%)
Top 10 Undergraduate Institutions
University of California, Los Angeles: 39 (21%)
University of Southern California: 35 (19%)
University of California, Berkeley: 27 (15%)
University of California, San Diego: 9 (5%)
Johns Hopkins University: 5 (3%)
Washington University, St. Louis: 4 (2%)
University of Chicago: 4 (2%)
University of California, Santa. Barbara: 4 (2%)
Harvard: 3 (~2%)
Columbia: 3 (~2%)
Average Age at Admission: 24
Age 21 or less: 10 (5%)
Age 22: 42 (23%)
Age 23: 61 (33%)
Age 24-25: 47 (25%)
Age 26-29: 18 (10%)
Age 30 and over: 6 (3%)
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If engineering is the plan B, do mechanical instead of BME. It’s a much more employable major straight out of undergrad.
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D will take both Mech and E&M on May 3rd. Her teacher is so behind and rushing through at breakneck speed to get everything covered. She too feels confidant in Mechanics and did not feel it was near as challenging as E&M. She is self teaching this semester using Halliday, Resnick, Krane textbook, Open Stax, and videos of Walter Lewin and Michel Van Bieven, studying around 15 hours a week just on E&M.
She has registration June 9th also, thinking she will add Mech to her schedule then drop it after scores comes in, unless she wants to retake it and use it to pad GPA.
In the future, your friend needs to ask her own questions. Asking for a Friend posts are not allowed for many reasons, not least of which is privacy.
My brother has a degree in biomedical engineering (several in fact - BS MS PhD) and he’s done very well in his career. I don’t understand the point of this comment at all. What he does is neither electrical nor mechanical but biomedical.
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I think that’s the point - the BMEs need to go on for advanced degrees to be employable in their field. An EE or ME can find good employment right out of undergrad, both in the bio tech field and others. More versatility in the workplace gives students more options.
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Why are you ‘ranting’ about what some kids pick as a major? And how is a 17 or 18 year old supposed to know to not pick BME when they are in fact interested in BME?
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I know many new nurse practioners and PAs that can’t find jobs right now.
I don’t think any degree is “useless” but the job markets wax and wane and can be geographic dependant.
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I am visiting USC (California) for an unofficial campus visit. The campus and immediate area absolutely grand. BUT, the nearby LA strip is very sad. I truly feel awful at what I am seeing (encampment / tents all over Sunset Blvd, Hollywood Blvd, and throughout downtown. Even outside of campus, there are destitute people living on the street. These people need immediate care.
I am concerned that life will be restricted to campus. There are nice areas (Santa Monica, Glendale) but car is essential. Yes, I do see a train / tram station at campus.
Can anyone weigh in on USC life presently (amidst the Covid lock down and now potential restarting in August) ?
Campus is pristine and sprawling !!
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I’m not the original poster on BME, but it does feel disingenuous to me when programs are marketed to make students think they are going to be working with industry to design prosthetic limbs for children and veterans as an undergrad. We know undergrads who expect to get internships doing meaningful work in BME as sophomores/juniors. I don’t know anything about the field, but I know a bit about science research, and it’s hard to see how an undergrad would be helpful in the lab. Those I know who get internships are connected to someone who is doing a big favor taking on someone’s kid who will mostly be a drain on time and resources. Granted, I could be completely wrong about this because I don’t have any first hand knowledge of BME, and I wouldn’t ever say discouraging things to people IRL.
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I was BME for a year at Northwestern in 1985-86. Even I knew back then that you needed an advanced degree to work in the field.
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I love your new icon!! Now it is official, congratulations!
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I dislike this and I yes, I think there are ethical problems. You’re telling me if you hire your teacher as a college consultant, and then ask that person for a rec letter as a teacher, it will be anything less than extremely glowing ? I know that most kids ask the teachers who will give positive recommendations anyway, but please, if you’re paying for it, that teacher has incentive to make it a priority to do a great letter. Huge conflict of interest.
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Thanks for this. I think she would thrive at the Claremonts, but doesn’t want to get too excited/invested as who knows how much WL movement there will be.
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Also @anaray My brother lives in LA and same deal. Can’t figure out the attraction to USC. When my kids visited a few years ago to look there and UCLA he just shook his head. Then my son this year only wanted to look at USC again as they all crossed off UCLA after that visit. He really liked USC, but ultimately chose not to apply. Knowing the applications were going to be through the roof and how many essays he still had to do and their unusual essays plus keeping up in classes, not to mention the type of students from our school they usually take, he knew it would probably not be him so he didn’t apply.
I think students this year unfortunately had also had a really poor experience. Hopefully next year will be better. I haven’t gotten to see the campus on either visit as I wasn’t the one who took my son on the visits (luckily he went junior year before it shut down) but I have heard it is gorgeous.
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We haven’t been to USC but as far as UCLA goes, I see as much or more homelessness in Palo Alto as in Westwood (Berkeley is in some ways worse than either). I don’t see it affecting application numbers or desire to attend Stanford. And homelessness in other parts of LA is about as relevant to Westwood as homelessness in SF is to Palo Alto. All distressing and something that needs to be addressed, but not really relevant to your student experience.
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@2sk211 Even if EE and ME could find jobs (and I would contend these are gimmes), BME, if you’re willing to hot beds like SD, Seattle, Can also get jobs.
And if we are truly encouraging our children to major in what they are passionate about, BME is way, way different from the EE/ME curriculum. I’m a chemical engr and there’s no way on earth someone can convince me that EE classes are remotely interesting. Just like there’s no way an EE could hang in a ChemE class.
What is truly bothering you?
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