<p>So, I'm currently a junior. I'm really trying to make a list of colleges I'd like to apply to, and right now I think I have a solid list. USC is kind of a black sheep on my list, being the only school with >10,000 total students, but since I'm certain I want to go into film, I'm taking a good look at it.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Right now the school of cinematic arts is my first choice. If I got in, would I be able to take japanese courses at the college of arts and sciences? Ideally I'd like to have a film-esque major, and a japanese minor.</p></li>
<li><p>Can I have two minors? Or two majors and a minor? Another ideal case would be to have a combination of film production, creative writing, and japanese. Or maybe animation.</p></li>
<li><p>So one of my initial criteria for a school was no more than 10,000 total students. Obviously USC as a whole has more....but does each school function seperate from each other?</p></li>
<li><p>How easy is it to get jobs/internships, specifically in the area of film?</p></li>
<li><p>My dad says USC is in kind of a bad area in LA....as opposed to UCLA which is right near Brentwood. Is this true?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Hmm, that's all for now I guess. I'm researching some of this on my own but some of it can be hard to find, even on their website.</p>
<p>Hey!
So I’ll try to answer some of your questions:
Sure, as long as you have room in your schedule, you could definitely do the Japanese minor (which is actually officially titled East Asian Languages & Culture). The minor is only 20 units, so I don’t see why not, as long as you have enough space for it.</p>
<p>2)Two minors on top of a Film Production major seems like a lot to me. The program is very intensive, so I would think that if you were able to do two minors plus the major, you might have to do summer school or not have time for any other classes such as P.E. or even study abroad. Two majors and the minor, I definitely don’t think that’s possible with Film Production, if you want to graduate in four years. </p>
<p>3) The schools function separate from each other, yes, but not in the way that they are isolated from each other. I’m not exactly sure what you mean by this question. </p>
<p>4) SCA has an amazing job board! Once you’re a student you have access to it and there are so many options available for students to work/intern in film. </p>
<p>5) Everyone always says USC is in such a bad area, but honestly, the school has in place many safety regulations to make students feel safe around campus and in neighboring areas where students live. You have to be smart about it and not go around flashing expensive gadgets and jewelry and walk around at 3am by yourself. Use common sense and you should be fine. </p>
<p>Thanks for you help. In regards to question three, I meant this. All of my other schools were under 10,000 total students, and that is something I like. So, would it be possible for me to sotosay stay in the confines of school of cinematics, to get that small school feel? And then just mosey on over to the other schools/main campus/whatever when I want the bigger school aspects.</p>
<p>My son, a critical studies major in the SCA, applied to several small LAC’s, and wasn’t entirely sure about a large university. But he is perfectly thrilled with USC, and can’t imagine being anywhere else. A few things that made it feel smaller right away were the Thematic Option program, living in an active dorm, and being open to meeting new people through organizations (like the Trustee/Presidential Scholars group). </p>
<p>He’s now a sophomore, fully immersed in film classes, and has made tons of contacts with fellow students, faculty, and alums by always being available to work on film projects. There aren’t enough hours in the day for him to participate in all the film projects he’s invited to help on, and he also had no problem landing a really interesting internship. So yes, clearly he could treat the SCA as a small college and spend all his time there. But he has so many friends from other majors that this would never happen.</p>
<p>That said, his younger sister decided that while she liked USC, she felt like she would actually get to know more people at a smaller college. So she applied early decision to a great LAC. Her theory is that you meet pretty much everyone at a small college4, while at a place like USC you kind of find your niche group and work within that. As for your original question, I don’t think there would be a great difference between a college of 9,999 and 25,000. The real difference is between 1500 and 6-7000, in my experience.</p>
<p>The area is not ideal, but it’s quite possible to develop street smarts, or just avoid the bad parts altogether.</p>
<p>USC has a really small campus for the amount of (undergraduate) students it has, so the size has never seemed that daunting to me. There’s never been a day where I walk down Trousdale (one of the main walkways) and don’t see someone I know, which is awesome! At the same time, USC is big enough so that you don’t know everyone, and you’re constantly meeting new people which is another great aspect to its size.</p>
<p>USC sounds like an amazing school. I’m hoping I can visit it (along with every other school in California) this summer. </p>
<p>@dreamsupsidedown: Ya I was looking at that. I know want to go into the film industry, but I don’t quite know what part exactly. Whether I’m a pure writer, a producer/director, or helping from the technical aspect. All of it sounds very fun and interesting, and I’d love to see the classes in action!</p>
<p>@fauxmom: Huh, your son sounds a bit like me. I’ll have to look into that!</p>
<p>@wanderlusting: Hmmm that’s good to know. </p>
<p>Also I was wondering if anyone could answer this. Would it be possible to have some sort of a film major (animation, writing, production, whatever), a minor in another film major, and simply take Japanese courses to continue learning the language?</p>