<p>It seems to me that USC puts a HUGE weight on SAT scores compared to other schools especially in terms of their scholarship. I am hoping for a trustee or presidential but in order to be on average the description said that you should be in the top 1% sat range. Also there is a specific scholarship for NM finalists! It really grinds my gears cus it seems a lot of schools (especially top ones) are shying away from the SAT focus and more to well roundedness...etc</p>
<p>Can anyone confirm/refute this? and explain why this is the case?</p>
<p>I think it's because USC is so BIG.
there are so many students that even if someone simply doesn't test well, it's an easier route to say "oh so-and-so has a better sat score. he should get the scholarship over this person even if this person has done x, y, z and w, while so-and-so merely does x."
or even deny admission on that basis.
for the other schools, they admit a smaller number to their freshman class and can afford to be more selective and look at each applicant as something above test scores--as long as their test scores pass the first round. </p>
<p>i see test scores as a validation of sorts. if your test scores are 700s and higher, you pass on the the higher round so to speak. i mean, if someone has done something truly amazing and had scores in the 600s, then maybe their activity would cancel the scores out, but it would have to be something truly amazing.</p>
<p>and usc simply likes to give scholarships to high scorers because they know that ivies and more selective colleges cannot afford to give every student a merit scholarship, and thus they can increase their academic clout. i think. </p>
<p>USC likes high test scores. So do many schools. They just don't like to say so out loud. Having top students choose USC helps their rankings, so whether the achievement is GPA or SAT, being at the top helps. Being a high scorer definitely helps in the scholarship department, but USC is trying to build a class and hold on to their school culture so they choose a variety of kids with different strengths and weaknesses, personality types, academic interests, etc. To get a scholarship, you have to stand out in some way from the rest of the applicants and be intellectually curious and/or have enormous potential. Good luck.</p>
<p>lyrical, take a look at the admissions results threads for USC from last year and you'll see that many students with high SATs were not admitted, and also several with less stellar SATs were admitted. Like most top private universities, USC takes pride in their holistic approach to reviewing each student's full application. They are a large school and have a large number of applicants, but they also employ a large number of admissions officers so no student is judged solely on his or her SAT number!</p>
<p>Apart from admissions, USC is one of the very few top 30 USN&WR ranked universities that offer hundreds of half- and full-tuition scholarships based purely on merit, and that means all awardees must show academic excellence along with many other attributes, like community service leadership, national science or art awards, etc. Since there were over 36,000 applicants last year, for example, the top candidates for merit awards do fall in the very top range for scores and GPAs, as well as the well-rounded activities, leadership, and talent. These top students are often the same ones who are admitted to the ivy league and other highly selective universities. USC uses their merit money in hopes many of these students will attend USC instead of their many other options. It is no wonder that USC's entering SAT average has risen dramatically with this merit system of scholarships in place. It probably isn't a coincidence that USC's ranking has also risen since the scores are figured into US News rankings.</p>
<p>In the past fifteen years, USC has attracted and hired superstar professors away from other great schools and matriculated record numbers of National Merit Finalists and other highly statted students using merit scholarships as well maintaining top rated departments like the School of Cinematic Arts, Viterbi Engineering to name just two. It is simply the way this university has tried to improve the institution. </p>
<p>From what I've gathering after reading nearly 30 college admission books is that most college admission committees have a sort of SAT average calculator. Once a college admits enough students to keep/raise the intended average, they can admit students with lower SAT scores. For example, if there is one 2400 SAT scorer admitted and USC has an intended average SAT of 2108, USC can admit one 1816 SAT scorer.</p>
<p>haha! stueydue, I've seen your scores... I would say the answer to your question is that YOUR scores would be considered applicable for a Trustee or Presidential. (Doesn't mean you will actually get one, but you definitely have the scores to be considered.) Good luck!</p>