<p>Yes- very arbitrary. From what I could find, those stats were "at least."</p>
<p>Okay, I looked up my stats. Again, note that I got the scholarship in 2005, so I'm sure some of the standards have gone up. Also, I didn't take the hardest schedule possible, but I did take several AP's a year. Also, the weighted for this particular measurement is the UC weighting system. I don't remember my unweighted.</p>
<p>Act-34
SAT-1440(720,720)
Sat2Wr-770
SAT21C-780
Sat2US-660
GPA-4.1 weighted
National Hispanic Scholar, Gold Award, Student Leader, Planned community disaster drills, Jump Rope Assistant Coach
Good Essays</p>
<p>does usc take math and verbal sat or all three, what do they look at more i should say. how about superscoring on the act?</p>
<p>Nikara - Jump rope assistant coach? Are you the person on an older trustee/presidential thread that told their interviewers about their passion for competitive jumproping which made you stand out and (probably) helped get you the scholarship. If so, you made me SOOO nervous for my interview! :)</p>
<p>Sorry, yeah. That was me. Heh. It did help, probably because it was different. On a completely different note, it looks like there is actually going to be a jump rope club on campus next year- you all should check it out, I'll be there!</p>
<p>I think it's a bit arbitrary when they differentiate between Trustee and Presidential. Last year, I think 6 or 7 of us from my school interviewed and it was sort of random with who got what.</p>
<p>I got Pres w/ a 2270 SAT, 4.0 UW GPA, Full IB, fluent in Spanish, etc. Ended up turning it down. Only the two people who got trustee ended up going.</p>
<p>I did trustee interviews this year, and SAT does not play a large part in the decision making. It does play a part, but USC puts a huge amount of emphasis on EC's and ESSAYS. The other interviewer and I actually ended up giving trustee recommendations to some people who had SAT scores in the 600 range, while people I know with SAT scores in the 2200-2300's didn't even get offered scholarship interviews. </p>
<p>Now about essays...every interviewee's essay was well written and original... none of those "I did Habitat for Humanity and it changed my life" essays, which are, trust me, way overused and are in fact considered cliche. If any future applicants are reading... if you were planning on writing an essay like that, let me assure you, that's not the right way to go. The people considered for trustee had thought provoking essays. While there's no guarantee of getting a trustee interview, a good essay and some unique EC's are your best shot.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone! Great stats and useful information. Misoobishi: the essays you read are the same ones in the admissions application, right? For the cinema school candidates, did you also look at their portfolios? It's great that students get to participate in the interviews, by the way.</p>
<p>Missobishi; I'm a great essay writer and hoping that a 33 ACT score would be good enough for a trustee if my essays pick up the slack?</p>
<p>rainmama: Yes, the essays I read were the ones in the admissions application. (Oh, to applicants: short answers were also discussed, so don't just gloss over those, spend some time on them.) I'm not sure about the Cinema candidates... I think a portfolio wouldn't be considered in the process, as interviews tend to be largely on current events, what they wrote on the essays, etc, but I'm not sure about that. I interviewed for the College of Letters, Arts, and Science, so Cinema might have different kinds of interviews. Maybe someone on CC is in the school and interviewed for a scholarship, and can answer that question better than I can :) It was nice participating and figuring out how the whole thing worked. I had interviewed for trustee the year before and had been curious about the process!</p>
<p>caliboi: Great essays will be a huge boost in admission. Just make sure that your essays are stellar in terms of content, and is something that sticks out from the crowd. Some of the essays I read were about immigration, being a minority in a largely-Caucasian school, all sorts of interesting things. Good luck, and if you have any questions, let me know!</p>
<p>Misoobishi: Thanks for the great explanations. I have one question, though: How important were SAT IIs for scholarships?</p>
<p>I don't think they were too significant, as I don't even remember looking at them lol I'm sure they are a boost (after interviews, the Admissions office makes the final decisions, and I'm sure they take them into consideration), but if your SAT II scores are a bit iffy, it's not a huge problem, I don't think.</p>
<p>The thing is: I don't have any SAT II scores :) I was just wondering if it would be worth to take the SAT II to increase my chances. But judging from your answer, they are not that important...</p>
<p>@ awelex: you should still take the SAT II. as cool as USC is, you'll probably be applying to other schools who will require SAT subject scores.</p>
<p>i'm also not certain that it was a big factor for me getting a Trustee, but i wouldn't be surprised that the admission's interview I had in December contributed to my application. those were a lot more fun, a lot longer since they're not as much of a rushed schedule as the scholarship interviews, and it's just easier to talk to one person than three.</p>
<p>it also had to have done something, 'cause my stats weren't that stellar.</p>
<p>anywho that's my two cents. Misoobishi would know more since he been on the other side of the decision process.</p>
<p>^ She ;) And I'm from around SJ too (MV), congrats on the scholarship!</p>
<p>Anyway SAT II... well they're not a total must, but a lot of other schools require them, so it probably wouldn't hurt taking them. But if all the other schools you're applying to don't require them, then I guess you don't have to. So to sum up that roundabout answer: it's your choice :)</p>
<p>lol, what she said!</p>
<p>(sorry 'bout that ...)</p>
<p>It's been quite a while, but I have another question. I hope you're still around, Misoobishi.
You said that great EC's are a huge boost in getting a scholarship. Could you give us some examples of EC's the adcoms considered special and unique? Don't worry, I won't change my hobbies, I'm just curious :) Were they all rather politically or socially oriented?</p>
<p>All my ECs were pretty closely related, but stil had a variety - it was clear where my interests lie. I had volunteering at the library and elementary schools, book club, yearbook, working on my school's literary magazine</p>
<p>EC's... anything that shows a passion. It can be anything from Russian dance to volunteering/tutoring at an elementary school. They want to see that you are really dedicated to something, so an activity that you enjoy and have been doing for a few years would be ideal :)</p>
<p>I would agree with Missobishi and qualify sjw2011. My EC's were all over the place. I am/was in band, boy scouts, robotics, newspaper, my Congressman's office (small stint), a research lab (even smaller stint) and my high school's math lab being a volunteer tutor. That, and I was being interviewed for a Viterbi (engineering) Trustee. Granted, I've been in all of those for 4 years or more (except newspaper which was just 2), but the people interviewing me were just really interested in letting my talk my head off about why I loved those EC's. I spent a heck of a lot more time talking about boy scouts and band, than robotics which probably would've been more "relevant."</p>
<p>Anywho, long story short, I'd just say stick to showing how it's important for you and why you've chosen to spend your time there.</p>