Haha thank you! I actually do feel really comfortable. I got into an Ivy today but just had a conversation with my parents about finances and the type of college experience that I want to have. I can take out literally $100,000 in student loans to attend Penn or UNC and be frugal with clothes, eating out, and travel while my parents delay their retirement and stop contributing to my younger brother’s savings. Or I can go to USC Honors College and go away for every Maymester and summer, try every Columbia restaurant, go on whatever weekend trips or to whatever concerts I want. I think, for me, getting into these “elite” schools is the same as going to them. I also received a huge scholarship to McGill which puts it on par with USC, but I’m pretty sure I will be turning that down too. I really like USC and the opportunities of being a Top Scholar, and know I’ll be happier there than any other college (finances not included). Just took me a couple more decisions and College Confidential threads than the average kid to figure that out 
@VAMom23
@lesjubilants Congrats!
I actually know several kids (including the Val of a top DC private school) who turned down fancier names in favor of USC honors for exactly those reasons- you will find some high achievers there! Congrats- and I agree: you were accepted and can now choose. Your future self is going to be really, really, happy with your choice, when she isn’t paying off college loans!
My daughter was waiting on Dartmouth (which she didn’t get into) before “officially” choosing her USC Honors College acceptance. Honestly, she was somewhat relieved to have the decision made for her. Yeah it would have been cool for her to get into an Ivy but she pretty much already had her mind made up that USC was the right choice for her.
We all tend to get caught up in the names of these schools which causes a lot of stress when deciding on where to actually go. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have unlimited budgets so this decision also has to be a financial one. My daughter decided on USC Honors over Tulane, Purdue Honors Univ of Miami, UCF Honors and UMASS Honors.
We went to Tulane and she really liked it but she wasn’t blown away enough from it to justify the huge price difference that would have required her taking out much more in student loans and us taking out loans as well. Don’t get me wrong, Tulane is an excellent school and is beautiful…buy it just wasn’t the right fit for my daughter. She came away saying “I wanted to like it more than USC because it’s Tulane”…but she knew where she felt most comfortable. When we visited all of these schools I could tell right away which ones she felt comfortable with and which ones weren’t as good a fit and we always came back to USC.
We are OOS and she didn’t get Top Scholars but she did get Academic Scholar - Excellence (formally McKissick) so it amounts to In-State tuition + $2000 per year. Not a free ride by any means but worked out to be less than our in state school UMASS.
Anyways, congrats to all on whatever choice you make…just choose whatever is best for you. Don’t get caught up in the “what would x and y say…” as you’re the one who is going to be living there and you will be responsible for paying for it in the long run.
I’m for one am glad the decision phase is over…not looking forward to the actually paying for it phase but we’ll tackle that one next
@kanjfn23 just make sure that you have calculated the fees in addition to USC tuition. Some of the Colleges have a hefty add on. My older son pays over $3k a year in fees for the ASPH. Not that it will change your mind where to attend, but just so you aren’t shocked at orientation like myself, and a few other families were. Over 4 years, the costs add up.
And I couldn’t agree more. I’ll be happy when decisions are made and deposits paid.
(Im a mom signed into my kids acct. but I HAD to comment on this) At age 18, I don’t think you can fully comprehend the impact on you life that $90,000 of debt will have on your life. This is an absolute no-brainer. Do you really think that an N in place of a S on your diploma is worth $90,000 of debt? Because that is the only difference here. It is 4 very short years of your life and I can guarantee you that it’s not worth $90,000. What kind of a salary to you expect to make with a degree in European Studies upon graduation? Let’s say you use that degree to become a teacher. Average starting salary is $38,000. after fed. and state taxes your looking at about $28,000 So, if you live at home rent free, eat all of your parents food, don’t own a car, never go out to a movie, wear the same clothes for 3 years and never replace them, never buy a gift for anyone, never take a vacation, basically never spend a dime for 3 years… you still will be in debt because we havent even talked about the interest on $90,000 in loans and you would still have to pay for public transportation to get to your job. if you decide to actually live a normal life and make the minimal payments on the loan, do you realize how many years you will be sending in a check out of your small salary?You will be well into your 40’s at least. All for an N instead of a S. You earned yourself a very comfortable start in life upon graduation from college already. Why would you throw that away when you have worked hard for it? Enjoy your prize!