I went to grad school at USC and worked for a while on a software development project at Stanford. Both were great places. To me the difference was you went to USC with the intention of getting a great job while you went to Stanford with the intention of starting a company. Of course that isn’t always what happens, and from what I’ve seen, the outcomes of most engineering grads from either school seem pretty similar. If money was no object, I’d go to Stanford. If money mattered and USC was offering me a full scholarship, I wouldn’t hesitate to go to USC.
In an attempt to increase its ranking and reputation, USC started offering full scholarships to students who had been accepted to Ivy, MIT, and Stanford-type schools. Maybe that started about 20 years ago, and USC was very open about it.
But I’d his intention is quant down the road, I’d consider the others. We don’t know which type of engineer he’s aiming for, nor if he intends to even be an engineer when he’s done with his degree.
Because of geographic proximity, East Coast schools tend to send more of their graduates into those fields. However, the most elite quant shops are known to actively recruit from, and have greatly expanded their recruitment efforts in recent years in, a few West Coast schools as well.
Yes, I am in quant on the West Coast. But I’d still consider the East Coast schools.
And as a disclaimer, I also have a current USC student on a merit scholarship as well, so I do have a lot of love for the school. But if quant is the end goal, and we don’t know, I’d look at course offerings before deciding. I have received hundreds of resumes and interviewed dozens and dozens over the years, but not from USC. (But lots from Berkeley and to a lesser extent, UCLA).