Thoughts on USC?

<p>I know this is a big, Southern Cal school with a large "Greek" population (shown on their website) but I wondered if anyone had any other thoughts/experiences re: USC?</p>

<p>Son has seemingly just latched on to the idea of going to a school w/warm, sunny California weather w/a 'cool' reputation (I think). At first I thought this was just a passing thing, but now he wants to send his 'high PSAT scorer notification' letter to them (you can only send this letter to 2 colleges).</p>

<p>We're on the east coast, so travel $$ would add a lot to the already steep tuition. Also, son would probably establish work contacts out there so we'd rarely see him during school/after grad (I'm okay w/this if it's a good school for him & what he wants to do..though of course I'd miss him).</p>

<p>Son is interested in computer science (wants to be a programmer).</p>

<p>Just wondered if USC was known as a big party school? Or if it had any other type of reputation? Hard to tell from the website, Princeton Review.</p>

<p>Sorry for long post---thanks for any thoughts!</p>

<p>USC does have a reputation as a party school - I don't know if it's deserved. It's topnotch in some departments, but I haven't heard it recommended in particular for computer science. Comp Sci recommendations we got for the west coast and Texas were: Stanford (No. 1), UC Berkeley, Harvey Mudd, Caltech (though comp sci is not really its strong point), UC San Diego, and UC Irvine, Rice, and U of Texas, Austin.</p>

<p>Thank you so much, mathmom.</p>

<p>We are from NJ, so Cal schools seem almost in a different world...! </p>

<p>Son has strong standardized tests & improving GPA...so guess we'll check out the admission requ's of the ones you mentioned.</p>

<p>Could I ask...would UC San Diego & UC Berkeley be generally 'on par' in terms of competitiveness/admissions standards re: USC?</p>

<p>Search VC08's posts. she has plenty of opinions on USC.</p>

<p>Thanks, I definitely will!</p>

<p>I checked out the USC thread on CC, but it was mostly logistically discussion about when grades will be released, housing options, etc.</p>

<p>Always so great to get the parents' perspective!!</p>

<p>USC Mom/Calif resident here-The UC's [which are funded by Calif taxpayers] are VERY competative for OOS students. The OOS admission's rates at UCB/ UCSD are around 10%= which makes them as hard to get into as most Ivy's. If your S's PSAT scores qualify him for NMS, then he would be eligible for 1/2 tuition at USC.</p>

<p>'SC has been up and coming over the past few decades. They give an near-automatic discount to NMSF's, so it can be a great deal for a private college. </p>

<p>Excellent engineering, so I would assume comp sci would be strong. It's a self-contained, urban campus. Housing not guaranteed for all four years, so upper classmen usually live nearby. Football is big with plenty of parties on fall Saturdays, but that is true for all colleges with a large greek presence. However, 'SC also has plenty of premeds and other pre-professionals who are in the library working for those A's. Extremely strong alumni for job contacts ("The Trojan Family), but, as you note, primarily located in the west.</p>

<p>Berkeley would be more competitive admissions than 'SC, while UC San Diego would be slightly less, depending on UC gpa (UC nearly ignores Frosh grades). Also consider UCLA for great weather. However, I don't think the UCs offer a great value for OOS kids; at $45k, and increasing, a private college offers a better value proposition.</p>

<p>cross-posted with menloparkmom: I disagree that Cal requires Ivy-level quals for OOS admissions.</p>

<p>USC is top notch in Computer Engineering, not sure about Computer Science. I took classes there umpteen years ago. Classes that are not offered anywhere else, particular in the area of error correction code. When my daughter was named NMSF, through my research, the school that offers the most money is USC. She put USC as her first choice and NYU as her second choice.</p>

<p>USC's student population has changed a LOT in recent years, because the administration has made a conscious decision to go after and try to attract an academically oriented diverse student population. This year the freshman admissions rate dropped to 20%. They are also aggressively recruiting academic "stars" for faculty, in an effort to make the USC the "Stanford U" of S Calif. The days when USC was considered the "university of spoiled children" is long gone. As at any large U, there is going to be partying, but the Greek scene is not prevelant by any means.</p>

<p>blue, I did not say UC requires Ivy league "quals" for OOS students, I said it is as hard to get into UCB/UCSD statistically for OOS students as is it is to get into an IVY . A 10% admissions rate for UCB is comparable to the admissions rates for many Ivys these days.</p>

<p>Someone needs to point out that the neighborhood that USC is surrounded by is very urban and bleak. Your son will want to visit the campus before he gets his heart set on it...many kids visit for a hour and change their minds.</p>

<p>I really liked USC and their staff. I was very impressed with their attention to detail and friendliness. When we went for the admitted students session in NYC, the lady in charge immediately knew we were so-and-so's parents even though he couldnt make it because he was sick, and spoke about his specific qualities and what she liked about his application! Their presentation stressed their commitment to research and academic excellence, no mention of athletics and Greek life anywhere. When he declined the admission she sent him a really nice note. I thought it was a great school -- and the weather!</p>

<p>The reputation USC urban environment is overblown. I used to work 10 minutes from USC. I have family members that are working near USC right now. It's urban, it's downtown LA. I've also been driving past East Palo Alto to/from work for a long when it was much worst than now.
As for the party school reputation, I must say they must have sent out a bunch of nerdy students to impress us on admit day because we met a lot of them. :)</p>

<p>MY Ds friend was a high scorer and got an unsolicited half tuition offer several years ago. I saw the package and it was sweet. If you are paying OOS tuition at a UC, you might as well take the private school benefits of USC. </p>

<p>If he goes there and stays in SoCal he will have tons of connections with alumni</p>

<p>USC's school of engineering has a good reputation and is fairly highly ranked. My D (a CS major) was accepted to USC with some merit money but chose to go to UCLA instead.</p>

<p>As others have indicated, you might find USC less expensive than the UCs OOS if your S gets some money from them. If not, the UCs will be less expensive. </p>

<p>Has he considered Harvey Mudd or CalTech? They're both also in the LA area and very highly regarded. Harvey Mudd is a part of the Claremont College consortium which includes Pomona, McKenna, Scripps.</p>

<p>If possible, he should make a trip and visit the campuses before deciding. I'm pretty familiar with UCLA and UCSD Computer Science programs and campuses since I have a D in each so PM me if you have any questions you think I could help with.</p>

<p>My son graduated the School of Cinema Arts at USC in May 2007. When he entered we were living in Virginia.</p>

<p>I don't miss paying the tuition, but I sure do miss visiting the school. It is lovely, immaculate campus. My son, who remained, in LA, is still close friends with many of his classmates. The school offered him numerous and varied opportunities ranging from political activism to performing in a comedy troupe. </p>

<p>It was well worth the money.</p>

<p>My H and I were talking about this earlier today. We live in So Cal, and last night was the awards banquet at Ds high school. During part of the eve, they announce the award and scholarship winners, along with where they are going to college. We noticed that many got accepted to UCLA, UCB and USC. However, the vast majority got to UCLA. Even for those few that got full scholarships both places, the kids around my Ds school seem to prefer UCLA. Don't think it is just them - as I read the other day that UCLA got more appl. than any other school - 55,000 +. </p>

<p>But you must go visit. You could fly into LA, spend two days and see SC, UCLA, Cal-Tech and maybe the Claremont Colleges. Then, to save time, take a 45 min. flight to San Fran and spend another day or two and see UCB & Stanford.</p>

<p>Make sure your son sees the immediate area surrounding the schools - and not during the day, but at night, which is when he will be more likely to go off campus. You may want to also see UC Santa Barbara, good reason to visit a gorgeous town, it is about a 2 hour drive north from LA.</p>

<p>Unfortunately for us, but exciting for her,our D is rejected all Cal schools and is going to school on the East Coast.</p>

<p>^^ And UCSD is about a 2 hour drive south from LAX/UCLA if you do come out to visit and are interested in seeing UCSD (CS is highly ranked at both UCSD/UCLA).</p>

<p>I Agree with Elizabeth90505 - make sure to visit the surrounding area to get a feel for it since he'd likely spend time off-campus and probably live off-campus.</p>

<p>In the interest of full disclosure, we have a child who is entering USC, but we are very much taken with the school. First of all, this is not your father's USC. The school has become increasingly instense and rich academically, and the current student body reflects this; this year they accepted just over 20% of their applicants with the average unweighted GPA 3.8, and SAT's over 2100. There are lots of foreign students from all over. There are some wonderful honors programs, with small classes and interesting interdisciplinary courses. (Check out Thematic Options online.) The campus itself is lovely. The school encourages students to double major and to explore different minors, and makes it easy for students to actually get the courses that they want and need. They actually have awards for the kids with the weirdest combos or majors and minors. With the top notch film and music schools, drama and arts programs, there seems to be a vibrant arts scene with lots of opportunities for student participation. There is merit money, and lots of it. National Merit Finalists receive half tuition scholarships for four years irrespective of FAFSA. Although the Greek scene is certainly in evidence, a relatively small percentage of USC students participate, and it doesn't seem to dominate the social scene for students who opt not to participate. The students themselves seem pretty happy, and the alumni are crazed in their affection for the place. The whole "Welcome to the Trojan family" thing seems to be more than a promotional catch phrase, with alumni helping students and new grads, and the administrators not coming across as having an adversarial relationship with the students. The school itself has been very easy to deal with, and does not seem hog-tied with administrative red tape. When we requested an exception on what seemed to be a hard and fast rule, the relevant administrator listened, asked a few questions, and said that that seemed to make sense: exception granted. (The whole sports-wild school spirit thing does seem to be very much in evidence, though. When the band plays, people jump up, make the victory sign, and get misty. Not sure how this plays out for kids who cringe at the thought of football.) Our campus tours have been very personalized for S's major and interests, with lots of interaction with current students. If you can possibly swing it, go visit and see how the place feels to your son. (If he likes it, remember that you have to apply early to be considered for many of the scholarships and some of the majors.)</p>

<p>Jolynne- I'm a calif res whose d is now at ucla- I would follow sugguestions above and son's desire to send USC the test letter makes sense, as with that with high PSAT, your son may well get 1/2 tution offer from USC thus making it FAR CHEAPER than being an out of state UC student. However, it's pretty competitive. Old reputation of USC as party school is simply not true today, it's very difficult to get admitted now, 2 years ago they took only 3 of my d's very capable class. For us, USC had horrible merit- d did not have high test scores, and we are in-state- so UC's are cost effective in our situation but in your case, as out of state and with high test scores, the opposite will probably be true. It also depends on family income/fin aid or not.</p>

<p>Of the UC's, UCSD, CAL and UCLA would all be on my visit list for comp sci, as well as Stanford, CalTech and Harvey Mudd. All 7 of these schools have national respect in the field.</p>