US News Rankings 2011

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
61

<p>I have a headache reading this thread and I definitely do not have the free time to respond to all comments directed at me.</p>

<p>Here are some quick things I want to clarify.

This is the opposite of the truth. Let me illustrate.</p>

<p>

Generalizations and ad hominem.

Strawmans. (I never said ANY of this!)

More ad hominem.

Profanity</p>

<p>

You have it the opposite way around. USC ranks lowly in most areas of graduate study. Remember: Rank 20 in Grad Engineering may not actually be as good as 35 undergrad. There are far fewer universities that offer graduate degrees!</p>

<p>

If you don’t come to UCLA forums, how would you know that other USC posters don’t come to UCLA forums? I can assure you that they do.</p>

<p>

ThisCouldBeHeaven, UCLA is the rank 3 film school!
[Top</a> Film Grad Schools](<a href=“http://www.d.umn.edu/~tisbell/Courses/FilmSchools.html]Top”>http://www.d.umn.edu/~tisbell/Courses/FilmSchools.html)</p>

<p>UCLA’s film school is in fact even more selective than USC’s. People are always venting that it’s insanely difficult to be admitted into and no where near as prestigious; however, UCLA is one of the top art schools in the nation: in all areas.</p>

62

<p>sentimentGX4 is full of win. and I’m not just being a homer. He even said I was wrong <em>gasp</em></p>

<p>Anyways, he’s right. A bunch of Trojans harass our boards. I told you guys, I mean mothers, that you’re ignorant and hypocritical. Btw, do you realize that UCLA had to like go through this major crazy insane budget crisis for USC to probably surpass UCLA in USNews rankings? Not saying, but just saying ;)</p>

<p>Lastly, your football program has a reputation for being a cheating dirty program across the country. Your 2004 Orange Bowl win was vacated, the Athletic Department removed all traces of Reggie Bush including his Heisman trophy, loss of 20 scholarships, 2 year bowl ban, 4 year probation, and also, above all, Lane Kiffin is your head coach LOL</p>

<p>Cheat On!!</p>

63

<p>lolz shiets they should totally move USC to the CC Top universities board next year, to make it a bit more convenient and reinforce USC’s newfound prestige.</p>

64

<p>I still don’t get your point. If you didn’t see, I haven’t mentioned the USNews rankings in my post. Because I don’t really care where USC ranks. If they jump UCLA, awesome. If not, I know USC is still a great school. You can’t say just because UCLA, in your opinion, is a better school than USC, that makes USC a “joke” for undergraduate academics. Is the Marshall school of business a joke? How about Annenberg? Film school? Sure, some departments may be lacking or behind UCLA.</p>

<p>“USC undergraduate academics are a joke. It’s only been competitive since this decade. Guess what USC was ranked in the 90s? mid 40s.”</p>

<p>By the way, any school ranked in the mid 40s is an absolutely terrible institution, correct? Well, the University of Florida, UT-Austin, and Tulane are ranked in the high 40s. (Tulane 50) Does this mean that their undergraduate academics are a joke? I think not. These are great schools to go to, especially in certain departments. </p>

<p>Finally, to tackle the athletic department…
“Lastly, your football program has a reputation for being a cheating dirty program across the country. Your 2004 Orange Bowl win was vacated, the Athletic Department removed all traces of Reggie Bush including his Heisman trophy, loss of 20 scholarships, 2 year bowl ban, 4 year probation, and also, above all, Lane Kiffin is your head coach LOL”</p>

<p>For being a cheating dirty program? Really? So, do you actually know the facts behind the USC-Reggie Bush case? If you didn’t know, the NCAA took FOUR YEARS investigating the issue. And, they made SEVERAL mistakes during their investigation! Four years and all they could find in the USC football program was agents who gave Bush improper benefits. No, those agents were not USC alumni, they were not a part of the program, and they certainly didn’t give USC any advantage. Oh, we lost 30 scholarships by the way. The athletic department isn’t the best, and USC’s previous athletic director was very incompetent, but the new president and athletic director are getting down to business and quick. Lame Kiffin might not make it the rest of the year as a football coach. There is no way Pat Haden would have hired him. So, USC is going to clean up their image as an athletic program.</p>

<p>So a 4 year investigation that turns out a report of ONE USC FOOTBALL PLAYER that got benefits from NON-USC related persons. If they had such a reputation for a “cheating” program, then why couldnt the NCAA find more infractions? Alabama BOOSTERS paid players years ago. And don’t even get me started on “Thug U” (UMiami, if you are unfamiliar, that is how we refer to them in Florida). But that doesn’t mean the University of Miami is a bad school, because of the scandals associated with their players and football program. UMiami is one of the most regarded institutions here in Florida.</p>

<p>USC is a great school and I am proud to be a Trojan. No matter what you say, it’s a great institution for an education and a college experience. SHOW Me a post where the mothers are hypocritical and or ignorant. And I’m talking about the ones who post on this forum on a regular basis. Anything else?</p>

65

<p>My advice on shutting up still stands. Did your parents never tell you to think before your speak? And definitely to edit what you write? You never read the rest of what I wrote: You don’t know who any of us are in real life. Who we are, what we produce (other than our beloved and untalented offspring I hear you screaming), or how we could influence your life.</p>

66

<p>Well said, LMU10. :)</p>

<p>But… can we please stop the stupidity of who is better >_>;;
I find this thread (and all “X University is going to beat Y University in rankings” or “X University is now in ###” ) really frivilous and stupid because it just encourages people from rival schools to make stupid comments about the school…</p>

<p>Rankings are not EVERYTHING.
Judge a school by how capable the students are with what they do and how enthusiastic they are about trying to make the school the best it can be (through academics, volunteering, research, programs, etc.). But until you’ve been at an institution and experience the dynamic of the student body, don’t comment on who’s better and who’s not.</p>

<p>Anyway, just stop it with the “USC sucks” and “UCLA sucks” comments >_>; Both institutions are great. Both institutions have their weaknesses. It’s for the Provost+staff+faculty+students to fix those weaknesses. So instead of saying who sucks, why don’t you stop wasting time, go help fix those weaknesses, and be part of a solution? Thank you.</p>

67

<p>Well said.</p>

<p>/thread</p>

68

<p>

Not to sound condescending, but yes those universities are uncompetitive and I’d find it hard to believe that either a modern day UCLA or USC student would want to associate with/attend those universities.</p>

<p>I’ve always thought of UCLA as a borderline tier for what parents deem to be a “good” school. (Well now USC skates the line as well but for many years it was just UCLA.) No parents boost, “My child is a UCSD/Rochester/Boston student!”</p>

69

<p>“Not to sound condescending, but yes those universities are uncompetitive and I’d find it hard to believe that either a modern day UCLA or USC student would want to associate with/attend those universities.”</p>

<p>Well, believe it. U Florida was my top choice, wasn’t sure if I’d get in to SC anyway. But I did. I got into Rochester too, but I guess my parents shouldn’t have been proud if I chose to go there… Calling Florida an uncompetitive university is silly. There was one applicant who was denied out-of-state to Florida but accepted to Yale. Average high school GPA is well over a 4.0, and U Florida is pretty much the most highly regarded university in the state.</p>

<p>It’s insane what you think “good” schools consist of. The top 20 schools in the nation? These are only undergraduate educations.</p>

70

<p>This entire thread is becoming rather pathetic. I don’t think that the UCLA students realize
that they are being perceived the same way that a high school girl does when someone says “Wow, Brittany looks pretty today” and they respond “yeah, but that outfit makes her look fat and she’s wearing way too much makeup”. Responses like this make you appear childish and petty. You don’t have to tear down others to make yourself appear better. You come on to another schools website and tear down their school, their posters, etc. This behavior seems to extend to many UCLA students from my experience. When my son and I attended admitted students day for USC and the student tour guide found out that we were attending the UCLA admitted student day the next day- he made jokes about going to that OTHER school and going over to the “dark side”- jokingly without malice. My son loved the sense of community that he felt at USC- but thought at that point that he probably would be attending UCLA. When we went to the UCLA tour the recently graduated guides constant barrage of really ugly comments about USC was rather shocking.Funny thing was when we talked to him about his major- biz-econ (which is what my son would do) versus Marshall business he told us that all of his friends from USC had jobs and he was having difficulty finding a job. Both my sons were admitted to UCLA- in fact all of the UC’s including CAL. Both were offered Regents Scholarships. Both decided not to attend- one went to a top ten school (smaller and had more items on his checklist of what was important to him) the other chose USC because it was a better fit for him- he truly loved the school. Does that make UCLA a poor school? Absolutely not. Would I be upset if either one attended UCLA? No, it’s a fine institution. Do I feel that their choices were the right ones for them? YOU BET! My older son who attended a top ten school said that no one that he knows from college tears down any other schools in the top 50. They are confident in their own intellect and abilities- they do not need to disparage others to make themselves feel better.
What I don’t understand is why you think that it is neccesary to demean USC, USC Moms Etc. If you think UCLA is so superior- fine that is your perogative- but it doesn’t make YOU superior- nor does it imply that people who made a different choice are foolish or stupid.They made a choice of what’s the best fit for them</p>

<p>Sentiment - you said the that USC has NO powerbrokers. One small example. A man- lets call him V attended MIT for his bachelors and masters in electrical engineering and USC for his PhD. He then collaborated with another brillant man and came up with CDMA technology.
Most likely you are using that to call your UCLA friend to tear down USC right now. Yeah- that is the technology utilized in the chips for most cell phones. laptops, etc. That man was Dr. Vitterbi( if you were an EE or CE major you would have heard all about him and what has been named after him)- the company that he cofounded is Qualcomn. He donated millions to USC and the engineering school bears his name.</p>

<p>Anyway- I have been on the CC board since 2003 and made very few posts. My eldest son would laugh at me an ask me why I care what some UCLA ■■■■■■ think. My friends would laugh and dismiss your comments as the arrogance of youth. But you do have something right- I am proud to be a 50 year old Mom of some AMAZING kids- I don’t need to validate their choices- they do it on a daily basis through their actions and accomplishments. But I don’t think the term “soccer mom” applies to a woman who started, owns and runs a multi-million dollar corporation.</p>

71

<p>My son got accepted to USC and UCLA (among others). Here were his reasons for choosing USC:</p>

<p>1) Better campus – he felt USC was more intimate with a better chance of meeting students and faculty from other schools. Plus he loved the fact that you could tailgate on campus and walk over to the Coliseum for the game – which you cannot do at UCLA.
2) Better academic environment – he is studying Biomedical engineering with a minor in Cinematic Arts. Not only is this type of inter disciplinary education feasible – it is encouraged. He could earn a renaissance scholar award and his advisers encouraged active exploration of a major or minor vastly different from his major. It seemed much more difficult to do this at UCLA and there were no formal mechanisms to encourage and facilitate this type of curriculum (that we could find at least).
3) Better chance of making strong personal relationship with faculty. He has already had several dinners and off campus meetings with his teachers and his forming strong bonds with them. He did not feel from his visits to UCLA that he could do the same there
4) Active research his freshman year. UCLA said this was possible, but when he tried to get specific examples, they could not guarantee any. USC had him doing field research his first semester.
5) Location – surprisingly he preferred the hustle and bustle of downtown to Westwood. He felt like it would provide him with a real world view.
6) Diversity – USC has the highest number of international students in the nation. He felt like this diversity would help him learn different points of view in our global environment.
7) Networking. Yes getting a job after graduation is important and browsing through the alumni directory was a virtual who’s who of industry leaders and innovators in his field and many others. This was not only important for getting a job, but for advancing his career along the way as well.
8) Fellow Students. He felt like the students he met when visiting and has since met are friendly, helpful and down to earth – in addition to being very bright and accomplished. He did not have the same connection with UCLA students on his visits there. </p>

<p>How do you place a ranking on these elements? I can assure you that any rankings today do not take most of these criteria into consideration. </p>

<p>Oh and BTW – I went to UCLA as an undergrad.</p>

72

<p>

I sure hope that this poster is just a bit immature and is purposely posting things to stir up anger. Because it would be incredibly sad if he really believed it.</p>

<p>Let’s take a look at the average UCLA/Tulane student profile as far as SAT and ACT scores (all 25-75%):</p>

<p>CR: 560-680/630-720
M: 590-720/630-700
W: 580-700/630-720</p>

<p>ACT: 24-31/29-32</p>

<p>Hmmmm, maybe a Tulane student would not want to associate with/attend UCLA? LOL, kidding, but I suggest you drop the elitist and misguided attitude fast. USNWR rankings are total BS based strongly on a popularity contest that utilizes information from people that know little about what goes on at most other schools at the undergrad level.</p>

73

<p>

</p>

<p>Did you mean to state that USC undergraduate academics “were” a joke? Or are you claiming that, although “competitive”, the academics remain a joke?</p>

74

<p>

Actually, I’m posting this from a GSM phone, the most overwhemingly used wireless standard in the world.</p>

<p>While Viterbi’s contributions to USC are great, he is no extraordinary powerbroker. Viterbi has donated a sum of $52 million to USC. In comparison, David Geffen has donated $200 million to UCLA.</p>

<p>Don’t misconstrue my message. It isn’t that UCLA is better than USC. It is rather that I really don’t believe UCLA has any powerbrokers and neither does USC. </p>

<p>USC students are throwing the term “powerbrokers” around and my attitude can be described nothing short of cautious skeptism. </p>

<p>Your powerbrokers contribute a coin in the pond relative to your endowment and the cost of running the university. I have already expressed my opinion regarding USC’s endowment.</p>

75

<p>SENTIMENT: Did you come on this board in an honest effort to make USC students/alumni “see the light” and become bruin supporters? If not, then you know your words are really useless here and only came to stir up trouble. If you did…then I’ll tell you right now: IT’S NOT POSSIBLE.</p>

<p>Everyone arguing with him: is it really worth it, trying to defend an obviously amazing school from one or two people who are so insignificant to it and to your lives? We know why we love USC, as does every student who goes there. Trying to convince a bruin that USC is better is just as futile as them trying to convince us otherwise.</p>

<p>And in my honest opinion, both schools are great. A lot of my best friends go to UCLA, so I really can’t see how the rivalry can get so nasty that people fight this adamantly about it. IT IS NOT WORTH IT!</p>

76

<p>b&bsmom embodied my sentiments exactly. USC is awesome, but so is UCLA and many other institutions. I was accepted by Berekley and UCLA, and i could have been a potential student at either of those institutions despite the fact that i chose USC. Every school should be treated with respect. </p>

<p>There are a few bad people on both sides. I have seen people ignorantly bashing USC, however, i have also heard USC students bash UCLA and other universities (at my orientation). I was disgusted by them, but I realized that we can’t allow a few vocal individuals (aka ■■■■■■) define an institution. </p>

<p>As for the rankings (as this is a thread on USNews rankings), take them lightly. Just because USC passes UCLA, it does not immediately validate what you thought to be true all alone that USC>UCLA (It does not validate anything). It means that the rankings changed. Nothing else. Think about it. They change their methodology constantly, rankings change as a result. Ranking shakeups sell magazines; changing methodology changes rankings. Rankings should be taken with caution. </p>

<p>As for powerbrokers (although I am unfamiliar with the term, I can assume a meaning), UCLA/UCB/USC/some other schools tied for the amount of billionaires they have produced (9 if I recall correctly). They are all within the top ten universities/colleges for billionaires produced.
While i do not know specifics, both have sizable respectable endowments.</p>

77

<p>yeah guys
why we gotta fight
ucla is great
usc is great
screw this ****ing rivalry
let this be a turning point in usc-ucla relations
come on guys
bffs for life
:slight_smile:
<3</p>

78

<p>I have to say, all this talk about “powerbrokers” is hilarious. Yeah, because the average, or even quite above average undergrad at ANY school hangs with so many powerbrokers.</p>

79

<p>UCLA in terms of SATs and GPAs for at least 10 years, and Cal for almost as many years, and yet you claim its undergraduate education is a joke; no my bruin friends, the joke’s on you. You cannot blame the paltry state budget on your stagnation in the rankings for the past decade; you cannot blame USC on the alleged SAT “retakes” all of its applicants must have done to get higher numbers; you cannot blame US News for “dissing” the publics; and you cannot blame USC for achieving what no other school has done in the past 25 years. USC passed you in the most significant “ranking” – based on SATs and GPAs – a DECADE ago, lol. Even the Los Angeles Times, no fan of USC, wrote about it in 2000! All that has happened is USC’s ranking and reputation have caught up, nothing more, nothing less. Oh, and the only other thing that has happened is that you have been asleep these past 10 years…</p>

80

<p>Not that this has anything to do with the US News debate, but it’s interesting to note that in yesterday’s Forbes magazine, USC was tied at No. 10 on the list of billionnaires produced by colleges. USC tied with Berkeley, Princeton and Cornell. Guess what? UCLA did not make the list. USC’s rank on this list is irrefutable evidence of the quality and long-standing tradition of educational excellence, despite its relatively recent rise in the college rankings.</p>