@“uscihave_questions!” My major is neuroscience and I’m from Pennsylvania! I also have a 34C ACT and 4.0 UW GPA if that helps!
I got mine today, finalist for Presidential in Atlanta Area and invited to interview. Passion for real took me far, I have 1450 and ranked 64/550 with lots of AP’s, but a super passionate essay and good EC like research at Georgia Tech and GHP.
@amir85 if you have time would be great to have your info here for future applicants, thanks!
Congratulations to all who were lucky to get the white box yesterday, to those who got the news on the USC portal, and many will continue to get boxes today around the country. Some will already have seen their portal update and others may not have. S was fortunate to get the white box yesterday.
@abell73, thanks for the compliment but credit goes to @CADREAMIN, a USC mom who has given generously of her time to answer questions of us newbies. Search MERIT PACKAGES- what?-when?-how? here on CC, there is a wealth of information about USC scholarships and the process over the years.
Also, many are posting on the USC Class of 2022 thread now about results. It’s a bit of a frenzy since most are going to be disappointed to not receive positive news. Keep in mind that out of approximately 30,000 Dec 1 applicants to USC, about 1200 or less (roughly 3%) were offered this opportunity. Only a fraction of those are on CC. Once the dust settles, checking that thread may provide useful information about other related USC topics. I recommend reading the USC 2021 Discussion/Results thread where there is lots of useful information (over 5000 posts) about USC. Of course USC’s website provides the main source of information, but if you want to hear some of the insider perspectives of students and parents who actually have or had students attend USC, check it out.
Also, it is in no way a rejection to USC to not get a merit award. @WWWard (and others), another veteran who has been through this with two daughters, has kindly stuck around as well, to keep students positive about the fact that the majority of students who get into USC will be admitted in March. I understand that some needed the merit award for USC to be affordable and that it is a disappointment for many.
For those disappointed, try to keep your head high, if not today, then in a day or two. In the past few years 3000 students in the top 1% stats each year get turned away from USC. The competition is very fierce and not getting offered an award or being admitted can be hit or miss. There just is not enough room to admit 55,000 plus applicants, and specific majors of course have greater demand than others. Also, stats are not everything. USC looks at each applicant holistically, with many variables factored in, stats being just one of them. Many who do not get the award (and many who do), end up being offered admissions at other fabulous schools, some Ivies, some ranked lower or higher than USC, but which will end up being a great fit.
That’s all I have for now. Keep the faith and Fight On!
what portal do i use to check?
@“uscihave_questions!” , log into your you.usc.edu account.
Im sure this has been answered elsewhere but what are the odds of getting a Trustee, Mork, or Stamps once nominated?
@wchatar2, with the caveat that I am somewhat of a newbie on CC, I recall reading somewhere that about 2/3 of those who interview get what they came to interview for. I do not know if that is actually true. And some who get the award end up not attending USC.
A small number are reportedly bumped up to the next level, not sure what % actually get bumped down. Somebody reported on another thread that a student who interviewed for a Trustee (full tuition) at USC ended up being offered $4,000. I think that is not so common. I believe they call the $4,000 scholarship a Director’s Scholarship. Dean’s is 1/4 tuition. Presidential is 50% off tuition. Some have posted that most end up with at least the Deans, but not all.To maximize your success, be prepared and rested. Good luck!
@Nomorelurker I have read the 2/3 figure somewhere, not sure I trust it. I feel like we are playing with house money because my son is NMSF and the “basement” here is 1/2 tuition but its a $100k differential over 4 years so it is material to our thinking. Have you scheduled a date for the interview yet?
I did not think in a million years I would be admitted to USC and be a finalist for Presidential! I only had a 4.07 GPA but I’m beyond happy.
@appleapple123123, stats are important but not the single determining factor, as you know. As an aside, GPA may mean different things to a reader such as UW or Weighted, how much rigor you took, or what was available at your school, how you tied in your interests with other activities in and out of school, leadership… Whatever you did obviously worked so congrats!
@wchatar2 , when S checked this morning, there did not seem to be a link or place to schedule an interview or see what the dates are (although we know them from other posts by others). Hopefully once everyone has gotten their results today, maybe something will show up on the portal this afternoon, over the weekend, or Monday.
@Nomorelurker Arent there two sets of dates in the folder? I thought they were 2/15-2/16 and 2/22-2/23.
Trustees and Presidential come on different dates.
@CADREAMIN I just want to thank you again. What you have done through this whole process is really above and beyond. My son fell in love with USC on his tour, his older brother is at HYPSM and my younger son is A LOT smarter (love them both of course) and wants no part of that world. I just cant tell you how wonderful it is to feel wanted by USC and to have incredibly passionate people representing the school on forums like this to reinforce the idea that his first impressions were correct. Thank you.
Does anyone know that if I applied to a specific school at USC (i.e. Thornton School of Music) that had another application, will I recieve a notification today or another day?
I am not sure about that
Sadly, I didn’t get a scholarship, but do I still have a shot at Viterbi?
Norcal, took AP’s, 4.2 W, 1490 SAT, math awards, etc…
Sorry you did not get the scholarship @SREE33. Your stats look strong but admission into a high demand field is probably dependent on more than stats. How are your ECs, leadership, essays…?
@wchatar2, I believe you can register for an interview now on the portal.
@sree33 Of course, no one has been denied, you just didn’t get merit, like 37,800 other applicants. Merit decisions take into account so much out of your control - amount of merit by major, by college within USC, demographic factors of applicant like location, race, URM, first gen - they all play a role on top of the usual grades and scores. Kids with lower stats can get merit over others and vice versa - it’s the whole package in addition to what they are in need of to round out a class. Gotta see what happens in March now, good luck!
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