<p>SC uses holistic admission policies. Other students with 2300+ scores were not admitted. It is not all about scores. In their brochure the university lists these factors considered for admission:</p>
<p>Academic performance
Rigor of curriculum
Writing ability
Test scores
Extracurricular activities
Community service</p>
<p>For the art schools porfolios or auditions are included as part of the admissions process.</p>
<p>Seems USC is trying hard to attract E Coast kids to boost recognition, at the expense of SoCal kids. My D had 4.2, tons of AP’s, 2100 SAT, JV dance team national champs and competitive dancing since 3, is a Latina, is Catholic, has volunteered for yrs at the Church, summer school at Cornell, etc and was rejected. If you are from E Coast or an underrepresented state you can get in with much lower stats. I very well may be wrong, but that is how it appears, USC no longer wants many Calif kids. If you live here, you may be better off to skip applying to USC and focus on E Coast schools who now want you more than ever! One door closes and another opens as they say…</p>
<p>eagerlywaiting and solardestruction, congratulations to you on your admission. I must point out what most people know: you are outliers and not at all the norm for USC admits. I am sure you have exceptional qualities that made your applications stand out, but I am also sure that if there were 50 kids with your exact scores/accomplishments/etc, USC would be unlikely to admit more than one or two of you. I don’t mean to be jaded, but the university is conscious of its stats in order to keep its place or rise higher in rankings/desirability. It would be harsh if stories such as yours–with seriously sub-norm SAT scores, etc, encouraged unrealistic hopes in hundreds or thousands of rising seniors. The true picture for most students will be more like sandad’s D–a stellar scholastic record plus ECs plus service plus even URM, and still on the unlucky side of decisions this year.</p>
<p>@ sandad For once I’m glad I live in Maryland.</p>
<p>Just wondering, is it easier to get into SCA(Specifically, writing), Or does it not make a difference?</p>
<p>Why would reducing the amount of transfer students increase USC’s “greatness”? Is this a factor in the US News ranking? And isn’t it actually a positive that many transfer students are accepted? I feel it creates a more diverse and well-rounded student body. I was accepted with guaranteed sophomore admission if I kept a certain GPA (long/interesting life story), and my time at community college has been really humbling, enlightening, and I believe has made me a much better person. In addition, I have met many students who want to transfer to USC and successful transfers who have been exceptional people, occasionally late bloomers or disadvantaged in the admissions process (for example, not having the money for test prep or as healthy families as some of the people I went to prep school with), and I feel like they are all “great” and deserve to be there and at a “great” university. Why is there discrimination against transfer students?</p>
<p>SC2013, there is only discrimination against transfer students by one poster who has not supported any of his statements. None of them. Rather than supporting his statements, he resorts to personally insulting those who disagree with him, as he has done several times to me.</p>
<p>As you point out, SC2013, USC admitting transfer students actually boosts USC’s rankings by enrolling students more likely to graduate and more likely to graduate ON TIME (two factors considered in the rankings) than those who start as freshmen.</p>
<p>@madbean i dont think you should take it negatively, i think it should give hope to everyone, that you can apply with 1700 kind of scores, and still have a chance. I agree that i may be an outlier but it proves that scores arent everything!</p>
<p>SC2013, I completely agree. No one graduates from USC without satisfying rigorous academic requirements during their years there, be it for 2, 3 or 4 years. Perhaps prestige-directed students feel their hard work during HS is being dissed in light of the same USC “reward” offered to later academic bloomers? Whatever. </p>
<p>eagerlywaiting, I think the hope you wish to give everyone is just the thing I fear will mislead many. If you visit this forum over a number of years, you’ll become aware of how painful rejection can feel to many hopeful students. It can also appear to be gloating when a low stat student keeps crowing publicly when so many with much better scores/grades are feeling hurt right about now. </p>
<p>I gently point out that no one who receives an acceptance from any college anywhere is, in fact, better or more worthy than most of those who do not. There is the good fortune of fitting the institutional need of that school, combines with having certain attributes that may have been wanted at just the moment your file (out of over 47,000) hit the adcom’s desk. This is not meant to take away the joy of being accepted, but simply a kind way to remind everyone that there is a lot of heartbreak too. And one’s extraordinary against-the-odds success is simply one data point and not at all the norm.</p>
<p>Often, those with outlying low grades/scores have another unusual hook–great sports ability, great talents/awards–which is great for the school, too. But consider the level of peer students at USC. At top universities, expectations are that all students learn at the same demanding, accelerated level. The reason adcoms pay attention to grades/scores in the first place is to assure all admits are up to the challenge. Rankings can be dinged, in fact, if the graduation rates in 4 years begin to dip, too.</p>
<p>This is a bit random but I went to the Denver reception this past week and they shared some stats with us:</p>
<p>About 600 applicants from Colorado
114 Admitted - 12 of those were admitted for Spring 2014 (Myself included…WOO!)
Students admitted from 38 different high schools</p>
<p>This is just in case anyone is interested in what a specific state’s admissions look like! (:</p>
<p>@madbean I agree but I dont think it is gloating, just trying to prevent people from not applying just because chances are low, doesnt mean there are NO chances. I have made the same mistake not applying to my dream college because chances were low. It may be painful to get rejection, but it is better than not applying and having the question of “what if” in your mind.</p>