<p>"We're pleased to announce the addition of 48 new members for the 2011-12 admission cycle. Effective July 1, we'll have 460 members total, including a record-breaking 62 public institutions:</p>
<ol>
<li>University of Southern California"</li>
</ol>
<p>Thoughts?</p>
<p>Honestly, I liked USC's separate application, and I thought it was much stronger than my Common App one. Still, this will likely increase application numbers.</p>
<p>First !</p>
<p>wow i predict like 10k increase in admissions next year, no joke.</p>
<p>This is a surprise.</p>
<p>I predict under 20% acceptance rate next year, no joke, but with yield taking a big hit. Who cares though USC with ~18% acceptance rate looks much better even with a yield of like 2X%.</p>
<p>I heard last fall that USC was considering the Common Ap - it is both exciting and kind of sad. They will receive LOTS more applications and the acceptance % will go down. Will there still be “Short Takes” on a Common Ap supplement???</p>
<p>I’m not sure. I feel as if it is going to lose a lot of the personalization and unique touches that make USC so great. :(</p>
<p>Plus, next year’s future scholarship finalists won’t be able to be sneaky and check their decision early. :/</p>
<p>I know. It’s going to be tough to apply there, let alone get accepted. Juniors and the rest of the underclassmen, try to do the best you can.</p>
<p>I despised USC’s app system. To me, nothing about the actual app will change. Short takes are really easy to do on the Common App. Universities have ultimate freedom over the design of their supplements. Personally, I used a variant of my common app essay for USC. I wonder if they’ll require a second, different essay though. That could be interesting.</p>
<p>Sadly, it seems like this move is likely to just increase selectivity. (Over a long term, selectivity can actually lead to better applicants attending if you make the cut.) It also sucks that it will likely mean an increase in app cost from the current $50 (for doing part one) to $60 or $65 for everyone. Still, I think it makes it easier for applicants and especially teachers doing recommendations, regardless of all the problems of the common app. I’m actually kind of sad I missed this. Haha!</p>
<p>On the note of other apps checking things early: I’m fairly certain they’ll still have USConnect setup for applicants, especially for documents and FA info.</p>
<p>Also: Are they an exclusive user of the common app? Because they could end up with both apps. Plenty of schools use multiple formats.</p>
<p>What is interesting: Next years’ CA essay is stating a requirement of 250-500 words. Mine wouldn’t have fit, and I felt like I used the extra space for something worthwhile. (Actually, I don’t know, I didn’t do that well with my common app schools at all - though they all were really selective.)</p>
<p>This is exciting news! It’d be awesome if the additional applications that result from the Common App cause USC’s acceptance rate to go sub-20%, as selectivity contributes to prestige.</p>
<p>(I’m glad that I’m a student at USC already haha!)</p>
<p>I’m so glad I applied this year because if I applied next year, I’m not sure I’d be able to get in…</p>
<p>I must be honest: I hate the Common App. It felt incredibly impersonal to me and I felt as though I was just a number in a computer. I wound up not applying to any Common App schools. </p>
<p>On the other hand, USC’s application was my favorite. 
I wrote great essays, I had fun with the quick takes-I actually enjoyed some of the college application process! </p>
<p>I also wonder how the supplement and the various school supplements will work. I hope that schools with supplements (like SCA) will keep their supplements away from the Common App, and I hope that USC’s supplement returns some of that individualistic spirit.</p>
<p>I’ve never filled out the common app, but had a friend who used it for several schools. As a transfer, he was forced to go back to our high school and get a councilor to send things off with the app. Too much work!</p>
<p>I wonder how they will handle their Dec 1 deadline scholarship program.</p>
<p>USC’s app system is far superior to common app’s. Common app is really buggy and its difficult to know when documents are truly submitted. Although it makes if very convenient, I’m glad I was in the last year without it because like previous posts, I don’t think I would have gotten in.</p>
<p>Interesting. Like a handful of other posters here, my son and I thought USC’s app was far superior to the Common App. In fact, my son did better, scholarship-wise, at all of his NON-Common App schools. He filled out the Common App in its (short) entirety and put all the same data on it, but since it didn’t provide any sort of unique prompts or short-answer essays, my son found that it was much harder to really show who he is or what he’s all about. He and I both think that prompts like those found on USC’s application help a student personalize their application.</p>
<p>Many schools add a significantly large supplement to their common app (NYU, Brown for example). My guess is USC will do the same, adding in its “quick take” and other short answers. So other than getting far more applicants, I doubt it will be that much of a change.</p>
<p>The thing my S hated most about USC’s (current) application was that there wasn’t a template for entering his EC’s. As I recall, it was basically just a bunch of blank lines.</p>
<p>As jazz/shreddermom stated, I highly doubt USC is going to change anything in their application really besides the fact that now there will be a 12 slot limit on EC’s like all common app schools. I suspect the supplement will include every personalized option that is already in place that everyone is worrying about losing. USC wouldn’t pay money to common app so that its applicants can feel more dehumanized. USC is paying money to common app so that common app can raise its prestige and brand name even faster than USC is doing so itself by helping it drop its accept rate another 5-10% in a matter of years.</p>