Does anyone know if USC gives (at least some) money to students who need to fly to campus to interview?
Our Paperwork said $60 toward flight costs for instate and $200 toward flight for out of state. Student only, obviously. Book your Explore USC soon. Some dates are already full.
@collegecurious15 I read somewhere you are only considered for merit for your first choice schools. Can someone confirm this?
Some Explore USC dates are already full?! I haven’t even received my packet yet. I only know I got in (+ have a chance to interview) because of the letter in my portal.
@riverbanks - Are you talking about National Merit? Because for that, yes, you have to name USC as your first choice school.
We signed up for one of the dates and had to switch. We were able to do so successfully but the first date we chose is now saying full. There should be at least one slot, the one we created by switching, : ) ! Is it possible not everyone identified will have the opportunity to interview? That wouldn’t seem fair. : (
No- they will accommodate all invited students. If no open date works, please call and tell them your needs.
@camomof3 Thank you & that’s very reassuring! I just talked to a current USC student from my high school who went through the process last year and he gave me some tips for the interview. I’m also just excited about the fact that I get to skip two days of school (our school has a final exemption policy for those who have a 85+ in a class and less than 3 absences. Official school visits like this are not counted towards the 3 absences). >:)
“But you will certainly get some great offers from other top schools as well, and will still probably get NMF from USC!”
Not correct-
In order to qualify for any National Merit scholarship students HAVE to taken the SAT.
The ACT wont qualify them for NM scholarships.
"Hello, I found out I was accepted as a Trustee finalist, but I am also a NMSC semifinalist. "
IF you receive the Trustee scholarship AND decide to enroll at USC, you should list USC as your first choice so you can also receive the $1000/ yr scholarship that you are entitled to from the NMSF.
Helps to pay for books, lab fees, food, or any other expenses charged to your acct by the USC bursars office.
@glasshours no, I’m talking about the schools / majors you apply to. I read somewhere you are only considered for merit aid for your first choice major. As in, someone applying to Marshall first choice, and dornsife second choice, they would only be considered for scholarships for Marshall. Can someone confirm?
^^ correct.
Sorry to post again, but after reading through this thread and the email that I received yesterday, I was under the impression that the scholarship rejection only applied to the big 4 scholarships (Mork, Stamps, Trustee, and Presidential), and that there was still a possibility that I could receive Deans or other smaller scholarships at a later date. However, I emailed my admissions counselor about this and she replied that the email applies to all USC merit scholarships, and that I would not be considered for anything. Can someone confirm which is correct?
@DTRanger16, it’s hard to interpret what you were told. In the past, the Admissions Office has not been truly forthcoming with info like this, nor --unfortunately–completely accurate. They will give dates way in the future ( a nice safe date), but actually send out admissions earlier than they say, etc. The person answering the phone is often a USC student on work-study, and they are sometimes not informed on really intricate questions. In the case of Dean’s Scholarships, we can only look to the recent past and we have seen that at the end of the process, it’s been reported here on CC that USC has awarded additional Deans. But these awards may not be part of a published or official policy. They do not guarantee they’ll do it every year. The student on the phone may not even be aware this occasionally happens! But there are MANY smaller-than-Deans merit scholarships that are awarded after admissions packets go out, so if she said “all merit scholarships have gone out” that is not correct. All that said, it’s most likely true that, with just a few exceptions, the largest awards have been accounted for and some smaller awards (in the range of $3000-15,000 per year) are still to come. In addition, each School at USC has continuing student merit scholarships for soph-seniors that can be added on if you qualify and are selected.
@madbean Thank you for your response, that is reassuring for sure. I was just very confused by the wording of the email that was sent out (“This notification only applies to the scholarships I mentioned,” the only scholarships mentioned being Mork Family, Stamps, Trustee, and Presidential) so I really didn’t know what to believe. I think it’s very misleading.
There are definitely other merit awards (although much smaller than the full and half tuition) given out later. The letter sent is not meant to be misleading- it is clear. The applicant is not selected for these scholarships named.
@riverbanks @menloparkmom I haven’t seen that info? What exactly does that apply to? What if both majors are in the same school? Like 1st choice film prod, 2nd choice screenwriting, are you saying that if they only get admitted to their 2nd choice major they don’t get any scholarship $s? What about NM?
NM is COMPLETELY separate.
IF you are a NMF and ARE accepted at USC AND decide to enroll there AND notify NM by the mid May deadline that USC is your first choice- then you will receive the NM Scholarship offered by USC,
@madbean Regarding the postcard, I have gotten it as well, but doesn’t this postcard roll around in March to mean anything? I mean are there people who haven’t interviewed/auditioned who got this postcard as well? Also, one last question LOL. Is there a chance the School of Dramatic Arts accepts you, but the school doesn’t accept you academically. You’re right, it seems cruel to send this postcard to students who have not been admitted, or even so this postcard can mean acceptance to the theater school, but not the school itself. Appreciate clarifications. Thanks.
Accepted USC Marshall School of Business WBB Program
@40yearoldvirgin Maybe this card is something new/different. Every year we see little changes in how USC and its Schools do things, so we can only look to the past for clues but no guarantees. Others have posted that this card says “save the date” but does not expressly say “You’re invited…” Perhaps this is new card? I am not sure of the logic of sending such a hopeful type of card to every single applicant… but time will tell. Your experiences will help next year’s crowd sort through the tea leaves. Best of luck.