USC class of 2023 Applicants Thread

prospective poli sci/public policy applicant, 'SC is my first choice!

DS is SCA hopeful for PROD or CAMS!
QB finalist, first choice by far

Computer science(Games) and Journalism applicant. USC is my first choice by a long shot

I applied to Film Production at SCA!

Does anyone know when we will get a notification if we qualify for a merit scholarship?

@anxiety247 According to info posted here, you should get notified in late January.

If you are a national merit semifinalist does this boost your chances of getting merit scholarship at USC if you put it as your first choice? Do all nmscā€™s get merit if they put usc as first choice?

If you are an NMF, you have to be admitted first, obviously, not all are admitted. NM results donā€™t come out until after January and they do not have anything to do with the USC scholarship decisions in late January. If you are accepted in spring and you are an NMF, and you make USC your #1 choice with NMSF by May 1st, you will get 1/2 tuition scholarship. Or you could have received different scholarship in late January (Presidential - which is also 1/2 tuition and causes some confusion with NMF 1/2 tuition recipients, Trustee, Deans - 1/4 no interview), and also happen to be an NMF (these scholarships donā€™t stack). NMF is completely independent of the Jan results. But being NMF AND getting accepted does guarantee you the 1/2.

Besides NMF, some scholarships are given in March Admission cycle, but those tend to be a handful of Deans (if any) or smaller departmental awards. The biggies are all at the end of January.

My daughter received a letter stating her application is in the merit scholarship pool (not national merit). Is that normal? I was surprised they sent out a letter. This is the only school she has yet to hear from and she applied to the combined Viterbi CS and Business program. She has already been accepted into her first choice school, but if she is admitted in this program and receives a scholarship, it may be a game changer.

Does USC consider AP scores in the admissions process? I did not submit any of my AP scores (which were all 4s and 5s). Will this negatively affect my application? Should I email them to my admissions counselor?

@justinpsmith did you report them on your Common Ap? I have been involved in a ā€œsending AP scoresā€ debate on another thread and itā€™s a confusing thing for everyoneā€¦even if they are reported somewhere on your application, Iā€™m not sure they will ā€œcountā€ them if they donā€™t have the official scores (unless they allow self reporting for SAT/ACT?). Maybe call admissions and ask them if they consider AP scores as part of your application and if so, how would they like to see them reported?

It can be confusing because the colleges donā€™t ā€œrequireā€ them to be sent. But some schools will only ā€œcountā€ them if they are formally submitted through college board. This is only some, not all, but if USC is a top choice, it might be worth finding out.

Good luck!

@srparent15 - My kid received an email and then the same info via letter. All applicants who applied prior to 12/1 are in consideration for merit.

You donā€™t need to send your official AP scores unless youā€™re accepted and later want credit for those courses. My friendā€™s son who is a freshman at USC didnā€™t send his until after he graduated high school. Also, for any senior year AP courses, the tests arenā€™t until May and those results wonā€™t come until July anyway, so you can then send them all in one sweep which is what we did with my son a few years ago.

@srparent15 yes, you are correct as it relates to getting the proper credit/waiving out of classes. But I am talking about something completely differentā€¦when a student wants the AP scores to be considered as part of their applicationā€¦so like if a student takes the Chemistry subject test and doesnā€™t do well, but gets a 5 on the exam, they may want the college to see this, and self reporting may not suffice. SOME not all schools will not consider the 5 AP score unless it is sent to them officially from college board (by the time the application is due). I called a few schools on this very topic last week. If anyone wants more details, feel free to private message me. IF there is any doubt and you want your AP scores considered as part of your application review, call the admissions office to ask for clarification, or directly email your rep.

has everyone who applied for merit received a letter and email stating they are in consideration for merit?

I havenā€™t and Iā€™m a little worrried

I havenā€™t. I thought they werenā€™t supposed to come out until sometime in january?

D19 hasnā€™t either. We shall seeā€¦

Same here, no mail/email on merit info.

same here, Iā€™ve read at the information should come out late January

Hey guys Merit applicant that still hasnā€™t heard back though a few days ago I recieved a packet from USC and I was so excited that it would be an acceptance but it was just a general financial aide packet so now iā€™m very antsy to hear back, Good luck everyone!