abt one month out! sending good vibes to all applicants!
Unless you were a QuestBridge Finalist matched to USC (and thus admitted with a full ride) in early December, the earliest anyone will learn that they have been admitted to USC will be late January. A select very few of the 60K+ applying to USC (who also applied by December 1st) will receive notice via USPS Priority Mail and a portal update thereafter that they are continuing via the merit scholarship process. That notice also constitutes an admission.
No one is rejected though in January. Any letter received now or prior to then regarding your application or confirming that you have applied for financial aid, etc, is merely a polite acknowledgement via USC. If you also applied by Dec 1st and do not receive such a letter, do not fret about it. USC is very good with all of this. If you applied on time, you will be considered for the merit scholarship process. If not, you will still be considered in the general application pool.
Everyone will learn the final admission decision by late March. Other than being a School of Dramatic Arts applicant and getting invited to an SDA event in the week or so prior to the official admission announcements (which has been a solid hint of admission in years past), no other true hints exist. Every year, many post inquires as to does this email or letter or interview request mean anything?, etc. They do not. I can only recall that one SDA invitation being a true indicator in advance that someone is also being admitted. Anything else remains speculative.
Those final admissions will also come via USPS Priority Mail with a portal update to follow. Those being rejected will learn first via the portal update most likely.
If you are bored or anxious or just what to see what the experience, dates and timing was like last year, feel free to browse through the 5600+ posts in last yearās thread on this topic:
You will see all of the questions and answers from last year and likely gain a lot of insights that hopefully will calm your nerves a bit. It is a process I went though twice before as a parentā¦ with both of my daughters applying to USC, gaining admission and attending. One graduated from SDA in May, and the other is a current SCA sophomore. So I can likely answer most questions for you, should you not find the answer you are seeking via last yearās thread. And @CADREAMIN had even more children attend USC, so she is even more experienced than I.
Good Luck
In factā¦ here is a detailed explanation of all things related to the Merit processā¦ provided by @CADREAMIN last year.
@WWWard Thank you for the info!
Yes, Thanks @WWWard !
2022 Discussion Milestones:
[Post #314](USC Class of 2022 - #315 by flower124love - University of Southern California - College Confidential Forums) - Packet Mailing Date Announced
[Post #532](USC Class of 2022 - #533 by YLDad1 - University of Southern California - College Confidential Forums) - First Acceptance Packet Received
[Post #925](USC Class of 2022 - #926 by CADREAMIN - University of Southern California - College Confidential Forums) - Sample Merit Rejection Letter/Email
Hey all! Here to join the pre-decision woes :ā) 'SC is my number one right now but I think I screwed up my essays (I feel like they may have come off as immature or hastily written) so Iām suuuper nervous :-SS We still have about a month to go until merit decisions are released but Iām already getting antsy.
I heard that people who receive merit scholarships are typically people that 'SC knows the ivies would want so they try and draw them in with financial aid. Can anyone attest to/corroborate that?
Iām feeling the same way- starting to doubt my supplementals. USC is my top choice but I do admit that I procrastinated my supplementals quite a bit and I am not feeling confident in my overall application. Ugh.
@romns116 @prouddad2020 youāre welcome
Hi everyone, I have submitted my application at around 6 pm PST on December 1st but I just checked on the USC student portal it says they were submitted on December 2nd. On the common application, it says I submitted the application on December 1st 10 pm EST. Is this a common problem of the USC portal? Would this stop me from being considered in the merit-based scholarship? I appreciate all the help in advance.
@Kkchris I applied last year and the same thing happened to me but I was still considered for the scholarship so you should be fine.
@kkchris this question was asked and answered several times up thread. You are fine. There is a time you submit and a time that it is downloaded by CA and USC - the time you submitted is all that matters, they see that.
when do we hear back from USC? Is it a different date if we applied for scholarships?
@deadbird11 The answers awaitā¦
@ct7101 Iām totally in the same boat! Glad to know someone else can understand the way Iām feeling. I though my supplements were okay when I sumbitted but as Iāve been working on my January deadlines I feel like I did them all wrongā¦ :((
Also, how do I send a letter of recommendation from my boss? It wonāt let me assign him on the Common Application thing. I am not applying to the School of Cinematic Arts or whatever, and I already have my college counselor and two teachers assigned. Thanks in advance!
Do you really need to have it sent given that you have already sent all they have asked for? Is it going to say something unique and extraordinary compared to the others? If it lends a perspective you feel is valuable for them to have, he can mail it to USC Admissions. But keep in mind, if everyone sent one extra piece of information for their file, that would be 64,000 extra pieces of paper they have to deal with. So ensure it truly adds value, not just quantity.
From what I know, USC only accepts letter of recās from teachers which is why you canāt assign him, sorry!
^^^ Not true, anyone can mail in a recommendation, whether it adds value or they give it consideration is the real issue. Here is a USC blog on them:
https://admissionblog.usc.edu/asking-for-letters-of-recommendations-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/
@CADREAMIN @deadbird11 also, you can email it to your admissions counselor. I called the admissions office bc I was in the same boat, and they told me to do that. Make sure the recommender mails it in along with ur USC ID and Common App ID. I did it because it coincided with my major, so the choice is up to you.
Good reminder @k1ngp1n. Also, be sure the recommender is the one mailing/emailing it. Donāt (as the applicant) do it for them, or itās pretty pointless.