Sorry to ask again, but the USC portal says "application decisions will be mailed 3/21, so they seem to imply ALL decisions (accepted as well as denied) are mailed then?
This has been the issue at every university this year. All have record applications. UT Austin, Michigan, Penn State, Emory, NYU - all are saying 60 to 80k applications this year. I think the time has come that all students are applying to many schools. My son applied to 13. The more students apply the more “selective” a school becomes.
The only mathematical answer is that yield will drop by schools accepting the same candidates over and over. So hopefully, more will come out of the waitlists this year. It is a frustrating process to say the least.
Ditto what @prouddad2020 said! Applications are “up” because more applications per student, not more students.
Daughter works as an Admissions Ambassador and absolutely loves USC. Here is a post from the parent page. Good luck to all. I think the white and yellow boxes should go out soon. 
?
http://www.uscannenbergmedia.com/2019/03/18/usc-admission-hits-record-low/
Since one student applies more schools, it is easier to have one has many admissions, another has nothing.
@BeCheap4me2 That is an issue for many… and likely a contributing factor as to why 60% of those admitted last cycle did not enroll at USC. The simple reality is that many families will not be able to swing it financially… or will be unwilling to… once they compare and evaluate FA offers from the various admits. In my daughters’ cases, the ranges were insane… with some schools like UTexas and UMiami offering very little and with others - like Princeton and Emory being super generous. In the end, in our cases, USC offered enough to make it possible for both girls to attend. Good luck…
Stating the obvious here…this wait is brutal.
As a Recap for the applicants waiting:
USC has announced that nearly 67K applied this cycle and that the admit rate will be circa 11%. That equates to around 7,370 being admitted overall. Since 1,000 or so were admitted in January during the scholarship phase, another 6,370 or so will be admitted this week.
The mail-out of admissions packages, sent via USPS Priority Mail, has been confirmed by USC as occurring on March 21st, with portal updates for all applicants on March 23rd at 5pm Pacific.
You can project your likely delivery window via the following link… https://www.usps.com/priority-mail/map/ Simply use 90007 as the originating zip code. Be forewarned however that USPS is far from 100% reliable, and they do too often miss those delivery windows. The portal updates on the 23rd will be the definitive answer.
Rejection letters arrive via regular mail later… usually received after the portals update - unless you live close enough to USC.
While you can of course try Informed Delivery via USPS, as it has worked for some, USC does not enable tracking and historically very few of those actually getting the admission packets were able to gain that same-day advanced notice. The vast majority who have had Informed Delivery, including my own family, were not able to see this particular type of package en route. But there is always a chance.
Best of luck to all those waiting for good news beginning with the packages roll-out on March 21st…
Thank you!!! He was offered full 4 yr. at SCU, but love USC…where they have his major…
Congrats at @BeCheap4me2 - He should be super proud. SCU is not known to be generous with merit so that’s fantastic. Good luck in your decision. I have students at both schools if you have any questions. What major? You can PM me if you’d rather not mention out here.
For your entertainment as you wait for decisions - seriously true event and CC classic - enjoy:
Gotta read through to get to the outcome, it’s worth the read -suspense, intrigue, comedy, in-fighting… it’s all there.
@prouddad2020 I think I recognize you from another CC forum! My son’s #1 choice is USC, but it’s a huge reach. He’s wait listed at PSU due to that hot mess. Unfortunately, given how things have unfolded, my son only applied to 3 schools.
@WWWard Did USC announce this on their social media this year or is this info from last year?
@thstud517 Info on #s… via USC President in speech and detailed at Explore events. Timing of announcements here…
Chug.
@WWWard Do you know if all USC merit scholarship recipients have been admitted already? Have only the bigger ones or ones needing interviews been notified? Is your 1,000 student number the ones that needed interviews? Sorry I have so many questions, I’m just really stressed and anxious for Friday, given recent (discouraging) rejections.
Also, does USC send acceptance packages by USPS? Will they arrive same time as mail (if accepted)?
@uscplsacceptme Look at post 1667 on this page regarding how they are sent.
As for merit scholarship recipients… the vast majority were admitted in January and most had an interview process to determine merit $ levels… which will be announced this week. Some could receive 1/4 tuition scholarships as I understand it with their new acceptances this week as well.
@uscplsacceptme Yes they are sent out by USPS, so they will come in the mail (they’re white parcels thicker than the typical letter). I predict they’ll arrive at the very end of this week or very early next week, but varies depending on your location.
@MyaCocoa Yes. My son was accepted to PSU Smeal. He was super happy but it did take forever to get the decision. he applied to 13 schools so we are waiting for USC, Michigan and a few reach schools next week.
This whole process is painful. Hoping for the best for your son at USC!