We are in SD, and my daughter received an email from USC for additional information for Financial Aid this morning . Not sure if it means anything though, as we are waiting for package this afternoon too (if any at all)
Why are there people on Reddit claiming to have received packages yesterday? If USC mailed them in the morning yesterday, it is HIGHLY unlikely that they were routed through the incompetent USPS system and then delivered to the recipient the same day they were mailed. Priority mail doesnāt mean āSame Day Deliveryā!!
@colparents Inquiries or updates via FA are always on a separate path - and thus mean nothing in terms of admission - until Admissions actually updates them. So its hard to know if it means anything or not in your case. Once Admissions notifies them, they likely stop worrying about completing the files of those not being admitted. If that happened yesterdayā¦ it could mean something positive for you today. Maybe you can update us later to seeā¦ and then future applicants might have a better answer.
@lakergirl6232 While that is likely trueā¦ it is still theoretically possible. If USC sent them out yesterday super early, and if they arrived to a processing station in time to re-route for actual same day deliveriesā¦ it may occur in rare instances to neighborhoods handled by that same first processing center. But such deliveries would have to be super close to USC physically. Alsoā¦ admissions does routinely hand-deliver on Day One to some lucky few who live nearby. Here is a video of suchā¦
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsiym94B0bU&list=PLg_Mm9b_vZewztYN9qKRl5t0fGOKpiPAF&index=2
9:48am was first post last year, other years it has been later in the morning, it depends on who gets their mail early and if they are home to get it. But they will arrive today throughout Socal.
@Ericksonra - yes, Thornton applicants did get theirs at same time. I think some audition majors can be on different timetable but we had some Thornton folks on here that recently verified theirs came at same time last year.
@lakergirl6232 I think that was internet lore, or just a random package that arrived at post office before mailman went on his deliveries. No one posted an acceptance letter, so it was a bit questionable.
@CADREAMIN thank you!
I feel for all you waiting as my son was in the same situation as you last year. We are in NJ and did not see or get any info until Saturday late morning as his acceptance did show on informed delivery and the package was delivered early afternoon. Donāt read in to anything if you did or didnāt get informed delivery as it seems to be random on if it does work, we just happened to be one of the lucky ones it did work for. My S is now a freshman at Thornton and he couldnāt be happier! I wish you all good luck and just try and sit tight until tomorrow.
Some Thornton packages are sent separately from the giant admissions load of packages, and are sent directly from the school, those are the ones we have heard show up, the main batch packages have not.
@WWWard , thank you, and that is true - it might be just coincidence that FA requests for more info on the same day we might receive/or not from admission.(actually, they already asked once in Jan, and we provided the info they requested). Yes, Iāll update later about whether she received package or not.
And to any who may think that USC is only about wealth and privilege, I challenge you to watch this video throughā¦
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsiym94B0bU&list=PLg_Mm9b_vZewztYN9qKRl5t0fGOKpiPAF&index=2
See if you can make it though without tearing up. It is a video of a handful of hand-delivered admissions to USC in the neighborhoods surrounding the campus.
@colparents youāre welcome. yesā¦ curious now.
@CADREAMIN weird. Iām confused about the whole thing but Iāll probably just have to wait it out and see what happens. Thanks!
@ericksonra - You should hear with everyone else, are you an audition major?
OkayāIām absolutely dying here. Will not survive until mail comes today sometime between 3-6:30 pm (never know when it will show up!). Darling son applied to SCA (IMGD) which only picks like 15-20 kids each year. I CANNOT STAND THE WAIT. (oh, my other twin son applied to USC too, but Iām more worried about the SCA son). ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHā¦
@WWWard That video is awesome!! My only regret is that I wasnāt on CC in 2017 and didnāt know about the whole package thing - especially since he received his in January so I thought it was just more marketing materials - so I didnāt video my son opening his. Although itās etched in mind, I would love to have it as a recorded memory. So exciting!! Good luck to all!
@lakergirl6232 I feel your pain. Reliving 2017. Ultimatelyā¦ my daughterās package then was two days late (do not wish that on anyone), and she thus found out online. Got into USC but not SCAā¦ so Undeclared. She still committed to USC and internally transferred into SCA later. So that is always a potential option for some too.
Good luckā¦ both in terms of managing the waitā¦ and getting in 
@barbpz yesā¦ a great video.
@lakergirl6232 Ya, with mail that late, I would probably be stalking the mailman throughout the neighborhood.
Parents - let your kid find the package, it is a priceless and once in a lifetime opportunity for them!
Repost for those just jumping in while there is still timeā¦
Just a suggestion from someone that has been through this (several times) and of course you can make your own plan here, but if it works, please let your student get the package - and have their moment. (Parent hint - take a peek if you must and just leave it in there.) Some kids want a text from mom after the mail comes, but if you can wait it out - that mailbox moment is worth it. It is why USC goes through all this trouble and time to do it this way. It is a once in a lifetime event for them that they will remember forever. Sending them a text in the middle of class is gonna blah-zen (to make boring) what should be a spectacular moment in their lives - and you wonāt share in it. So give it some thought while there is still time about a good way for it to play out. (To peek or not to peek, that is the question.)
One of the best parent moments I ever had was when I picked up my son from high school and we stopped at the bottom of the driveway for him to get out and get the mail (we are rural so we drive by our mailbox on way to house). Because I was on CC, I knew there was a possibility something was there, so I made sure he got out to get the mail (something he always did). Luckily, he was oblivious as he didnāt follow CC or anything. I still remember him lowing the lid of the mailbox as usual, then reaching in to grab the mail - I still see his face and this whole process in slow motion in my mindā¦ him looking inside as usual but taking a bit longer as something caught his eye, then slowly looking back at me - first with this look of confusion - then lowering his head to get a better look inside - and reaching in and pulling out the beautiful package. When it really sunk in he raised up his head and looked over at me again with that āwhat and OMG!!!ā ā like a kid on Christmas morning that just got a puppy. No video camera needed for this moment, itās etched in both of our minds forever.
Another one wanted to walk to the mailbox solo and I watched her triumphantly from the deck as she returned with the white box in hands raised above her arms. Their siblings had their own unique discovery moments that are just as unique and fun. Point is, a moment can happen in a lot of ways - the box stuck in the fridge, left in the mailbox, on the seat of the car - but it can be way better when it doesnāt happen through a notification on a USPS website (which doesnāt work anyway), or through a text, and it is something you can share. imo anyway.
Of course, you can think this is all hooey and do whatever you want, but regardlessā¦I hope you all have the wonderful moment of your dreams from whichever school you will call home for the next four years.
If we are so fortunate as to receive a package (or 2āI have twins), I may peek (if they are not home yet), but will have my phone ready for when they see the package(s) so the moment is recorded for posterity. If nothing comes today, I am going to DIEā¦
I canāt help but think of Wheatyās classic postman-stalking threadā¦
Awesome job, CADREAMIN and WWWard!!! Good luck to all applicants, congratulations to those who get good news, and - most of all - sympathies to those who will find they are following a different path than they hoped. Your futures are bright and it will be okay - REALLY!
alamemom
Peeking allowed and frankly, a must for parent nerves! Totally get that! Then you just have to be cool the rest of the day, but that is easy once you have an answer!