The FB group that is linked to on the portal is called, “USC Fall 2020 First-Year Admits”
Do not join the Facebook group called “USC Class of 2024” as it is run by a third party that is not affiliated with USC.
Thank you so much!! 
@ratonthesubway
@CADREAMIN Thank you so much! Your posts were incredibly helpful to me throughout this process. I am hoping I will be able to call myself a Trojan in a few months!! I have no idea what to expect for the interview, but I just signed up for ExploreUSC and I’m stoked! Any insight/advice you might have for the interview would be fantastic.
Does USC accept anybody during this January round without scholarships? We have not received any with high stats in their top % ranges for both GPA and SAT, nmsf etc. Does it mean they are not interested in the applicant and it is better to move on and the chance of acceptance is very low.
OOS applicant…No scholarship…received email a few hours ago & there is no update to the portal. We are still hoping for March acceptance & possibly Dean’s or other scholarship. For future reference, the body of the email from USC is below as follows:
Dear XYZ,
I am sending this update to first-year candidates who submitted applications by December 1, the deadline for USC Merit Scholarship consideration.
Scholarship Selection
Over 37,000 students applied in time to be considered for USC Merit Scholarships. We recently offered admission to approximately 1,000 students who will proceed to the next phase of consideration for our top awards: the Mork Family, Trustee, and Presidential scholarships. XYZ, I am sorry to say you were not selected for further consideration for these awards.
This notification applies only to the awards I mentioned. You will still be considered for other scholarships listed on our Scholarships page. Also, if you are named a National Merit Finalist, offered admission and select USC as your first-choice institution, you will receive a USC Presidential Scholarship worth one-half tuition.
Financial Aid
I encourage you to apply for financial aid if you have not already done so. Visit the Financial Aid website for application instructions, or to calculate an estimate of aid you might receive.
Admission Selection and Notification
Your application is still being considered for approximately 6,500 additional first-year offers of admission. We mail notifications in late March so you will receive it by April 1. I am grateful for your patience as you wait for us to finish this difficult work. If you are no longer interested in pursuing admission to USC, you can withdraw your application at the USC applicant portal.
Mid-Year Reports
If you or your school counselor has not already done so, please submit your mid-year report (your final grades from the first term of your senior year). You can upload a copy of your grades online at admission.usc.edu/status, or your school can send them to us.
@nerdyaf09 my daughter’s interview was pretty laidback. She wore dress pants, a blouse and blazer. She met with a professor and a student or maybe two. Professor was not from her major. They asked her questions about her activities. She was heading to a national competition for an activity a few weeks later and they talked a lot about that. She said that other interviews were more formal but hers was more conversational.
Hey everyone, just got the acceptance and notification that I need to interview for the scholarship. Can anyone provide more details on that interview?
D received her package today! I’m going to tell her to sign up for CC so she can participate on these threads now. ? best of luck to everyone.
Got the acceptance! I’m NMSF, so I’m pretty much guaranteed half tuition, does anyone know the chances of me getting a full scholarship?
I’m in NorCal, haven’t gotten an email or package but definitely applied before december 1st. Should I email USC or wait longer?
Whoever received full/ half tuition as merit scholarships, could you post your stats/achievements/ ECs?
Thanks
Check all of your emails and spam and your application portal. If your portal hasn’t changed or you don’t have a congratulations email then sadly you have to wait till March. Everyone should have gotten the email. Otherwise wait till tomorrow since that was when it was suppose to be let out anyways. @needinfo
Any idea how long it usually takes the box to make it all the way to India?
I still have forms with my affirmation checked.
Got a letter in the mail today! Eligible for the half/full tuition scholarships. Honestly I wasn’t expecting to even get in at all so this was a complete shock.
For what major?
Hey everyone! I was accepted as a finalist for the full and half scholarships but didn’t receive an email. Instead, it was indicated in my portal that I’m a finalist and I received a box saying so as well. Best bet would be to check the portal since all portals should be updated. As mentioned above, if the portal doesn’t seem to have changed, perhaps you have to wait until march.
Hope this helps!
I wonder if people who didn’t get in during this round get anything in the snail mail. I know there is a mail for my kid at home, from Office of Admissions at USC, and from the picture sent to me form home, it is a white letter, not a “white box”…
Congratulations! This is great news and WBB is an amazing program. You are going to have a great ride with this international program. If you are a national merit finalist and if you mention USC as the college choice by May, you will be a Presidential Scholar with half tuition. If you are not a national merit winner and if you are invited for the scholarship, you will have to do well in the interview to win a scholarship. You are not guaranteed anything until the results come out. I would suggest that you prepare well and be ready to impress them in the interview. The fact that you were admitted into the WBB program and invited for the scholarship interview says a lot about your accomplishments. I am sure you will be successful in securing a scholarship as well. As for being considered for anything more than a Trustee scholar, I am not sure. As for financial aid, I think it is independent of the scholarship. But cannot exceed the actual COA. You may want to check with the financial aid office when you are there for the interview. You can ask them all and any kind of question and they will take the time to answer you. We had many questions and everyone took the time to address our concerns and doubts and we came out feeling very convinced. All the best.