Hello everyone,
My daughter has been doing theatre for 11 years.
She would love to attend USC but she is disappointed at her SATs - we don’t know how important the SATs are in order to get to the Drama and Performing arts programs.
Her GPA is 4.4
Her current SAT is 1350
She has at least 15-20 hours of volunteering each year
and a long list of EC activities.
Should she still try and apply for EA or should she just apply RD only if she gets a better SAT later on?
Please help!
Well… first of all, USC has no EA or ED offering. You can only apply RD. To apply for and be considered for merit scholarships, the deadline is 12/1… and those lucky few granted scholarships do receive notice earlier than the vast majority who hear in late March. But they do have very high grades and test scores. As for grades/stats generally, there is clearly greater flexibility for BFA acting applicants who are required to audition… if the results of such and their overall experience in theatre/acting warrant favorable consideration by SDA (School of Dramatic Arts). Those applying only for the BA program in acting are not really afforded any extra leeway though in terms of grades, stats, ECs, essays, etc. USC admissions is holistic and thus considers far more than just grades/stats, but if you are looking for that extra advantage… I recommend applying for the BFA program and doing so before 12/1.
Good Luck…
@WWWard Thanks for your helpful information. I was looking for the same information but from a different perspective. My daughter strongly prefers the BFA to the BA, but will apply for both. I think her academics are right on the cusp. 4.03 Weighted GPA from a good high school (top 10%), 29 on ACT. Just got new scores. 29 again, was hoping for the 30, oh well. My take is that IF they want her for BFA, based upon audition, that should be high enough to get by admissions. If you disagree, and you think she needs the 30, please feel free to say so! We are leaning toward NO MORE TESTING, but if it seems important, we will consider.
You’re welcome. Well… you can never really tell what will or will not suffice in terms of grades/stats. USC is now an university with over 55K applications per year. And USC is likely only going to accept 8750-9000 of those, given current yield trends and their goal of netting 3K freshman commitments. During that process, they have recently denied 9K out of 10K or 90% of all legacy applicants and have also denied over 3K applicants with test scores in the 99th percentile. USC thus admits many applicants with lesser stats, favoring instead those who sparkle or shine somehow in other ways… ECs, leadership, auditions, creative portfolios, writing samples, artwork, etc. Those applying to the creative schools… SDA, SCA, etc… have a certain amount of potential leeway if the applicant demonstrates the creativity or performance skills that sway the admissions staff and faculty reviewing such within each individual program. But keep in mind that unless you are admitted Undeclared (no assigned major), you are basically being evaluated and granted admission twice… once by USC generally and once again by the individual school that houses the major being sought. If only the university overall admits you, you can be admitted Undeclared. But - if the university overall is not likely to admit you (and they do consider everything - grades/stats, ECs, writing), the individual school may choose to fight for you to be admitted as an exception. But… those fights are likely limited in both scope and number. I suspect that they reserve those fights for the BFA candidates. I do not see SDA fighting to admit a BA applicant if the university’s overall admission office passes.
From my experience, the range where applicants are deemed acceptable… or the safe minimal level (other than those really being sought after - like recruited athletes, etc.) is with an unweighted GPA of 3.7 or higher, being ranked in the top 10%, having an ACT score of 30 or higher and/or an SAT score of 1370 or higher. Obviously… there are exceptions to every rule (like being the son or daughter of someone super famous, etc), but doing that well or better… plus having strong ECs, good writing samples, showing and demonstrating a true passion and making it clear both why USC is a good fit for you and vice versa seems to be the safest approach. I am sure they admit some with lesser grades/stats, but there would most likely need to be some justification… URM, First Gen, QuestBridge, etc. With 84% or so of all applicants getting denied these days, you need to find a way (or more than one way) to convince USC that you belong in that 16% or so category.
Clearly the BFA acting audition is one excellent method for such.
Best Wishes and Good Luck with that process for your daughter…
Thank you so much! This has been extremely helpful
you’re welcome