How hard is it to get a full ride to U of Southern Cal for undergrad physics major?
USC has a limited number of full tuition scholarships. Full tuition is not the same as full ride though. https://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/docs/uscScholarships1516.pdf Go to the USC forum. Lots of good info there especially Madbean’s threads. Look at some of the results threads from students invited to interview for the full tuition scholarships. They are very competitive. USC uses those top merit awards to lure students who would otherwise go to HYPSM level schools.
Full Ride is extremely difficult to get. Like the above poster said, they basically give it to people of HYPSM caliber.
I had a friend who got it and was accepted to Princeton and another who got it and was accepted to MIT, so you can kind of see the where the bar is for getting full ride at USC.
Edit: Actually, I don’t know if they got full ride or full tuition, it seems like they got full ride.
OP, according to your posting history you have no EC’s and you state that you current teachers “have nothing positive to say about you” for a letter of rec. Your chances of getting a full tuition scholarship at USC are zero.
Well, I do have a super scored act of 33, a highest composite of 30. I took the act plus writing and got english/writing subscore of 30. I’ve also taken the act. I’ve also gotten a 200 on the PSAT. I’m taking calc BC, ap physics c mechanics/e and m, and ap psych and plan to take ap tests for all of those classes… I’m also also academically gifted. And I’ve found some teachers that will write me reqletters.
Top schools, especially for full tuition scholarships, are looking for well rounded students who will contribute to campus life, not just to campus test stats.
30 ACT is barely even the bottom quartile for USC. Sorry, I don’t think you’ll even be admitted, much less be expecting a scholarship.
I never asked what my chances were, I asked how hard it is for someone to get a full ride…
Okay, you will not get a full ride and you likely will not be admitted.
Enough to get into USC and not attempt to start fights on the internet, which no-one would be able to say for you… I think you need to be a bit more realistic - I’m not sure what defines you as being academically gifted, as neither will admissions if your standardized scores, quite frankly, aren’t all that impressive. You lack ECs to balance that out - maybe if you won some national academic competitions? I think you should be looking in the range of UCSB/UCI. You might also get Regents Scholarship at Riverside if you’re lucky - there’s your full ride.
You are saying a 30 is not impressive? A 30 is much higher than the national average and is in the bracket for many good schools such as UIUC and UC Berkeley for the freshman profile.
" I think you should be looking in the range of UCSB/UCI" Once again, the point of the thread was to ask, in general, how hard is it for someone to get a full ride to USC.
Academically gifted means I have an IQ of above 135 and can get into MENSA
A 30 is not at all impressive foe top schools and a “gifted” person should score much higher.
At this point IQ score is irrelevant since it should have translated into some achievements. That is why colleges do not have question about IQ on application.
You have very nice ACT score, but to get a free tuition at USC students need to be Ivy caliber. Not all ACT 36 kids will make a cut.
@mansoor757 now that this thread has been moved to the USC forum, read through the thread that’s pinned at the top about Tips, Insights, Observations and Scoop re Merit Scholarships: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/1597366-tips-insights-observations-and-scoop-on-uscs-top-merit-scholarships-p1.html
Also go look at the results/stats thread from the Class of 2019 and look at the stats of those invited to interview for the top scholarships (full tuition is Trustee, Mork or Stamps): http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/1732517-fall-2015-class-of-2019-usc-decisions-stats-only-thread-p1.html.
I agree with the comment of @ballerina16.
Even students with 35 ACT was not admitted let alone full ride.
Thank you for your input. If not full ride, how much would it cost me in tuition per year if I did hypothetically get in? Physics major and Im asian from a well-off family.
Also, high iq doesnt correlate to academic/life achievements at all…
Must be between $60k and up for full sticker price but check USC’s website.
Really OP you should be able to figure this part out yourself. The USC website says current annual undergraduate cost of attendance is $67,212. http://www.usc.edu/admission/fa/undergraduates/admitted/how-much-will-my-education-cost.html IF you were lucky enough to get a full tuition scholarship, your COA would be $67,212 minus $49,464 which would be $17,748. Truthfully, though, you should plan on paying $67K.
I predict this student will be paying full fare, assuming admission occurs.