<p>My d cannot decide whether to go to USC - with a scholarship - concerned about the types of people there (shallow artificial?), the intellectual reputation of USC out east - even though she would be going to the CNTV school (which she knows is fabulous). Is there intellectual life out there? I insist there is but I am the mom so my opinion does not bear as much weight! Comments?</p>
<p>Much2much - I think if you look at some of the following, you will conclude that it is not a light-weight school. Also, if you read through the threads, on different topics, you will find articulate, intelligent, considerate people.</p>
<p>USNEWS 2007 Engineernig Schools.
1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2. Stanford University (CA)
3. University of CaliforniaBerkeley
4. Georgia Institute of Technology
5. University of IllinoisUrbana-Champaign
6. Purdue UniversityWest Lafayette (IN)
6. University of MichiganAnn Arbor
8. Carnegie Mellon University (PA)
9. University of Southern California (Viterbi)
10. California Institute of Technology
11. Cornell University (NY)
11. University of CaliforniaSan Diego (Jacobs)
13. University of TexasAustin
14. Texas A&M UniversityCollege Station (Look)
15. University of CaliforniaLos Angeles (Samueli)
15. University of MarylandCollege Park (Clark)
15. University of WisconsinMadison
18. Princeton University (NJ)
19. Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity Park
20. Columbia University (Fu Foundation) (NY)</p>
<p>USNEWS: 2006: Best Undergraduate Business Rankings:
1 University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
2 Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (Sloan)
3 University of CaliforniaBerkeley (Haas)
** University of MichiganAnn Arbor
5 Carnegie Mellon University (PA)
** New York University (Stern)
** U. of North CarolinaChapel Hill (Kenan-Flagler)
** University of TexasAustin (McCombs)
9 Univ. of Southern California (Marshall)
** University of Virginia (McIntire)
11 Indiana UniversityBloomington (Kelley)
12 Cornell University (NY)
** Purdue Univ.West Lafayette (Krannert) (IN)
** U. of IllinoisUrbana-Champaign
** Univ. of MinnesotaTwin Cities (Carlson)
** Univ. of WisconsinMadison
** Washington University in St. Louis (Olin)
18 Emory University (Goizueta) (GA)
** Ohio State UniversityColumbus (Fisher)
** Pennsylvania State U.University Park (Smeal)
** University of Arizona (Eller) </p>
<p>About the USC School of Cinema-Television</p>
<p>In 2004, the USC School of Cinema-Television celebrates 75 years of training the next generation of creative talent and scholars in film, television, and new media. Co-founded by the University of Southern California and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1929, the School offered the first bachelors degree in film in the country and today is consistently ranked as the top program of its kind. Its more than 8,000 graduates the ranks of which include such stellar figures as Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, Ron Howard, James Ivory, Randal Kleiser, George Lucas, Michelle Manning, Bill Mechanic, Neal Moritz, Walter Murch, Jay Roach, Gary Rydstrom, Edward Saxon, Stacey Sher, Bryan Singer, John Singleton, Robert Zemeckis, and Laura Ziskin are among the entertainment industrys most distinguished animators, scholars, teachers, writers, directors, producers, cinematographers, editors, sound experts and industry executives</p>
<p>^ I think she's more concerned about the overall atmosphere on campus and how the people here are, not rankings. In that regards, the "stereotype" does not hold true at all. There are some rich, spoiled kids here. But they are a very small minority. There are people here from almost every different background and income level possible. As for intelligence, people here definitely are intelligent and very competitive. They may not seem like that on Friday nights, when most people are partying. But in class, there's definitely fierce competitiveness and if you slack off, don't expect the grading curve to be nice to you. I'm sure your d will get along well with people here.</p>
<p>Exploring the Myth of Privelege</p>
<p>There's definitely intellectual life here. There may be some shallow people here, but you'll meet them everywhere, at least that's what I believe, there were certainly shallow people in high school. A lot of students are involved in bettering the community around them. I've formed some great friendships with people here. Your daughter should get along fine here.</p>
<p>Every year, MANY of the brightest kids from our state of HI apply & matriculate at USoCal. This year is no exception. I have had many friends kids attend/graduate from USC. They are all very bright & caring kids & like or LOVE USC. The engineering school is very competitive, with LOTS of international students. Since my kids' HS is ubercompetitive, many of the kids who study other fields have a lot more free time than they did in HS but still find many activities to keep busy with. Some choose to join honors programs or societies at the university and/or choose double-majors or minors. There are MANY options & you can find lots of different niches at USC, from all I've heard.</p>
<p>Not to worry...my son chose USC after spending lots of time there (on campus, in classes, overnight in the dorms) and found it compelling intellectually. He's looking forward to a school where "everyone is so smart!"</p>
<p>Thanks for the great comments and fulsome responses. The article on "Exploring the Myth of Privilege" was particularly enlightening. I am sure that she will thrive at USC!</p>
<p>I got the impression that USC is really trying to turn its image around from being considered a party school known for its football into that of a serious academic research institution with well-rounded and successful students. And from all accounts USC really seems to be on the rise. Their merit scholarship program is helping to pull in more talent, certainly, and it helps that USC has some great honors programs. Their press release for the creation of the College Honors Society states that the society was founded to attract even more top quality students.</p>
<p>Retroactivity - can you tell me where I would find the press release about the College Honours Society?
I thought she had decided to go to USC (School of Cinema & Television) but Wesleyan (Connecticut) is still in the running! Two very different choices. I am glad there is a deadline otherwise this agony would continue to be dragged out!</p>
<p>Go to USC.edu and search with the browser there. You should be able to get the information there. Good luck to your D--sounds like she has some great choices to choose among & is lucky you're supporting her with either choice. Is the $$$ the same at both schools? That's something else to consider.</p>
<p>I did check the browser on the USC website and couldn't find the article. The $$$ are not the same - she is an international student and isn't eligible for aid at Wesleyan - not one penny. But USC is trying to entice her with a Presidential Scholarship. International students cannot receive merit based scholarships at most US universities - only need based. I think she should just go to USC - a great school, wonderful program, weather and financial support1</p>
<p>Here are two sites about two national honor societies at USoCal. In the 70s, I was inducted into Alpha Lambda Delta & Phi Eta Sigma as a freshman at the U of HI. It was a very nice group of folks & helped me get a nice group of "peers." There are LOTS of international students at USoCal (I believe they say more than any other US school). The engineering department has many of them.
The Presidential Scholarship is very generous, providing 1/2 tuition for 4 years, increasing with increased tuition.
(If the links don't work, search using google.com or similar engine with words university southern california honor society and you will get results.)
Alpha Lambda Delta - The University of Southern CaliforniaWelcome to Alpha Lambda Delta at the University of Southern California. ... Alpha Lambda Delta is a national society that honors academic excellence during ...
www-scf.usc.edu/~ald/</p>
<p>Phi Kappa Phi, University of Southern California: About Phi Kappa PhiAll-University Honor Society Phi Kappa Phi, University of Southern California ... honor society and is a charter member of the Association of College Honor ...
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/org/pkp/about/history.html%5B/url%5D">www.usc.edu/org/pkp/about/history.html</a></p>
<p>Here's the official press release on the College Honors Society, much2much:</p>
<p>At a launch party held Oct. 27, USC College leaders announced the establishment of the College Honors Society, a comprehensive, 4-year honors and enrichment program.</p>
<p>Created in discussion with undergraduates, the program redoubles College efforts to support students in pursuit of academic excellence, said College Dean Joseph Aoun. He reminded attendees, including a number of current honors students, that undergraduate education remains the Colleges primary mission.</p>
<p>The purpose of a research university is to transmit and create knowledge, he said. But here the creation of knowledge does not happen at the faculty level only. Many of you are doing original research. Our job is to help you learn how to learn.</p>
<p>More and more were prevailing in the competition to attract the nations top students, Aoun said. I think our students are really of the go-getter mentality, the entrepreneurial mentality, the take-charge mentality. Their expectations of college, of faculty and of themselves are high. Weve envisioned a number of new programs to meet these demands. Im really excited about the launch of the College Honors Society.</p>
<p>Peter Starr, dean of undergraduate programs and a professor of French and comparative literature, said the presence of a Honors Society will help the College vie for students who have their choice of prestigious universities.</p>
<p>Starr will oversee the new program, which will expand upon and coordinate the existing menu of honors programs. None of these, including the popular Thematic Option, Freshman Science Honors and Resident Honors currently coordinated by Starrs staff, were designed to provide an honors experience that would last over a students entire college career.</p>
<p>While many departments, Starr said, offer well organized honors tracks, others are still in the process of setting them up.</p>
<p>Robin Romans, assistant dean of admission and honors programs in the College, will direct the new program, which will be rolled out over the next few months. Judy Haw, director of supplemental instruction in the College, will serve as the Honors Societys associate director.</p>
<p>One well-articulated goal of the new Honors Society is to further boost original scholarship and research by College undergraduates, which has been on the rise for a number of years. Current departmental honors programs typically require students to complete a senior thesis or independent project. Starr views that requirement as one of the programs most successful aspects.</p>
<p>These provide a capstone experience, which brings together all of the skills a student has mastered during their years here at USC College, he said. It can also prove quite difficult, and one of the first tasks of the Honors Society will be to set up seminars on how to conceive of and complete a successful honors project.</p>
<p>Were going to give you the tools, and give you access to other students who have gone through the process, so that you can take advantage of this capstone experience, he said.</p>
<p>A number of details about the Honors Society and its programs will be worked out in the coming months. Romans and his staff have planned a series of student focus groups to identify specific needs.</p>
<p>The College will offer membership to the Honors Society to incoming freshmen with a stellar record of academic achievement upon admission to the College. In addition, at the close of each academic year, the College plans to send out invitations to join the Society to students who earn a GPA of 3.7 or higher.</p>
<p>Departmental honors students will automatically become members of the Honors Society. Faculty also may nominate outstanding students for inclusion, even if they have a GPA lower than the 3.7 mark. Graduated members will be named Fellows of the Society. </p>
<p>The original link is found here: <a href="http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/news/november_2005/honors_society.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/news/november_2005/honors_society.html</a></p>
<p>Woops wrong thread </p>
<p>Sorry!!!</p>
<p>As with any school where the tuition/boarding/etc is over $50,000, you’re going to find your fair share of shallow people. Especially in the Greek system. But there is definitely lots of “intellectual life” here, and your daughter shouldn’t be worried at all. I think there’s a certain shallowness to the student body that derives from our close proximity to Hollywood, but people are concerned with their looks in a good way - everyone is always working out and staying fit, which I personally think is a great thing.</p>
<p>No, there is no cultural life here. This is a cow town surrounded by bean fields. These were the words that my mother uttered when we were forced to move to Los Angeles from New York…in 1957. Kids who go to USC are blond vapid creatures who surf (ride them wild waves on Hoover!!!), and go clubbing with whoever every night. </p>
<p>With all due respect to the OP and her daughter any university that attracts people from all over the United States and the world (new admittee and his twin Malik from the Sudan is just an example), with gpas, test scores, ecs that are stellar, life experiences that are as diverse as the globe…I’m sorry. My first reaction is that the OP is a ■■■■■. Or else incredibly insulated from newspapers and/or the media. How do you let or encourage your child to apply to a school that you feel is beneath them intellectually, sketchy in terms of environment and perceived shallow student body, in a city that has no culture save for watching cows chew their cud and perhaps not a fit (save for the scholarship).</p>
<p>OHHHHH sorry! Must fly, have a mani/pedi with a parafin treatment in ten.</p>
<p>BTW Wanderlusting: Why do you equate the cost of a school, people’s ability to pay the tuition with being shallow? May I suggest that you have a little checkbook envy? It would seem to me that somewhere, someone had/has the smarts/initiative and economic saavy to amass the amount of money necessary to pay that tuition they might be driven to accomplish? And the children of privilege sometimes (not always certainly) are equally interested in success. And as a parent I think that it sometimes endemic of teenagers, regardless of income to be shallow, at least for awhile.</p>
<p>Bahaha, as someone not on scholarship or any financial aid, I assure you I am most certainly not “checkbook envy” at all. And I’m highly offended because that assertion is completely irrelevant in my opinion. I’m merely speaking from experience, as I’ve lived in a very affluent place my entire life and my peers - these “children of privilege” - most certainly took advantage of that fact and were in a word, “shallow”. Sure, there are kids who come from wealthy families who are humble and low key about it, but fact is, the bratty, selfish, materialistic rich kid stereotype does come from something real. It’s a little too idealistic to think that kids from wealthy families inherit the drive to accomplish something great. But I guess I’m just a pessimist and encountered too many spoiled kids in my life already. </p>
<p>I equated the cost of a school to being shallow because as much as we like to boast that USC has the biggest financial aid budget in the entire country and lots of awesome merit based scholarships, reality is, there are kids (i.e. parents) paying for the ENTIRE cost of USC. And let’s get real here, USC isn’t exactly the cheapest school around. There is a LOT of wealth here, I’m not going to drop names, but there is old money, new money, celebrities, sons/daughters of celebrities… And I’m not saying that these people are automatically shallow, my point is that kids who come from high income families have the tendency to be more shallow than kids of low income families, and you’re going to find these wealthy kids at an expensive private school, like USC. A public community college is bound to have a smaller percentage of shallow people, on the other hand. That was my point.</p>
<p>Just a comment: The average income of a family who’s child is attending UCLA is HIGHER than the average income of a family attending USC. Yes, there is wealth here…in Los Angeles. But generally, unless one is nouveau riche, one’s family money background doesn’t come up unless the actual cost of an evening out, car or fast trip to Cabo comes up. </p>
<p>And since we live in the same city, and possibly you attended school with one of my kids, I’m sorry that you took offense. But having (or not having) money doesn’t make you shallow. Attitude does.</p>