I think you captured what a lot of students are thinking, @WWWard - speaking as an incoming USC freshman. I chose USC because it took seriously the need for great student life, while offering a rigorous academic program. As several people mention, UCLA has better-ranked graduate programs in many fields. As an undergrad, my top consideration is certainly not grad school bragging-rights. Simply put, the overall undergraduate experience probably matters to the majority of undergraduates most. The private education, school spirit, and downtown-proximity are examples of that offering at USC.
Thanks, @koletang Well you certainly seem to mirror the thinking of my own kids and their friends.
Good luck there at USC. Make the very most of all that it may offer for you…
As @stardustmom suggests above, USC is truly excellent these days at all of the things that matter most to both students and their parents. My younger daughter just turned down Princeton, Emory, Rice and others to attend USC. To her, it was clearly #1. And that is what it is all about… each applicant’s individual decision. And at no point in her decision-making process did she consider any of the factors that may later appear in her freshman class survey. I doubt that there are very many freshmen arriving next week who chose USC because of the average test scores of their peers or any other nonsensical qualifiers. These are personal decisions about wants, needs and fit.
The only kind of rankings that likely impacted most of the final decisions to attend USC instead centered on factors detailed within the Niche rankings where USC was #1 out of over 1300 colleges in the following factors: College with the best student life in America & Best big college in America. It was top 10 in seven categories and top 20 in nineteen categories. Being considered the best overall college in terms of the quality of student life is not a fluke. And things like that are far more important to the average 17-18 year old versus being able to brag about their collective SAT scores as a freshman class. There are frankly other colleges for that. I know… I unfortunately chose poorly in my day and attended one.
@WWWard Every school in the top 50 or even top 100 claims its admission is holistic. How do you know others are less holistic? Let’s look at the difference in scores for applicants and admits at USC vs UCLA (the larger the difference, the more important test scores are):
At the 25th percentile:
USC 300
UCLA 270
UCLA (OOS) 250
At the 75th percentile
USC 130
UCLA 170
UCLA (OOS) 120
USC doesn’t seem to be any more holistic than UCLA for admission; they look pretty similar to me even though UCLA is presumably more focused on test scores as a public university and can’t practice affirmative action. Moreover, based on a quick scan of “decision threads” on CC, those other schools you mentioned (Duke, UChicago, Rice) seem to reject applicants with high test scores at a more frequent and random basis.
https://about.usc.edu/files/2016/10/Freshman-Profile-2016.pdf
http://www.admission.ucla.edu/Prospect/Adm_fr/Frosh_Prof16.htm
@IWannaHelp I simply made a statement in support of the manner in which USC handles their admission process. They could clearly only accept legacies if they chose to… as around 10K apply annually and only 9K are admitted. They could have also accepted the 3K they turned down who were in the 99th percentile with regard to standardized test scores as a means of boosting their freshman survey results. But they did not do so. I am thankful for their methodology. That is all that I said.
I did not comment on other colleges or question their admission methodologies. I did not try to compare holistic practices of admission.
You, like any poster, are of course welcome to share your thoughts, as you did above - comparing USC to UCLA, for example, but you do not need to do so as if you are replying to a point entered or made by me - when such is not the case. You even quoted me, which shows that I did not address what you then chose to argue against or comment about.
That CC practice of quoting others and then trying to make your own counterpoint is one of the worst traits of the CC community in my opinion. I have noticed over the years that a # of CC members consistently do so… often even arguing against points never even made by others.
I instead try to use CC as a tool to encourage and empower future applicants primarily. I also try to provide info to those seeking it, especially about the topics where I may have some personal experience - like involving USC. You are all free to make what you will of CC & to engage others as you choose to, but I have grown weary of the argumentative tone that too often gets interjected when more than one college is being discussed. I will thus no longer comment on such threads - including this one.
For the record, I have no idea how UCLA handles admissions. It is a public university that neither of my kids ever even considered applying to - so there has never been any reason to look into their practices or methods. Over the past few years, many posters have jumped on to various USC threads to make “yeah, but UCLA” statements or to draw comparisons between USC and UCLA. I certainly hope that the opposite is not true. Hopefully there are not USC supporters posting on UCLA threads. And I get it. As I stated above, it is apparently an L.A. or California thing that most of the nation does not get or really care about. In my circles, UCLA does not come up much and is not considered in the same manner that USC is. I am sure that UCLA supporters find that hard to understand, but that has been my experience.
Anyhow, this will conclude my involvement on this particular thread. I have already said all that I intend to above & will not comment here further, regardless of any new comment/posting.
Good luck to this year’s entering freshman class at USC - which includes my daughter. And for future USC applicants, I suggest reading through the following very helpful insider’s guide to USC admissions…
https://tfm.usc.edu/a-guide-to-uscs-college-admissions-process/
Best wishes… and Fight On!
Interesting, UCLA, Stanford and Berkeley are considered the pinnacle schools for most California residents.
3 out 4 in our house go or went to UCLA, Berkeley and Pomona College. Stanford being considered for grad school. Not one even thought of or considered applying to USC. Never crossed our mind to add it to our list of elite colleges which included the likes of Harvard and Yale.
Agree with @preppedparent . To add another data point, my Pacific Northwest family (admittedly not the most informed about colleges until the last few years) always viewed Stanford, Berkeley, and UCLA as the best schools in California, and thought of USC as fitting in with schools like Pepperdine and Santa Clara U.
You continue to make generalizations about CA and the nation, but around my circle, USC isn’t discussed in the same breath as UCLA. For the high stat kids around my little section of Silicon Valley, USC is thought of as almost a “safety school.” Even though, I surely know it’s not. I’d be very happy, if D18 went to either school, but as I mentioned earlier, UCLA would be the choice in our house, if she had a choice.
For the record, I didn’t attend either institution, but I do have a relative and a friend’s daughter attending USC. I’m giving my perspective as a long time CA resident who’s going through the college process with D18.
FWIW, Naviance’s scattergrams for the Class of 2017 at my D18’s large public high school shows that USC (18%) has a slightly higher admit rate than UCLA (16%). And UCLA gets 2x as many applications as USC, from her large public school. But I’m sure some/alot of that is to be expected since UCLA is a public school and is cheaper for “full pays.”
In regard to UCLA being a public university, so somehow it equates to inferior to any private school. It just is not the case. UCLA and Berkeley are commonly cited as world class research universities, frequently rated in the top 10 and top 20 in both US and World rankings including, USNWR, Forbes and others.
This discussion always goes round and round. Frankly, and in general, since I moved to CA, the UCLA people I encounter are very defensive when speaking about the school, maybe it’s an insecurity about going to a public school versus being able to go to a private school, whether it’s getting in or not being able to afford it. (There seems to be great status with private schools from grade school on in certain areas of the country, where public schools are for those that can’t afford privates.) What I find odd, is while there is much touting of UCLA, there seems to be no support for each other out in the real world.Those who favor USC seem more secure, maybe cause they know they are already successful. idk. Their alum are a tight group, there is something they do well to continue that tradition there.
I personally know a lot of people that would never consider UCLA because of the impersonal overcrowded underbudget UC system, and people that don’t consider USC because of the area it is in or they can’t afford it. Who cares, every school has positives and negatives, both are great schools that are a match for someone.
This is one of the funniest threads I’ve seen here in a while.
Why does all of this matter? Next week/month/year, the ranking will change.
Students are going to go where they get in and where they want to go and will hopefully get a job.
I live in VA and my daughter will be attending USC in Fall 2017. Threads like this one sure seem to confirm the whole USC/UCLA rivalry.
My daughter chose USC for several reasons. First and foremost, UCLA likely wouldn’t have given her financial incentive as an OOS student. USC did offer her a good financial package.
USC also appears to be using the money they have raised for not only infrastructure and faculty but to improve financial support across the board. They are one of the big Pell Grant schools so it’s filtering down to low-income students as well. I understand USC has a rich kid reputation but that doesn’t appear to be the case anymore. Believe me, UVA is much worse with the snobbery. You wouldn’t think so, especially comparing the high net worth individuals in CA who I’m sure have students at USC. Out here in VA, some people get a little money and become insufferable. When my daughter was in middle school, one of her friends had a party and the parents actually had bouncers at their front door and the invitations said something like “popular students only”; in MIDDLE SCHOOL?!?! Daughter wasn’t friends with her not too long after that display. Besides, it will cost less for her to attend USC than if she went to UVA (UVA notoriously cheap with in state students).
She wants to major in Neuroscience. Both USC and UCLA have highly rated neuroscience programs. At USC, the Dornsife family seems to be very interested in this based on what’s being built with their donations and USC is really focusing on their infrastructure to support this major. Not to mention their recruitment of Dr Toga and Dr Thompson from UCLA (not trying to ruffle any UCLA feathers here) and Dr Aisen from UCSD.
As far as location, I understand that UCLA is in a better area. That’s why we visited. I lived in San Diego for a few years and have worked in LA over my career but haven’t been there recently. I needed to get a look at the area. Frankly, being raised in Detroit, I didn’t anticipate any problems, but still wanted to get a look around the area because I’m not attending, she is, and she needed to see it as well.
When we visited, she loved the campus, everyone was very friendly, and she’s excited about all that LA has to offer.
Honestly, if we were CA residents, maybe she would have chosen UCLA. Being in state would qualify her for in state tuition and that would have been hard for USC to match. The differences between the schools seem minor overall and both are great schools.
USC - smaller classes, graduation in four years, great timing with opening of USC Village, higher ranked undergraduate school, money for infrastructure, aid and faculty, proximity to LA, Trojan network
UCLA - better area, still close to LA, higher ranked graduate schools, lower tuition (if in state)
Who knows, maybe she’ll undergrad at USC and go to UCLA for graduate school. She’s smart enough to always evaluate every opportunity.
Also, thought worth mentioning. There are a number of great schools in CA. CA residents should feel great about all the options; Stanford, CalTech, USC, UCLA, Harvey Mudd, Pomona, UC Berkeley, UCSD, UC Davis, etc.
I don’t think anyone truly knows what the admissions rates are at some of these schools. USC and UCLA both were around 16% this year. Both accept transfer students, mainly CA residents. I believe it’s around 1500 for USC and 3500 for UCLA.
Bruins, Trojans & Loyalists on both sides: celebrate Los Angeles’s good fortune in being home to both UCLA and USC. It’s time to stop slamming each other – the fact is, depending on the specific field, both universities can claim top shelf reputations and credentials. And yet, snobs in other cities/regions laugh at this discussion because they regard both universities as upstarts less worthy those in their own backyards. Rivalry can be a good thing – driving each university to excel – but it’s time to acknowledge that both UCLA and USC are competing on a larger stage.
It’s interesting to get an east coast POV from @WWWard about the whole UCLA/USC perception and I agree with her post #24.
I have to say USC alumni is something else. You really can’t compare that to Berkeley, UCLA or Stanford IMO (and I’m a Cal alum). Even the SC branding is in a class of its own. I can’t tell you how many people I know who are die hard Trojan fans and they have no connection to the school! Growing up, SC was considered for the wealthy and thus earned the nickname University of Spoiled Children. I think that has changed a lot with USC really making an effort to diversify and make it financially accessible to deserving kids from lower SES
While this is a USC-UCLA thread, I live in proximity to Stanford (and not all that far from Cal either), and I can tell you, in my little “hamlet,” you cannot cough and not get a Stanford-educated venture capitalist/startup founder sick around here. =))
I’ve got two Stanford alums in my office that won’t stop bending my ear about how great Stanford is/was. A very strong alumni presence locally.
Fear The Tree. ~X(
One of my favorite professors at USC is a UCLA alumna, so I have no problems with UCLA 
In fact, when I was younger, it was even my dream school. I had a terrible orientation experience at UCLA where I felt like just a “number” and relatively felt ignored most of the day. My orientation advisor was basically telling me what classes I was allowed to take and that I shouldn’t even bother trying for classes with a waitlist because “nobody ever gets into those”. I withdrew from the school a few days later and decided to attend USC for the spring. Compared to the orientation I experienced at UCLA, the one at USC was in a different league. Everything just felt more personal and I was free to register for any classes that I wanted - even those that weren’t part of my major. I had no issues with any of the classes being full and was basically able to create the perfect schedule. The whole private vs. public experience is what ultimately sold me. However, I definitely wouldn’t mind going to UCLA for my graduate degree someday as their program for my major is ranked quite high. I was technically “Bruintized” during the UCLA orientation, so I guess I’m a part-Bruin anyway despite having graduated from USC 
It was also fun seeing how UCLA and USC trash talked each other. I remember UCLA saying things like they’re a far superior school because they have their own police department and frequently referring to USC as “ketchup and mustard”.
wait why did someone choose ucla over usc? maybe didn’t hear about sc before applying? i’m scratching my head :-?
@WWWard I was replying to a point made by you. You were clearly responding to my observation that USC’s scores are not on par with Duke/UChicago. Maybe you didn’t intend to imply other schools are less holistic but your message was interpreted as such under the context. I have no dog in this fight and I have no affiliation with UCLA.