USC Trustee Scholarship Chances?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
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I’m a high school senior from Massachusetts and I’m wondering what my chances are for USC’s Trustee Scholarship. USC is my top choice but a full ride scholarship is the really only way I can attend (I don’t qualify for really any financial aid, but I don’t have much money to go to college, essentially). The website is unclear about how many awards are given or how hard it is to receive them, so I was wondering if anybody knew any more. What are my chances at getting in/getting the scholarship?
(I want to double-major in flute performance and biochemistry; I’ve already passed the pre-screening for the Thornton School of Music and been invited to audition).

Grades: Straight A’s (no A minuses)
one AP class freshman year (AP Human Geography)
one AP class sophomore year (AP European History)
4 AP classes junior year (AP Calculus BC, AP Microeconomics, AP Spanish Language, AP English Language)
4 AP classes senior year (AP Physics C, AP Music Theory, AP English Literature, AP Statistics)
Mostly all other honors classes
I’m a transfer student, moved from CO to MA before my junior year

Testing:
SAT: 2250 on first try, 2390 on second try, so that’s a 2400 super score (I think that’s all they see?)
800 on Math II subject test, 800 on Literature subject test, 700 on Spanish (w/o listening) subject test
I submitted my SATs to USC
I’ve always gotten 5’s on AP exams; I think they see this in the Common App

Extracurriculars and Contest Stuff:

Music
Finalist (top 8) in National Flute Association High School Soloist Competition (I think this is a pretty big deal in the flute/music world and helped me pass their pre-screening)
Member of New England Conservatory Preparatory School’s top youth orchestra for 2 years
Member of a similar-level orchestra in Colorado for 3 years (Denver Young Artists Orchestra)
Colorado All-State Orchestra sophomore year, MA All-State Band junior year
Principal flute in district orchestra sophomore and junior year
Part of two chamber groups at NEC Prep for 2 years, one is their top performing wind quintet
Received top scores possible at district festival type things past 2 years

Clubs and others:
Vice president of NHS
Co-founder and co-president of Spanish National Honor Society chapter at my school
President of my church youth group intermittently for past couple years
Member of Health Occupation Students of America, received 2nd place at states for my event
Member of DECA, received 3rd place at states and competitive honors at internationals in my event
Member of Best Buddies
Member of Tri-M (music honor society)
In CO I volunteered at a hospital for about a year right before I moved
Did a metabolomics research project at a lab this summer and I think I threw that on a resume they received.

Sports:
Unified Track (a joint team for typical students and students with special needs)

So this is pretty much it, I think I had pretty good essays and I applied in time for their scholarship deadline. I have an audition at Thornton School of Music this January and I’ve heard of music majors receiving the Trustee Scholarship before. Any thoughts on the odds of my receiving it? I’m also posting this under the financial aid & scholarships forum, btw. Thanks to everyone in advance.

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Oh and just to add some more info:
I’m white, female, and a dual-citizen of the US and Italy (I think they see that on Common App).

I was ranked #1 in my class (although I couldn’t receive an official rank because I’m a transfer student, my counselor called admissions at USC and explained to them why I was ranked #1 even though my transcript didn’t say so. She also dropped some hints about USC being my top choice and whatnot. Idk if that will help).

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1/2 tuition is far more likely

How many undergraduate flute spots are open?

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ClarinetDad16, thanks for your comment. I’m not sure, but I would estimate the flute studio has about 15-20 students? I can’t find anywhere how many flute spots are open.

Why do you say 1/2 tuition is more likely?

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You sound like a strong candidate, but there are (alas) more applicants with those same sort of stats and talents than there are trustee scholarships. They are awarded by School (in other words, Thornton has the say on who their finalists will be), so you’re essentially competing against other Thornton top candidates. The surest merit $$ from USC is for NMFs, so if you may already have a guaranteed 1/2 tuition scholarship (if you qualified). Best of luck.

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Thanks @madbean for your reply! I didn’t qualify as a NMF though. Hopefully it still works out (fingers crossed).

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The website actually does say approximately how many awards are given out.
https://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/docs/Scholarships.pdf

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Honestly, you really don’t have a chance at getting into TSM and DEFINITELY not the Trustee Scholarship. My best friend got the scholarship to USC a couple of years ago, and compared to him, you are HIGHLY under-qualified. The Trustee Scholarship is for the perfect student, who is also well rounded. Even though you may think that you have the qualifications to receive one, you have to do a lot more than that. The professor there is a very picky man and because he taught me for more than 3 years now, I can tell you that he will not want to pick a flautist like you. He will also see that you are applying for a double major, which slims down your chances of getting into the school VERY DRASTICALLY. I’ve read your flute accomplishments, and they are the factors that might help you influence the professor’s decision. However, given your lack of qualification and the fact that USC doesn’t give Thornton a lot of scholarships, I’d say no; you will most likely not be given a scholarship to enter USC. The other students that you will be auditioning among are very talented flautists, who, in my opinion, are going to get the position. The students that I study currently with and I are some of the best in the country. I’m sorry to say that your audition in January will most likely be a disappointment. Good luck.

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The competition is very tough but you also have an excellent record. Be proud of your accomplishments. I know of three students who have received the trustees scholarship. Each with strong academic records, and the all had a quirk. One, female, was biomedical engineering, being female gave her an edge. The two young men were really unusual EC’s.

You certainly have a great future in front of you no matter where you land. Best wishes!

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Hun there’s honestly no way to tell, and relying on the opinions of random students and parents is just a bad idea. At the end of the day, no one can really know if you’ll get in or get a scholarship and the only thing you can do is wait and hope.

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Hello there,
I explicitly mentioned in my comment that I am a music student at USC. Twice.

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I don’t know why applying as a double major will restrict anyone’s chances. If it truly mattered, no-one would apply as a double major - they’d just add their second major on the first day of school.

The OP has good stats by any measure, and will likely get into USC even if not with a scholarship. Hopefully 1/2 tuition is a possibility so you can attend, otherwise it’d just be taking up someone else’s spot.

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@theforceawakens

Wow, just wow. What you lack in humility, you make up for in social ineptitude. I sincerely hope you are talented enough to make your future career without having to interface with human beings; in that arena, you are seriously disadvantaged.

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That is not representative of a typical USC Trojan, fyi.

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I’m not sure I’ve ever read anything quite as arrogant and rude as the above post. Sorry you had to deal with that.

Your accomplishments are incredible. No matter what happens, you clearly have a lot of talent and drive. I can’t really give you an estimated chance, but I can say that you’re ridiculously accomplished and clearly driven. My fingers are crossed for you to get the scholarship you need. Let us know what happens!

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Thanks! :smiley:

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Well I had my audition this past weekend and it went pretty well, by my standards. The other flutists auditioning were incredibly talented, and I know my chances are slim, but I’m still hoping. Thank you to everyone for your thoughtful replies and opinions. I will hear back soon hopefully!

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@physicstudent111 Best of luck to you!

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Ditto, best of luck, that positive attitude you have will take you far in life!

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Wow, @physicstudent111 – I thought my daughter might be an unusually strong Thornton candidate until I saw your stats! Your stats certainly don’t look like they’d hold you back in any way! My D is applying in a different program–probably much less competitive than flute. She had a good audition, and we are waiting… Did you get any indication when you might find out the decision? Just curious, because we didn’t get any info on that.