<p>Long time lurker here.</p>
<p>I was reading through the latest threads and one guy gave his opinions on what would make USC better. Everyone quickly discerned he was a troll, but I'm curious:</p>
<p>What would make USC a better school?</p>
<p>Cheaper tuition.</p>
<p>New football coach.</p>
<p>A/C in all the dorms. Elevators on move-in day. :)</p>
<p>Financial aid for internationals.</p>
<p>Completely raze the surrounding neighborhoods. Seriously, USC is a great school but the fact that a student was stabbed to death just a block from campus is a deal breaker. Urban campus in LA? No thank you.</p>
<p>I don’t even know what story you are referring to, the one in 2008? So there is no crime anywhere else in the country? Have you been to Yale? NYC? Oklahoma? Chicago? Colorado? Things happen everywhere obviously. Urban is just urban and the neighborhood around USC is full of working class people doing their best. Watch the cute kids in uniforms walking to their school in the morning, these are some good families. Murders happen in even the best neighborhoods everyday. Be smart and learn how to navigate an urban area, or spend your life in a bubble in the burbs. Which by the way, happens to deal with murders and other crimes as well. Then when little junior takes his or her first business trip solo or has a flat tire when traversing through a bad area, they will be totally unprepared to deal with the risks having never left the bubble.</p>
<p>Sorry Layra, I vote no financial aid or frankly, even merit aid for internationals, we give away enough from this country. The minute they would give financial aid however, they would lose U.S. applicants and their alumni donations. Some of the UC’s accepting large amounts of foreign students are now seeing their endowments dry up. In general, they don’t give back (I realize some might but generally speaking, this has been discussed in Wall Street Journal). Even diversity, at some point, reaches a tipping point and the benefits are maximized.</p>
<p>Blueskies, are you aware that international applicants ARE given merit scholarships already? I believe this was ramped up when Nikias took over.</p>
<p>They are eligible for quarter, half, and even full tuition merit scholarships:
<a href=“http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/private/1415/uscScholarships1415.pdf[/url]”>http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/private/1415/uscScholarships1415.pdf</a></p>
<p>The merit scholarships for international students are few. They are awarded to students from abroad who are at the tip top of the applicant pool. International students are not eligible for the Trustee, Stamps, Mork and other major scholarships. </p>
<p>Seniors who are U.S. citizens and have studied abroad are eligible for the other major scholarships.</p>
<p>There is no evidence international scholarships were increased when Dr. Nikias took office. Please state your source for that statement.</p>
<p>If they could beat Washington State in football.</p>
<p>Big Pappy - your prayers have been answered:</p>
<p>[The</a> Village at USC](<a href=“http://village.usc.edu/]The”>http://village.usc.edu/)</p>
<p>Internationals ARE eligible for Mork, Trustee and Presidential.</p>
<p>@blueskies I don’t mean to sound rude, but that comment was somewhat ignorant. Not everyone has the privilege of being born in the USA, and I don’t think where you’re born ought to determine the level of education you can get, and some students study extremely hard in order to get into a US university. The question was what would make USC a better school. Well, a lot of the top schools offer financial aid or grants to internationals, and I don’t think applicants are turning away from them. Internationals are as highly qualified as US citizens, if not more, since it is more difficult for them to be accepted in the first case. I’ve known people who got into USC, but ended up attending an Ivy because they couldn’t afford it, or could afford it but ended up saying it’s not worth it paying the sticker price.</p>
<p>You may be right in saying they don’t give back, but that’s not always the case. And while understand why they don’t have financial aid for internationals - USC already has the most diverse student body - leaving internationals bereft of any scholarship opportunities, as you wrote, would be a tad bit harsh.</p>
<p>Also, I don’t know why you’re bringing up the UCs as examples, because they don’t give ANY aid to internationals.</p>
<p>USC is federally funded, like many universities. A large component of FA is Federal Grants and Loans which international students are not eligible for. I have found that some of the more competitive merit aid scholarships don’t amount to much more than what we received in straight grants so it’s a moot point. </p>
<p>But I do agree - the vitriole against international students is unwarranted as it can’t be assumed that everyone is coming with cash hoardes in their pockets. Just as not every USC student from the US is “spoiled” and “rich.” We should drop the stereotypes and acknowledge that many students from all over the world aspire to attend good colleges but can’t afford it and may need aid. No different than if a US student wanted to attend college (say Oxford, etc.) in Europe where there may be tuition assistance for nationals but not for foreigners (i.e. Americans).</p>
<p>Still - the Mork, Trustee and Presidential scholarships at USC are few in number and a lot of well qualified students are not selected for them but choose to attend anyway.</p>
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<p>He specifically mentioned increasing/building scholarships for Pacific Rim students in his inaugural address. I’m not offering an opinion on the matter, just remembered reading about it in my Trojan Family magazines.</p>
<p>“Let the best young minds from across the Pacific Rim compete to receive a USC education. Let us build special scholarship programs for students represented from all Pacific Rim nations. Let them take full advantage of a highly diverse environment they wont find anywhere else.”</p>
<p>[?The</a> Destined Reign of Troy? | Office of the President](<a href=“http://www.president.usc.edu/speeches/the-destined-reign-of-troy/]?The”>http://www.president.usc.edu/speeches/the-destined-reign-of-troy/)</p>
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<p>I’m glad Haden took my advice.</p>
<p>Not a fan of the surrounding neighborhood.</p>