Great news about the NPC! TBH, I have always had trouble feeling “dialed in” about the relative competitiveness of USD, but I think she should get in… maybe others feel clearer about this school than I do.
How does she feel about the religious aspect? USF is Jesuit (as are Santa Clara and LMU), whereas USD is not. The Jesuit schools tend to feel more inclusive, more social justice-y, and less “in your face” in terms of religious imagery and ideology. The vibe is different in other ways, too. USF is very much embedded in the city and connected to the urban community; USD feels more insular. What does she prefer? (My thinking was that if California was that big a deal to her, USF is a deep-dive California experience, whereas to me, USD feels more “nice college with California weather,” although maybe those with direct experience will contest that impression.)
The fact that all engineering students at USD get a dual BS/BA degree deserves a closer look. The curriculum maps suggest that the norm is 4.5 years to complete the dual degree; I wonder whether this would be a deterrent to pursuing engineering, given the financial constraints. (Example: https://www.sandiego.edu/engineering/documents/programs/degree-plans/25-26/meng-plan-25-26.pdf There’s also a physics+engineering dual-degree curriculum which runs a full five years.)
(Edited to add - I may be harping too much on engineering, for a student whose stated first choice major is physics. My gut just said that a student who has newly fallen in love with physics might be on a trajectory to falling in love with engineering as well, if the opportunity were there, so I wondered whether the student also felt that a clear path to an engineering option was important, and it seems that there’s been at least some thinking in that direction.)
It’s good that she has several proven-affordable options that aren’t admissions long-shots!