<p>I think you will be surprised by the area surrounding USC - I know that as a parent I was. I heard the legend of USC being in a terrible area and expected the worst. Though it isn’t all sunshine and lollipops, the area immediately outside the USC campus is mainly apartments filled with USC students, food places and shops catering to USC students, and DPS patrols the area surrounding USC. I found myself walking in the middle of the night with my daughter to her apartment two blocks from campus last week and felt perfectly safe. (I got to sit in on CTCS466 with her - SO much fun - and the class lets out at 11pm.)</p>
<p>If you attend an Explore session, there will be bus tours of the surrounding area so you can see for yourself the good and the not-so-good and make an informed choice.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>