School of Cinematic Arts Applicants (Film and TV)

Colleges & Universities University of Southern California
101

<p>Thanks, I already got in (production).</p>

<p>This is copied and pasted from an old thread: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/635529-usc-film-undergraduate.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/635529-usc-film-undergraduate.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>From Wikipedia:</p>

<p>“The program is one of USC’s most competitive specialty schools, for both undergraduate and graduate programs. The BA program in film production accepts 50 students per year,[4] while the Critical Studies department accepts 75 for its BA program, 15-20 for its MA program, and approximately 10 for the Ph.D. (three to four from outside the school, and five to seven continuing from the internal M.A. program); the BFA program in Writing for Film and Television accepts only 24 students per year.[5] The MFA program in film directing accepts 48 new students each semester (fall and spring) and the MFA for screenwriting accepts 32 students per year (fall admittance only). The MFA program for the Division of Animation and Digital Arts accept 15 students a year, and the recently established BA program for Animation & Digital Arts accepted only 11 students out of 150 applicants for the 2008-2009 fall semester. Acceptance to any program is contingent upon review of a portfolio, which requires writing samples, creative resumes, autobiographies, and other written responses. The Animation portfolio should consist of artwork and an artist statement. The production portfolio does not require the submission of a director’s reel or any film samples, allowing talented students who may have not had the opportunity or the means to create films to have the opportunity for admission.”</p>

<p>So for freshmen spots:</p>

<p>Production: 50
Critical Studies: 75
Writing for Film or Television: 24
Animation: 11
Interactive Media: 10 (for 2008)</p>

102

<p>Hey guys if you get in please post your stats or why you think you got in</p>

103

<p>@anar316 oh, I see! I was wondering what the source was? (what did wiki source, I wonder…?) Thank you, and congrats!</p>

<p>@DreamingFilms: I DON’T KNOW hahahah</p>

104

<p>Hey everyone, I’m new here. I got into the School of Cinematic Arts as a Production major!</p>

105

<p>Got in to Interactive!! So surprised hahaha. Seems like it’s the minority major on here – anybody else hear back about it?
Glad to meet you other SCA folks :slight_smile: Congrats to the admits and good luck to those still waiting!</p>

106

<p>My D just found out today. She got into SCA for Critical Studies. Going back to revisit. She’s over the moon about it. Has another offer at a competing school. Will be a tough choice for sure but USC is her dream school!</p>

107

<p>My S didn’t get in. We are in S. Cal.</p>

108

<p>Apologies for the caps - we are totally thrilled that our son was accepted as a screenwriting major!</p>

<p>After the disappointment of no mail yesterday, there was joy at the portal in Iowa this morning.</p>

<p>When he clicked on Admission, there were new boxes for enrollment deposit and admitted student events.</p>

<p>Financial aid was unchanged – it still says “in progress.”</p>

<p>The letter confirmed he’d been accepted as a screenwriting major, which is almost beyond belief! There are so few of them - only 24 per year! - that we thought if he had any chance at all, it was to be admitted as an English or Creative Writing major, with the possibility of minoring in screenwriting.</p>

<p>Stats:
3.95 W/ 3.67 UW (including all classes, such as band)
34 ACT
Scholastic Gold Key for dramatic writing
APs: APUSH, Bio, Chem, Calc AB, Lang & Comp, Lit & Comp
Writing samples: We thought they were pretty incredible, but then again, we are his parents. Apparently SCA liked them too! :-)</p>

109

<p>in for production!!!</p>

110

<p>So since DreamingFIlms asked that accepted students post their stats, here are mine:</p>

<p>GPA: 3.85 unweighted
SAT: 2120 (690 CR, 660 M, 770 WR)
ACT: 30 composite</p>

<p>AP classes: World History, Biology, English Language and Composition, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, English Literature and Composition, Calculus AB</p>

<p>Extracurriculars: 10 years of competitive basketball, 6 years of musical theatre and drama (multiple lead roles in school productions), 2 years of forensics (2012 state champion in Play-acting), 2 years of jazz choir, 2 years of amateur theatre criticism for a local newspaper, 3 years of active filmmaking (wrote, directed, and edited 7 short films), a couple years of film blogging at [Unpopular</a> Culture](<a href=“http://unpopularculture.org%5DUnpopular”>http://unpopularculture.org)</p>

<p>But honestly, when it comes to SCA, the above is less relevant than the passion, drive, and talent you display in your essays, writing samples, and visual samples. I poured everything into those parts of my application, because my statistics are decent but nowhere near outstanding.</p>

<p>I lucked out with my visual sample, because I got to work with Molly Kunz, who’s a fantastic up-and-coming indy actress (she’s the older sister of one of my best friends). I ran a successful Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the shoot and it was all thanks to her.</p>

<p>As for my writing sample (three pages of dialogue), it was one of the most original ideas I’ve ever had. I was going to send in something I had already written but when the flash of inspiration came, I just went with it – and it paid off.</p>

<p>Finally, for my essay, I just concentrated on why I love movies so much, what I plan to do with the medium, and what I think movies mean for the world. In the process, I talked about how my interests and experiences in life have shaped my sense of story and narrative. I started this back in August and slowly, slowly developed it over a long period of time.</p>

<p>Congratulations to everyone who got in – I’m looking forward to potentially meeting you all!</p>

<p>And to those of you who were denied, don’t bat an eyelid. As long as you have a love for what you do, it’ll all pan out eventually. Just look at Spielberg – USC rejected him multiple times in an age where it was LESS competitive than it is now. Look where he is. I know it sounds cheesy, but just because you didn’t get in doesn’t mean that you won’t end up like him ;)</p>

111

<p>Hey everyone! New to this forum, but I was sneaking around to see if anyone newly accepted to SCA has heard about scholarships or know anything about the Annenberg Fellowship. </p>

<p>I’m in for Animation next fall. Woop!</p>

112

<p>To all admits: </p>

<p>Thank you so much! Please keep telling us about your stats or anything relevant to your SCA experience and congrats to all!</p>

113

<p>Hey all!</p>

<p>I’m in kind of a different situation than most everyone here: I’m a current USC Crit Studies student trying to transfer over to Production. It’s been…quite the ride. I made it onto the wait list last semester, but didn’t make it in. This time around I shot a new film, swapped out a letter of rec for a new one, and updated my personal statement/other paperwork. I know that I had a lot of trouble finding any info about kids trying to transfer into Production from a different USC major, so I thought I’d put myself out there to maybe help anyone out who is in my shoes in the future.</p>

<p>My video this time around, “Karma”: <a href=“https://vimeo.com/58750509[/url]”>https://vimeo.com/58750509&lt;/a&gt;
(and if you click on my profile, “Wasteland” was my film last semester, if anyone is curious about what type of film can make the transfer wait list). I’ll be sure to post on here this week when I get the news.</p>

114

<p>I got into their production program as well, and I almost fell out of the chair when I found out on USConnect!</p>

<p>Congrats everyone who got in!</p>

<p>BTW, does anybody have any info on how many production transfer students they accept each year? Thanks!</p>