<p>I am an English student and I’ve applied for film and television production at USC, LMU and Chapman, with USC and LMU being tied for my first choice (although my American friend tells me that if I can afford it, USC is the best out of all three in terms of a film and TV career). My dad has offered to pay for me to visit LA during Easter. I’ve never been to America, and he wants me to make sure I like USC/LMU/Chapman and LA before I go and he pays a lot of money for the fees. I thought this sounded like a good idea, but my American friend thinks the trip will be a waste of money. His reasoning is that the trip will be very stressful as I cannot drive yet and won’t have a car, I’ll be all alone in LA, and I won’t enjoy the trip. Secondly, he feels that USC and LMU are such wonderful schools that I will be perfectly happy when I’m there, and going to visit will only make me want to go more. </p>
<p>I’m torn because although I would really love a chance to see LA, I can see my friend’s point and I don’t want to waste my dad’s money. I’m a cautious person though, and it makes me uneasy to think that I might accept an expensive university place without having seen it first. On the other hand I cannot pass up a chance to go to America. It would be such a great opportunity to study in the heart of the American film and television industry. So would there be much point having a look at the universities at all? I really don’t want to waste my dad’s money, especially if the trip will have little value.</p>
<p>Did visiting USC help anyone here? Did it completely change your minds about the university? Is it helpful to visit a university first? Any advice would be much appreciated! Thank you :)</p>
<p>u need to visit regardless. You may find you dont like the kids that go to those schools which is the whole point. Obviously the campuses are beautiful but the people there are what matter. It will also make the final decision easier for you</p>
<p>PERSONALLY, I’d having to find my way around LA alone with no car. BUT if you don’t mind doing it alone and have enough to pay for a taxi (I wouldn’t recommend trying to figure out the buses), a visit is very important. Especially because the schools are sooo different. If you don’t know what I mean now, you will if you visit haha.</p>
<p>Have you been accepted to all three yet? It seems excessive to spend the time and money necessary to visit schools if you haven’t been accepted. That said, you are about to make a 4-year, $240,000 decision, so if you can afford it, I’d recommend visiting the schools.</p>
<p>However, I cannot imagine visiting these three schools without some sort of dedicated transportation. Without a car, you’re left to taxis (expensive and not necessarily readily available), public transportation (potentially hugely time consuming considering the geographic distribution of your schools) or some sort of private driver service (I suspect there are plenty of limousine services available in Los Angeles that can be contracted to drive you around for a few days, though I have no idea on the cost - probably more than taxis, but they will be at your beck and call.)</p>
<p>Thanks so much for the help everyone. LA sounds like a tough city to get around without a car. I’ll start learning soon though…I won’t be car-less forever. Just car-less now lol.</p>
<p>@vinceh: I’ve been accepted into LMU, if I get accepted into at least one more then the trip would still be on the table. My dad and I know it’s a little presumptuous to think about but we just want to think ahead. Thank you about telling me about transportation. I know it would be a very tough journey. </p>
<p>Question: are taxis generally safe in Los Angeles? How about public transport? </p>
<p>honey, you should visit USC in April IF you are accepted. Don’t waste the time or money on a trip out here until you know your choices[ The film school is one of the toughest to get into so don’t come before an acceptance, fall in love and then be disappointed]. You will have a full month in April to visit and come to a decision. [ by the way, USC is on Spring break from March 12-20, so the campus will be empty. Visiting an empty campus, with no chance of sitting in on classes, doesn’t give you any idea of what a college is actually like]</p>
<p>if this will be your only chance to visit LA, then take it. If you have others in the near future before you have to make a decision, it can wait. Taxis are pretty safe, but they will be expensive. Public transportation is sketchy (especially in USC’s area) so i wouldn’t recommend taking it unless you’re with friends.</p>
<p>USC has some pretty decent stuff around it though like L.A. Live, so going there won’t be too bad. However, trying to go from there to LMU and or chapman will be a huge pain without a car, or other form of reasonable transportation.</p>
<p>flippy, the problem with taxis isn’t the safety it’s their availability. Unlike Manhattan or downtown Chicago, Los Angeles is so spread out that taxis simply aren’t as readily available. As for public transportation, LA and Southern California is a huge area. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if it took an entire day to get from USC to Chapman using public transport. While seeing LA from a public bus would certainly give you a sense of the place it may also turn you off because of the work involved. </p>
<p>I’ll leave you with one idea that isn’t a great solution but would probably get you to your schools with relatively little difficulty. Fly into LAX, stay at a hotel right at the airport. Most of the colleges are serviced by a company called Super Shuttle that will transport people from the airport to campus and back. You would stay at the hotel, take their shuttle back to the terminal and then take Super Shuttle to the respective campuses. At the end of your stay you would then take Super Shuttle back to the airport and the hotel shuttle back to the hotel. You could make reservations with Super Shuttle in advance so you would be comfortable understanding your timetable. It would be cumbersome but relatively inexpensive and efficient. Short of hiring a private car (limousine) and driver I can’t think of another simple solution to get you where you want to go in a timely and safe manner.</p>
<p>The downside to the shuttle is that you’d never see any of Los Angeles. Maybe for the last two days you could go to the terminal and take a shuttle to one of the nicer Santa Monica hotels, stay there and walk the beach (during the day) for a day or two. But as menloparkmom said, doing this trip before you hear if you’ve been accepted is pointless.</p>
<p>Actually, getting from USC to Chapman is extremely easy. My son goes to USC and has a friend at Chapman so he has done this before. It takes less than an hour to take a Metrolink train from downtown LA (Union Station) to Chapman (Orange stop). You can take a free shuttle from USC to Union Station and the train stops on the Chapman campus. You just need to carefully check the train schedules and plan your trip around the schedule. </p>
<p>Since LMU is close to the airport (LAX), I would take the Super Shuttle to LMU (@20 minutes and $10) and then from LMU, I would take a cab to USC (@45 minutes and $40) or go back to the airport and take the Super Shuttle to USC (@$13). From USC, I would take the train to Chapman. </p>
<p>The USC Transportation website is very helpful and has a link to a lot of resources to help you get a round in LA, including Yellow Cab, Super Shuttle and Metrolink. Good luck.</p>
<p>Again, thanks SO much for all the help! I really do appreciate it.</p>
<p>@menloparkmum: my trip would actually be in mid-April. My Easter holiday is from 9th to 26th of April. So by then I should know, but thank you for your concern :)</p>
<p>And everyone else, thanks again for the advice. I’ll talk it over with my dad. Like some of you have said, I have plenty of time to decide. Thanks again :)</p>
<p>Again, thanks SO much for all the help! I really do appreciate it.</p>
<p>@menloparkmum: my trip would actually be in mid-April. My Easter holiday is from 9th to 26th of April. So by then I should know, but thank you for your concern :)</p>
<p>And everyone else, thanks again for the advice. I’ll talk it over with my dad. Like some of you have said, I have plenty of time to decide. Thanks again :)</p>