<p>My understanding is that they use spring admission as sort of the overflow pool for kids they really want to admit but for some reason are not as high on the list as the fall admits. You will be considered for this automatically, if you don’t get regular admission. It’s somewhat like how other colleges use a waitlist, but the good thing about USC’s approach is that you’re guaranteed to go there, just a little later. </p>
<p>My son was a spring admit a few years ago, with a SAT of 1600/1600, high AP scores, National Merit, and a 3.5-ish GPA from a rigorous prep school. But he applied to the SCA, so felt lucky to get in at all. In the end, around mid-May, he was invited to move up to fall admission. He was not legacy or any other special connection.</p>