<p>Does anyone know the strengths of USC’s geological or biological science departments? S is going to apply to Carolina (his other schools are UGA, WM and VT). He is very interested in landscape architecture, but wants to keep his options open and maybe do a sciences/art undergrad route and then pursue grad school for the Masters of Landscape Architecture. </p>
<p>We are aware of the great OOS merit aid opportunities at Carolina. (We are Va residents). His grades are pretty decent (3.9 in a hard curriculum -5 APs, honors, etc) Good ECs and just a real decent kid. He sent them his score of a 30 on his ACT and 710 on his SAT II History and 600 on Math I. I don’t know if that will make him competitive for any merit money or not. Honestly, the more we visit these schools and hear of the academic credentials that this generation of kids has, the more worrisome it is. Tme will tell I guess.</p>
<p>I can’t really answer your questions about the strength of the science programs. My daughter is a soph. at USC majoring in finance/economics. We are OOS from Maryland. Her high school GPA was a little higher than your son’s. She had good ECs (varsity sports, student govt, part-time job). Not a superstar, but a very solid performer in her ECs. She scored a 29 on the ACT. She was accepted to the Honors College and she received a merit scholarship, which entitled her to in-state tuition. She also has received additional dept. scholarships from the business school. So it was a great financial choice for us and my daughter has loved her time there at USC. </p>
<p>The way you describe your son, it sounds like he would do very well in the admissions process there.</p>
<p>Hi, I know how difficult this period must be for you…all of the stress with which college, so on and so forth.</p>
<p>My daughter is a freshman at University of South Carolina and majoring in biology. When we did our research, we came to the conclusion that they have a fine biology program. She is, however, looking to go to dental school after she completes her undergraduate. Her best friend is at UGA, majoring in art, where her mother has told me has a great art department. The other school that I know of is Stanford, which has an incredible geological department - however it is in California. I do not know if distance is an issue for you or your son.</p>
<p>I think what ultimately helped her in making the decision, was that we visited USC a few times. Each time she went she spent time in the science building speaking to other students and professors. She walked away with the feeling that it was a big school with a small school type of personality. The professors really seemed available and interested in answering her questions. After only a week plus of classes she has already been able to connect with her professors. (She took AP bio in high school, and was advised at USC to take chemistry first semester (which is also a reqiurement for her). </p>
<p>I don’t know if I have been able to help you at all or not. Please feel free to pm me if you want more specifics.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies. I agree with you cece1955 about the small school atmosphere feeling at Carolina. We too sat down for an information session with a professor in the marine science department. (S also had/has an interest in that area). They seemed so nice and he really had a great tour of the school/department. I think that if he gets into any of these schools, we are going to have him visit again, possibly overnight, to see how he feels. UGA is about 8 hours from us, Carolina 5. He says distance isn’t an issue, but I wonder as time gets closer to actually leaving if he will change his tune.
Much of his decision is going to come down to what type/if any financial package he may get for the oos schools. Thanks again for sharing what you know.</p>
<p>Although USC may not have the “name brand” associated with the other schools you mentioned, I believe it is a up and coming school. I have seen the quality of the school’s students rise each year since the introduction of the lottery funded merit scholarships. From what I have seen (my husband is a faculty member there) the school has a low key, low stress feel to it. That is not to say the classes are easy but students really only get out as much as they put into their classes. The locals here are generally pretty friendly, relaxed and courteous. </p>
<p>We found the merit scholarships too difficult to pass up. Daughter could have gone to a much fancier private school with all the bells and whistles but she told us she would have felt guilty making us pay so much. So we feel little or no stress financially paying for her education. How nice, we have money for retirement! </p>
<p>I’ve heard USC has a good marine science program located in Columbia, but also having a classroom site along the coast.</p>