If anyone has any insight in comparing and choosing between these 2 school, it’s very appreciated.
You say potato, I say potato 
What major?
SU has a lot of stuff in LA today!!
Obviously there are weather differences, cost differences potentially, and more. And major might matter.
Both are leading communication schools.
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Two outstanding choices – congrats! Assuming both colleges are comfortably affordable, I’d go with personal fit (including academics, social fit, geography preference, etc.) This is a case where two reasonable people could make two different choices.
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Communications. We are going out to visit LA next week!!
We’re from the East Coast and I’m having a hard time stomaching sending my daughter out there but I don’t want her to miss out on a great opportunity either! The weather differences is huge!
Thank you!!! We’re so proud of her. Being from the east coast makes going to USC hard to stomach because of the distance but I just want what’s best for her. Yes, communications major with Film interest as well.
She got into USC for the spring 25 semester. So that’s something that we are considering heavily. There’s still a chance they will put her in for fall enrollment, but we will not know until after May 1 when she’s already committed. Is it worth going and starting in the spring? I was going to have her go to the community college to start getting some credits towards general education courses assuming they are transferable. I don’t know if this will be a disadvantage to her in the long run, or in her overall college experience, any thoughts?
Congrats to her.
What does she want to do - communications is wide ranging and inclusive - it could be from tv/film to journalism to writing to advertising, PR, and even marketing, etc.
I, for one, am not a fan of the Spring start because you are starting after others, who have found friends and found their way. But others love it and take advantage of maybe traveling, working, or taking classes at a community college to save money. So that’s a personal preference - I’d imagine if someone is extroverted, they’d have an easier time with it.
Whatever you do - make sure she has a double major (when I was at Newhouse, it was required, not sure about today) - as most kids will end up in a back up career.
Both schools have great reputations and it’s really personal choice - which may include money (any merit at SU?), weather, or in your case distance from home.
If you think about it though - they’re not coming home that much (hopefully) so the distance shouldn’t matter too much - there’s lots of flights and most importantly today, there’s facetime.
When she visited both, what did she feel? Go with that.
Best of luck.
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She’s not sure exactly what she wants to do but film and writing are a top interest. Newhouse still requires an outside major which I love and she definitely wants to take Marketing. When we visited SU, she loved it and it immediately became her first choice but after her USC (which was her Hail Mary) acceptance, she now has to make a choice between 2 fantastic school. We are going to USC in 2 weeks and that will hopefully be enough for her to make her decision. No merit from either yet. Merit from other school came about a week or so after acceptances so I’m praying she gets something from one of them because they are both insanely expensive!
We are from the east coast also, and my DD went to college in CA. And the beautiful weather was one of many reasons. She was at Santa Clara University…but it was really fine!!
Are you paying attention to the conversation on the USC threads? Many spring admits do a semester abroad with other USC spring admits. They form close bonds and often live together when they return to USC.
USC has an orientation, a welcome party and all of the normal acceptance events for spring admits. After that, they are just like any other student on campus. No one knows if you are there on a full scholarship, a spring admit, or transferred from another university.
I know some kids who went through Annenberg. It is a great program with lots of opportunities. As a parent, I’m jealous of their Maymester trips.
In 2028, Los Angeles will host the Summer Olympics. The Downtown Sports Park is centered around USC. The Media Village and main press center will be on campus. The journalists and media will live in The Village and use Annenberg state-of-the-art facilities. Supposedly it will be the most advanced media facilities and nicest accommodations of any Olympics.
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SC won’t have merit, especially if it’s a fall start but at SU it’s possible although it’s Newhouse, so maybe not.
Hopefully she’ll either be enamored with SC or hate it - and then your choice will be made
Sometimes a bad visit is as helpful as a great visit.
But SU is doing a lot in LA today - so even if she goes to SU, she may have opportunity out west for an extended time period.
Best of luck - let us know how your visit to SC goes.
It’s most likely - she can have a fantastic experience at either school - so no wrong answer.
That’s amazing!! Did she come back to the east coast after graduation?
Yes she came back to the east coast. After a two year PeaceCorps assignment in Rwanda. She was here for three years after that, then went to medical school in Georgia. But then…she came back here, and lives about an hour from our house!
As she put it “I got CA out of my system”.
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Sounds like she had a very successful and fulfilling academic path. Great to hear she’s back on the East coast!!
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So we visited USC and she has mixed feelings. She didn’t feel completely safe on campus and didn’t love the overall vibes in L.A in general. Having said that, we only had one day to explore and drove around much of the city and experienced a lot of the not so great parts of it. We know there is a lot of beauty in CA but unfortunately did not have a chance to see much of it. It Left her feeling a little disappointed. The next day was spent at the usc admitted student event. The school, on the other hand is great, beautiful campus, wonderful professors and she wants to love it but I’m not sure she does. She wants to study communications and has interest in double majoring in film. Annenberg and Newhouse are both great schools. Obviously usc is top for film but how much does this really matter??? She is stuck on the idea that a USC degree will get her much further in a career start than one from Syracuse would even though she is in Newhouse. The degree is from SU at the end of the day. So she is struggling with going somewhere far from home where she doesn’t feel super safe for the sake of the education and degree than going where I know she felt at ease and really enjoyed the campus visit when we were at SU. Any opinions?
She should go to SU.
SU has programs in LA, she has comfort and that matters as she’ll be there for four years, and both can get her where she wants. At the same time, it’s a brutal field that most classmates won’t succeed and I’m not sure that’s different at USC than SU.
No reason to go to a school / area where she lacks comfort when she has one that she truly feels at home.
Oh, and get her a warm jacket!!
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Adding to this reading upthread, she’s a September start. If she chose SC, what would she do in the Fall?
Many kids get homesick too - and while you don’t want to think about it, sometimes you need to bring someone home or get to them - and you can factor that in too.
But honestly, based on the writings (from today but now looking at the Spring start for SC), SU seems a no brainer (in my simple mind).
Disclosure - I’m a Newhouse alum - but not why I’m suggesting SU.
If she chooses SC and goes in the spring, she will take gen ed courses at our local community college to transfer and try to get a part time job.
So happy to hear you are a Newhouse alum! So how strong is the Newhouse network really? And is it mostly in the tri state area? Was it easy for you to find a job after graduating?
Don’t get me wrong - USC does appear (at least in publications) to be stronger but the comfort zone matters. Many parents, myself included, had to fly kids home, etc. They get homesick.
I’m a BJ (broadcast journalism) alum from over 30 years ago. Like film, it’s a major where 90% don’t make it. In my era, I wouldn’t say the alumni network was of assistance. I had one job at a cable tv network - there was a lot of alum - but it paid little and I had to leave after 9 months as my dad wasn’t going to subsidize me.
It’s a different era - and I can’t speak til today.
But your daughter will be somewhere four years - and I’m a fan of being where you’ll be comfortable - why I said SU.
Has she looked at the facilities of both or talked to faculty, etc.? She should also ask each for a detailed list of student outcomes?
But my go to SU assessment was based purely on her comfort.
Good luck to her.
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She will do fine at either of these colleges. She should choose the one she likes for the most reasons. Pick a place where she would like to be for four years…that’s important.
Either choice is fine academically.
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