I am expecting to enroll at USC for the fall 2018 semester to study international relations, but I was recently accepted to Global Citizen Year to spend 8 months working at a women’s education non-profit in India. Though I absolutely love USC, it wasn’t my first choice, and I was hoping to attend Brown, UChicago, Williams, or Swarthmore. I don’t know if I should defer my admission and spend these 8 months in India and reapply while I’m abroad, or if I should be happy/grateful with USC and start in August.
Having just spent a year at USC then transferred to one of those schools, my opinion is that USC is phenomenal for getting to do research as an undergrad, and it’s a really fun, laid-back place to boot. I’m unable to speak to your tough decision between the nonprofit work (sounds excellent) and enrolling in August, but can honestly say USC surprised me by how many strong resources they have in every major, and how many cool things are always happening on campus. USC won’t be a mistake, and you might find you don’t want to transfer after all.
I think spending 8 months to work at that nonprofit sounds like an excellent, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You can always reapply even though it may be a pain, and maybe the gap year will make you more attractive to other colleges as well. If you get an opportunity to do something unique, I would definitely take it. You only live so long.
If you’re a woman, I wouldn’t recommend going to USC. I was a student there, and I’m transferring out to the American University of Paris. There’s a federal case against them by scores of female students for mishandling rape cases. A medical faculty just recently was fired for having cocaine-fueled sex parties in his office. The administration knew about it and didn’t do anything. A USC doctor was recently fired for sexually abusing hundreds of female Asian students, and the administration knew about it for over a year and didn’t do anything. The president just stepped down. The administration at this school is a cesspool. It creates a toxic environment for female students. I would not recommend coming to this school if you’re a female, or care about women.