<p>eagerlywaiting and solardestruction, congratulations to you on your admission. I must point out what most people know: you are outliers and not at all the norm for USC admits. I am sure you have exceptional qualities that made your applications stand out, but I am also sure that if there were 50 kids with your exact scores/accomplishments/etc, USC would be unlikely to admit more than one or two of you. I don’t mean to be jaded, but the university is conscious of its stats in order to keep its place or rise higher in rankings/desirability. It would be harsh if stories such as yours–with seriously sub-norm SAT scores, etc, encouraged unrealistic hopes in hundreds or thousands of rising seniors. The true picture for most students will be more like sandad’s D–a stellar scholastic record plus ECs plus service plus even URM, and still on the unlucky side of decisions this year.</p>