$3750/yr merit scholarship. We don’t qualify for need-based.
We were hoping for a miracle departmental award… So it looks like USC is out of the running given our other options, which includes a full tuition scholarship at Syracuse.
When all admitted applicants are finally in a position when they can decide if attending USC is financially feasible & if it is & if/when the decision comes down to other considerations when comparing schools and offerings… please just keep in mind that USC is rather unique in terms of America’s top colleges and universities - at least as I see it.
I personally went to JHU, and I also had friends attend Ivies and other elite colleges like Duke, UChicago, Vanderbilt, Emory, etc. Those friends and I all felt that our colleges lacked certain elements that they & I wish they had offered us.
But… USC is not really in that mold at all… as it offers elite academic instruction + much more in my opinion. And I personally wanted much more for my girls when they were considering colleges, for example, then how I felt I was limited at a place like Hopkins. At colleges like JHU, you can receive a quality education of course… but there are many areas simply lacking in terms of the potential overall college experience… i.e. the full spectrum of athletics, school spirit, expanded EC offerings, social life, etc. Also… many of these schools truly do not offer the strength of USC’s alumni network worldwide… 365K+ so far and growing.
While still a private university that often seems/feels much smaller, USC is also relatively large compared to most elite colleges and can offer the added benefit of feeling almost like a state university in terms of its scale and other offerings… especially in terms of the full spectrum of things like athletic prowess (more national championships overall than any U.S. university and also more Olympians overall, etc.) and an active social life - including Greek like (if you are inclined towards such) and more plays and student films and concerts and artistic events, etc. than you will ever be able to attend, etc., etc.
Once you are there, for example, you can receive 5-10+ emails daily inviting you to film premieres, plays, etc on campus and all over the L.A. metro area. My girls have gone to many major film premiers, concerts, museums, TV show tapings and other events that really can only be found in a place like L.A. - or maybe also in NYC. Just being in L.A. adds a whole new dimension to what your college experience can be… if you are open to it and take advantage of it. Along with all the events and happenings connected to USC or offered through it, you can get to Venice Beach, Santa Monica, Hollywood, into the mountains even… all within an hour… often within 30 mins. Downtown L.A. is basically 10-15 mins away.
Believe me, my girls took all of these things into consideration when comparing USC to Princeton, Emory, UTexas, FSU, UMiami, New College of FL, UTampa & Rice (the schools they could have chosen to attend instead). And they studied the Niche rankings and survey results carefully… as they really wanted to gain a sense about how current student and alumni felt about each of these schools. There is something to be said about the opportunities available at each different college and university and the perceived quality of student life once there. It is a four year commitment… so choose wisely and choose what is ultimately best for you.
For those curious… here is what Niche says about USC specifically… (survey results from current and past students):
Overall, USC is ranked as the #1 big college in America (out of 126) and # 10 out of 1501 colleges in America in terms of the best student life. USC gets an A+ and is currently ranked 19 overall among national universities. Its scores were… Academics A+, Value A+, Diversity A+, Campus A, Athletics A+, Party Scene A+, Professors A+, Location B+, Dorms B+, Campus Food A-, Student Life A+, Safety B. There are also a list of rankings on many topics too numerous to mention.
Good luck with your final decision as to where to enroll… 
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@Nomorelurker You’re welcome. Yes… if USC applies an university grant, it is just free money. Basically, they are just waiving that portion of the overall cost to attend. There is no real difference though… all colleges seem to frame their grant money the same way, if your perceived need warrants it.
@SexMeUpLadies There is no real point in a direct comparison to our situation versus yours or others. Everyone’s financial situation is specific to them. But you will see soon. Good Luck. I hope the #s work out for you.
Where do you see if you got any merit-based scholarships? Is it on the portal? Where?
“I also don’t see the downside to taking a wait and see, and responding later in April rather than right away, so long as the May 1 deadline isn’t missed!”
absolutely true! there is no downside to waiting.
but waiting wont get students increased merit $.
Does anybody else see a random $3750 “University Scholarship” on their financial aid award? What is this for/from, and why do I have it?
USC just posted our FA on their portal. More than we thought but still expensive. Decisions!
@ZArchitecture Did your FA portal update?
From what I have seen, merit decisions do not just all pop up at once, frankly March 27th seems super early, I would expect a roll out over the next several days. As @WWWard said, they will email you when it is posted.
Everyone has a unique financial situation - that is why you turn in the FAFSA and CCS - so they can see income, savings, see if you have home equity to tap into etc…each one is evaluated separately. No one on here can predict what your need is - USC decides that.
Where do you see if you got any merit-based scholarships? Is it on the portal? Where?
Got into Viterbi CS (fall '18) – international applicant. Does anyone know how many students there are in CS? Is it hard to get into? Lastly, does Viterbi have a FB group or something? CC: @RoleastLained @memes4life @mistings
@cali1999 It was listed as a part of gift aid under a category titled scholarships
Hi all!! Congrats to all who have been accepted, I was too just for the spring semester but that still is wonderful to me. I am in a slight predicament now because while I have been accepted and received the package, when I logged onto the portal to access the PDF version of my letter, nothing came up in the “Admissions Decision” section for me to access it. In addition to that, I am unable to access “Intent to Enroll” as when J click on, a message pops up saying it’s not accessible by the public. ALSO, I can’t access my financial aid summary. I emailed my admissions counselor just to make sure I was truly accepted and she did confirm that I am now part of the Trojan family, but I can’t get my head around why my portal is being so strange. Is his happening to anyone else?
@bigchoices2018 @jeeh00 @ttg1125 Portal was updated - It shows just before the total at the bottom (per the partial scr shot my daughter sent, not sure of URL or page name).
Seems to me it is given as an ego-booster to let you know they want you…? So you can say you got a merit scholarship to USC?
@jeeh00 I don’t have that category in the portal…
@cali1999 I suppose not everyone gets it then…?
Hi guys, I live in NJ and still haven’t gotten mailed my decision. I don’t want to check it online… is it weird that I haven’t gotten anything yet?
@WWWard Ya I know USC is special. My #1 choice was UCLA, but USC is an easy substitute. Tbh it might be worth going into debt over in my opinion.
My D also received the $3750 University Scholarship. The 1/2 tuition NMF and associated $1K scholarships are not there yet, but I’ve heard those come later…