I think only if you apply to one of the majors that requires a portfolio or audition. Otherwise you need to apply EA.
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Only if you are a National Merit Finalist and are admitted.
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My kid got denied with 4.0 UW GPA and 1550+ sat, applied early action and national merit finalist . there is more than GPA,SAT and national merit. The only reason we applied is to get 50% tuition off and may be that may be the factor for denial. We will never know why they get denied and no transparency
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It’s absolutely more tha gpa, sat and national merit. They want to see passion on the app within the student, in their interests, goals, AND a sincere passion for attending USC. They can definitely “read through” those in the game just for merit. And a holistic approach let’s them cherry pick the students like puzzle pieces that shape a class into the picture they envision for the best overall class. They turn down a lot of national merit folks every year, but those students are usually accepted to other great schools so they end up landing where they should. USC turns away over 4,000 students with a 4.0/99 percentile stats each year, and it stuns a lot of applicants every year. They could fill a class with perfect stat kids, but have always chosen to look beyond that.
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The only reason we applied is to get less fee. We cannot afford 100k for that school. Had we know that before hand we would not have applied to that school at all.
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If your student were accepted with a half tuition scholarship, would they have attended?
Yes, we liked the school very much, but it is not in our range
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Maybe the first two comments came through in the “why us” essay instead of the third comment.
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When does the first wave of early action decisions come out? I know they’re due by Jan 31st, but hoping earlier than that
Last year it was Jan 19 at 4 pm PST.
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Did they send an email in advance?
On the bottom right of this 2024 - 2025 Profile, it says EA admission notification date will be January 17, 2025.
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did anyone just get an update about financial aid? i was emailed that they needed additional info from me but when i log into the portal it’s extremely glitchy. the email also came with a “USCID: (10 digit number)”
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We did not get an email. A couple weeks ago, before we submitted CSS the USC “FAST” (the USC financial aid system that you access from the portal, there is a link on the right side) seemed glitchy, but now it is okay and we can see that the USC has the documents. My kid does have a 10 digit student ID that shows up on the “FAST” next to their name.
Seems like Jan 17 date for EA decisions has been confirmed. Google search shows this date, but when I click on the link, nothing shows up.
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Yup, just saw that they posted on instagram. January 17. Decisions will be in portal. Email will go out when portal is updated. Best of luck to everyone!
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any portal astrology?
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Will merit come with the EA decision or after?
Some students who are admitted EA will be offered the opportunity to interview for a Presidential or Trustee scholarship.
From the USC Admissions FAQ
- If I am admitted Early Action (EA), will I also receive a merit scholarship?
Not all early admits will be selected to continue in USC’s merit scholarship process. Early admits who are selected as scholarship finalists will be notified of their next steps in February.
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