WHy USC?

Colleges & Universities University of Southern California
1

<p>Many other colleges have threads like this, so I decided, why not USC? Just name a few reasons about why why you like USC and reasons you would go there.</p>

<li>It’s in LA, great weather, beautiful chicas.</li>
</ol>

2

<p>how do you compare USC with BC? thanks</p>

3

<p>wait…wait…i’ll bump up my earlier threads…</p>

4

<p>umm…that’s it?</p>

5

<p>Are the girls really that attractive there? I’ve been to USC a few times and stayed there a week once. I think that’s more of a stereotype than a reality. Maybe 20 years ago.</p>

6

<p>C’mon people, all the idiotic things (good weather, beautiful people, school spirit, good football, etc) have already been covered here: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/396126-101-things-you-like-about-usc.html?highlight=things+to+like[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/396126-101-things-you-like-about-usc.html?highlight=things+to+like&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>How about some serious thoughts on the subject? I will start things by offering a few of my own thoughts, at least in comparison to other schools D is considering:</p>

<p>Things to like:

  1. Bureaucracy is not too excessive, unlike NYU. There you are stuck taking classes only in the school you have been admitted to.
  2. Signing up for the classes you want is not a roll of the dice, like it is in UCLA.
  3. Decent liberal arts program, not too pre-professional unless you sign up for a pre-professional degree (journalism, media production, pre-med, etc)
  4. I personally don’t care about the whole “school spirit” and TrojanEverything crap, but it does foster a sense of community that many students seem to enjoy, and it certainly contributes to alumni fundraising and strengthening the endowment, which is ultimately good for all students
  5. Decent attention to the students, at least as judged by the admissions sessions. USC was one of the few schools where visits with a school were explicitly offered during the info sessions, and the school (Annenberg) actually took it seriously rather than as a chore.
  6. They do seem to look at the whole student in the admissions process. Most schools claim to do that, but in the end it usually comes to class rank and/or SATs. USC has surprised me to date, at least as far as the early admissions go.
  7. Lack of ED gimmicks. I really respect schools who do not take advantage of students for their own benefit through ED programs.</p>

<p>Things I am not crazy about:

  1. Academics that are not entirely consistent with the ranking. Just like NYU, USC benefits disproportionately from location, which helps with both selectivity and yield. Football pushes it up even further, because there seem to be plenty of kids who are willing to spend $50k of their parents’ money for the privilege of basking in reflected glory.
  2. TorjanThis and TrojanThat… 'nuff said</p>
7

<p>pwned…by the above guy :P</p>

8

<p>personally, unlike groovygeek, i LOVE the trojan spirit.</p>

<p>i was on campus today and EVERYONE is like “WOOHOO fight on trojans!” this eventually leads to their extensive and absolutely adoring alumni contact system. i wanna be in a school where at least everyone cares about each other enough to feel like they need to unite and have some school pride/spirit. everyone likes each other. forever. enough said.</p>

9

<p>btw, weedeeg, what’s BC?</p>

10

<p>BC: Boston College?</p>

11

<p>USC pwns boston college…</p>

<p>actually, i hav no clue, i just love USC though. if you like a good campus, nice academics that aren’t stressful as hell, good programs and close relationships with some excellent professors, decent city life that isn’t far away, then you’d love USC.</p>

12

<p>Having visited both and considered both USC and BC, here are my thoughts</p>

<p>Similarities

  1. Good endowment that allows them to maintain a variety of campus programs, including the oh-so-important campus maintenance
  2. Specific “school spirit” that revolves around football
  3. Ranking that is helped by both football and location, and is somewhat inconsistent with academics</p>

<p>Differences

  1. Academic philosophy at BC is rooted in Jesuit principles, and is therefore more homogeneous. This can be both good and bad
  2. More varied student body at USC. The student panel at BC was stumped when I asked them “what is the biggest recent controversy on campus”.
  3. There is a strong culture of public service at BC, which I don’t think is present at USC.</p>