Are you a hopeful architect? Film lover? Journalist? Computer wiz? Future business manager? USC might be the place for you. The University of Southern California is a private research university located in the middle of Los Angeles, California.
USC has always been an elite school, but we have only seen it get more popular in recent years. Last year, their acceptance rate was about 11%, and it could be even lower for popular programs.
To get in, you need to be a competitive applicant. This means great grades, impressive transcripts, dynamic activities, and standout essays (right now they are test-optional, but honestly strong test scores wouldn’t hurt as well). Thankfully, we can help. From resume building to strategy to essays, we do it all. If you are dreaming about USC or other elite colleges, we would recommend working with a dedicated counselor.
Reach out to us today to learn how to get started!
We have helped many students get into USC and wanted to share some of our favorite tips for the USC supplemental essays. Lock in: it’s a bit of a long one.
Describe how you plan to pursue your academic interests and why you want to explore them at USC specifically. Please feel free to address your first- and second-choice major selections. (Approximately 250 words)
When we start working with freshmen and sophomores, one of the most important steps we take is establishing a history of extracurricular involvement in the student’s academic interests. We help them build a strategic resume around what they hope to study. USC wants students who know what they want to study and have already explored their intended field. By the time our students apply, they are exactly that.
Our (next) biggest tip with this essay is don’t skimp on the research. You should already be an expert about your academic interests; now, you just need to be an expert on what USC has to offer. You should look for specific opportunities at USC, including classes, professors, research opportunities, etc. and connect them to your academic interests, experiences, and goals. For example, we had a student who wanted to study Environmental Civil Engineering at USC. In this essay, she wrote about USC’s course Air Pollution Fundamentals and Energy Systems and Environmental Tradeoffs. She connected the class to her summer internship at a chemical and mechanical engineering lab and research she had done into air quality. She also wrote about the Engineering Plus program and how it would allow her to still explore her passion for dance.
You want to show the overlap between you, your interests, and what is offered by USC.
(Optional) The USC Student Commitment charges Trojans to "value honest, open communication and robust debate," and to "champion ideological diversity and embrace freedom of expression." Describe a time when you disagreed with someone you know about something important to you. Did you change your mind or reach common ground? (Approximately 250 words)
Okay, so while they say this is optional, it isn’t really if you want to put your best foot forward. This is an opportunity to show off why you are a great candidate; don’t let it slip past you. With a question like this, our biggest tip is to think of a time when there was some nuance to your disagreement. If you are 100% right and the other person is 100% wrong, there is very little space to grow or learn. Honestly, writing about a time you were wrong and someone changed your mind is a far humbler and more impactful story than one where you change someone’s mind.
This can also be about common ground. What have you done to try to understand the other person better? What steps did you take?
This essay isn’t that long, so we wouldn’t advise taking on something too big or controversial. One of our favorite of these essays was one a student wrote on animal testing. He was very against animal testing personally, but his mother (who was a doctor) shared her perspective on how it made the drugs she prescribed safe for human use and how dangerous human trials could be. While he still didn’t like animal testing, he understood her points and why some see it as necessary. We loved this essay because he gained a new perspective from the conversation and that while it was an important topic, it wasn’t hard to explore in 250 words.
Starting with the beginning of high school/secondary school, if you have had a gap where you were not enrolled in school during a fall or spring term, please address this gap in your educational history. You do not need to address a summer break.
This question isn’t for everyone. If you didn’t take time off during high school, skip this question. If you did, contact us; we would love to help you. Your answer needs to be extremely delicate, bespoke, and introduce no red flags. Working with a counselor can make all the difference in cases like this.
The next set of questions is the short answers. They are supposed to be fun, but we tend to see students really overthink them. Don’t get too in your head about these.
Describe yourself in three words.
There are two approaches to this. You can either use three positive, interesting adjectives or try to write out a cheeky sentence. For example, past students of ours have written “Selfless, Genuine, Musical” and “Proactive, eloquent, and empathetic,” but we have also had a student who wrote, “Always slightly early.”
What is your favorite snack?
There isn’t really a wrong answer here, but try to get specific. Answers we have loved from past students include:
Fage yogurt with a Kind granola bar sprinkled in, plus a spoonful of jam
Cheese and crackers. Goat cheese and Wheat Thins are my favorites, but I’m not too picky. Any cheese, any cracker
Carrots and hummus
Trader Joe’s frozen soup dumplings
A fresh slice of NYC pizza
Premium Korean Sweet & Spicy Puffs Yangnyeom Style
Best movie of all time:
Try to avoid anything too popular or cookie-cutter. For example, this year saying The Odyssey or Spider-Man is a no. We would also veto anything that would top a generic “Best Movies” List. This means no Godfather Part 2. No Citizen Kane. You get it.
Dream job:
Your answer needs to connect directly to what you hope to study at USC. For example, our student hoping to study communications wrote Marketing Manager, while our Art History major wrote museum curator. Make sure your choice makes sense.
If your life had a theme song, what would it be?
Avoid anything too popular, cheesy, or inappropriate here, and you should be good. Ours is, of course, “On the Floor” by Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull.
Dream trip:
There is really no wrong answer to this prompt, but we love it when our students connect it to something they are interested in. Say something about yourself if you can. One of our outdoorsy students wrote, “Seeing the northern lights and hiking a glacier in Iceland.” One of our Korean-American students chose “Seoul, for the first time with my Dad.”
What TV show will you binge watch next?
Our advice here is pretty similar to the theme song prompt… and try to keep it PG-13-ish.
Which well-known person or fictional character would be your ideal roommate?
Answers we have loved from past students have included Winnie the Pooh, Lisa Simpson, Ms. Frizzle, and Bob Ross. We usually advise choosing a quality you would want in a roommate and then thinking of a person or character who exemplifies it.
Favorite book
You certainly can connect your favorite book to what you want to study, but you don’t have to, especially if you are a big reader. However, we would avoid a few categories. The first being YA; sorry, no Harry Potter (that is actually a red flag for a couple of reasons).
We would also steer clear of anything that feels like it belongs on a high school required reading list (whether it was on yours or not). This means no The Great Gatsby. No To Kill a Mockingbird. No Things Fall Apart. Also, we shouldn’t have to say this, but please no smut. Keep your ACOTAR obsession to yourself, please.
Some answers we have loved include: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, Babel: An Arcane History by R. F. Kuang, The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It: On Social Position and How We Use It, by Will Storr.
If you could teach a class on any topic, what would it be?
This is our favorite short answer. You can connect it to what you hope to study or a hobby, but have some fun with it. We love when students make their answer sound like a real title for a class. For example:
Are you even paying attention? Active listening for non-psychology majors.
Into the Woods: Advanced Campfire Cooking
Guitar for Non-Music Majors
Break it Down: A History of Hip-Hop Music and Dance
USC gives you a lot of opportunities to share a bit of your personality; don’t be shy. That said, it can be hard to craft a cohesive and impressive supplement for USC. There is a lot to add, and great supplements are strategic and dynamic. It can be a lot to ask for.
Thankfully, we can help you! Contact us today!