Living on campus is a dream, mostly in the sense that you romanticize it in your own head. Before moving to college, living in a dorm seems really cool (not for me because I was terrified of communal bathrooms but still); you get to basically live in a building with all the people you know and campus is a step or two away. However, living there becomes painful eventually, as you realize that when you’re exhausted or looking your worst and just want to go out to get some food or head to the library, there’s a 95% chance that you’ll run into someone you know. Randomly seeing people is only fun in theory.

You often hear that there’s millions of scholarships available for college students. But most of these scholarships can have extremely niche criteria that you don’t feel like applies to you, or feel like a shot in the dark. As someone who’s successfully landed thousands in scholarships, in my experience, the more narrow the criteria to apply to a scholarship, the more likely you are to get that scholarship. And surprise, surprise, there can be one piece of criteria that already benefits a large percentage of USC students. 

Sometimes it feels like the friendliness at this school flows as much as the LA river. Maybe it was strong and powerful in the past. But over time, it’s slowed to a trickle. Then the walls went up, and now at times, the friendliness is barely there. In some areas, it’s more of a creek than a river, to be honest. 

Even though Starbucks is constantly throwing out new drinks, it’s still easy to get tired of just Starbucks. As a self-proclaimed coffee lover and fun drink connoisseur, seeing how many coffee shops there were on campus was exciting, but also a little confusing. I wasn’t sure which one would become my favorite, because how could anything replace my favorite hometown coffee shops?

I am a senior in the Business of Cinematic Arts program at USC, so when I am on campus, I spend a majority of my time either in a breakout room in Fertitta or on a balcony in the School of Cinematic Arts. But I recently discovered a hidden gem on campus, a space in the Student Union that I think every student should enter at least once during their time at USC... The Sustainability Hub! I documented my first time entering the Sustainability Hub in a previous blog article, but I came back again for its Open House this semester. Here is how it went:

I love back to school season! This time of year always feels magical because the possibilities are endless. Ast the school year goes on, it's easy to fall into bad habits, but in August, I always like to pretend that's not going to happen. I’ve always considered myself a pro at making back to school resolutions, but I struggled with keeping them. Last year, however, I was able to make my healthy habits stick. So, without further ado, here are my back to school tips to help you start off the school year on the right path… and stick to it!

USC offers many different meal plans to students, and if you live on campus, you are required to have one of these plans. Students can purchase dining dollars to use at dining halls and other campus dining options, or you can opt for meal swipes. Regardless of your plan, here’s the rundown on which dining halls to visit for the best meals at your new home for the semester.

I’m a current senior studying biomedical engineering (BME) with an emphasis in electrical engineering. However, my time at USC in terms of extracurricular activities was not BME-focused; rather, it was consulting-focused. I joined AIM (Association of Innovative Marketing Consulting) in the first semester of my sophomore year and was immediately placed as a Project Manager of a team. Following my experience there, I joined the E-Board and have taken on different roles within the club, ranging from social media management to client recruitment.

LA is known as a city with many culinary wonders. At USC there are tons of great restaurants near and on campus. From cafes, to breakfast spots, to Mexican restaurants you can find anything in South Central. Here are the most popular restaurants that USC students frequent.

After being at USC for two years, I’ve realized that getting ready to go back to school in college is very different than in high school. Especially if you’re from out of state or simply do not live at home, getting prepared for the new school year is more than just buying school supplies.

As someone who grew up in Los Angeles, I was hesitant to go to college in my hometown. When I was accepted to USC, I was excited but had one major concern: I didn’t expect the experience to change me very much. What would I experience in the next four years that I hadn’t already? However, from the beginning, my college experience has been extremely unconventional.

If there is one thing that USC is known for, it’s sports. We hear a lot about the football team, but let’s not forget about basketball. With the multitude of talent on our sports teams over the years, Trojans have a rich sports history that dates back to the early 1900s.