6 Things No One Tells You About USC

by Avery Thunder' ‘26

When I started at USC, I hadn’t toured the campus or even stepped foot in the area before I accepted my admissions offer. I was about as clueless as I could be. I’m not from California, and certainly not from Southern California, so it was definitely an adjustment in every possible way. I distinctly remember buying chapstick during my first semester and my jaw actually dropping at the price.

Here’s what I wish I could’ve learned from my online research about USC and student experiences before I got here.

You Cannot Escape Campus

Part of the appeal of USC is living in the middle of the “City of Stars,” so to speak. Although this is a nice idea, realistically, what you’re imagining LA to be (Hollywood, the beach, or iconic spots like Melrose or West Hollywood) is not outside your front door. It is incredibly difficult to visit any of these places if you don’t have a car. The public transport system in LA, even when you understand it well, is difficult to navigate. The trains are often late, and sometimes, the buses just don’t show up at all. Fryft is incredibly helpful for exploring the immediate 2 mile area around campus, but it can’t take you far, and, of course, it only works past 6 p.m., making it difficult to go to most places before closing. There have been times when I’ve felt like a hamster in a ball, losing my mind as I walked in circles for weeks. 

Interested in Multiple Subjects? Good Luck!

This is not a hate article, I promise, but USC’s class registration may be my least favorite part of the university. I came to campus without a definitive major or career plan. I wanted to take classes in creative writing, public relations, anthropology – so many things that I thought would be fun to just try out and see if my interest grew into something more. 

Registration is a process! If you want to take classes in different disciplines, you will have to fight my personal arch nemesis – D clearance. If you’re registered in a certain major, you’ll struggle to take any class outside of that, unless it’s a GE. If the course is in another school, you will have a particularly hard time. You have to fill out forms, email professors or advisors from various departments, and good luck getting an update on your status. So you get to sit around, wondering if you’re taking something you’re interested in or if you need to start filling those spots with four units of yoga and weight lifting. (The physical education courses are actually some of the only courses you can take without having to jump through hoops).

Don’t Freak Out About Clubs

This is just general college advice. People always go on and on about how you need to join clubs to make friends and be a part of the community. Sure, if you want to, go ahead, but also, college itself is a lot. Classes are hard, and life gets crazy. Maybe you don’t have time, maybe your social battery is already dead, maybe you just don’t want to, and that’s completely fine. I remember stressing so hard about clubs, thinking that I was ruining my college experience by not joining any. 

It didn’t make a difference. I met people I liked in my classes and in my dorm. The truth is, when I got home from a long day of class and work, I didn’t particularly want to go to a club meeting. I wanted to go lay in bed and rot. Don’t force yourself. It’s going to be fine, and chances are, you’ll stumble across something you actually want to do eventually. 

Football Season Weekend Terror

One day, I woke up on a random fall weekend and decided to get some coffee. Imagine my surprise as I walked out of my dorm building to find the campus flooded with hundreds of adults and children wearing red and yellow, partying, drinking, yelling, and blasting music. It was terrifying. I couldn’t walk three steps without running into a middle-aged drunk person. This struggle was exacerbated by living in New North, which is right at the entrance of campus.

Now, I could probably write a thesis paper on my thoughts on tailgating as alumni and all of this game day culture, but my point here is not to give an opinion on it: I just wish I’d known how difficult USC game day culture would make it to live your normal campus life. I remember trying to go to Doheney to study – you know, like, the thing colleges are made for. Well, they close down the front entrance on game days, so you get to go through the backrooms! It is lovely.

Be Careful Which GEs and Electives You Take

There’s nothing quite like taking a GE that ruins your GPA. It is truly a humbling experience. General education can be a curse and a gift. Some of my favorite classes have been to fulfill these requirements, and I’ve met some very interesting people. 

Other times, they are hell on earth. You may come across a professor who takes the class way too seriously and thinks they’re Annalise from How to Get Away With Murder. Calm down, I’m here because I’m kind of interested in the subject you teach and required to fulfill another GE category to graduate. Please don’t make me finish the class with a newfound hatred for your field of work.

Use Rate My Professor! Also, if you’re bad at a certain subject, don’t trust people to tell you if it is easy. This is USC, which is cool, but annoying because even when you do think you’re good at something, there will always be someone better. As a result, the standard for what is “easy” varies. I took an economics class on a recommendation from my friend; I was quickly reminded that I am really bad at math. I struggled immensely in a class that many other students would describe as easy, so just be careful and know your intellectual limits.

You Shouldn’t Always Take Your Peers’ Advice

Lastly, don’t listen to me. This is all incredibly subjective. If you think to yourself, wow, that doesn’t sound like something that would annoy me – you’re probably right. I don’t know what I’m talking about. As I said at the beginning, I accepted admission to a school that I’d never even seen. I’m not the most reliable or responsible source of information. Just remember that you truly have no idea about what a place is like until you actually experience it. You can read about other people’s experiences, but they will be vastly different from yours, which is simultaneously terrifying and amazing. Do whatever you want to do. If you’ve made it this far based on your instincts, don’t lose faith in them.

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