Ask a Trojan: Merit Aid from USC
Hi there!
First off, if you haven’t yet seen it, check out Jamie’s awesome video about non-need based financial aid. It does a great job of breaking down the different options and resources available.
But USC can be expensive, so it’s worth having two posts about all the great financial aid opportunities! I want to share my personal story with merit based financial aid too and give you some more ideas to keep getting merit based financial aid from the University after freshman year.
If you’re a high school senior, the first thing (and I cannot stress this enough) is apply early. As Jamie said, December 1st is the deadline to be considered for merit-based aid. USC has a wide-range of scholarships available—including full scholarships to the school! They give out 300+ full and half tuition scholarships with NO additional application: all you have to do is apply by December 1st!
Side-note: if you’re a National Merit Finalist and name USC as your top school…congrats you automatically get half tuition! So study up for that PSAT!!
And those scholarships have other perks too. If you have an half tuition or more merit scholarship to the University, you’re automatically able to live in the “honors dorm”—and that’s a very cool experience. Some of my closest friends lived in that dorm freshman year and they LOVED it. It helps you develop a community and close friends on your floor.
But even if you don’t get one of those big scholarships to the school, there are also other scholarships. I receive the “Deans Scholarship” which is 25% tuition. While it’s not as much as a half- or full- tuition scholarship, it definitely helps.
Already enrolled? Never fear! There are a lot of other great scholarship opportunities available as well. My personal favorite is the USC Alumni scholarship. Almost every area has a USC alumni association (the sun never sets on the Trojan Family, after all) and many of them offer scholarships to current students on a yearly basis. I highly recommend marking their deadline down in your calendar. It’s an easy application and a great way to connect with alumni from your area…while also helping with the cost of college.
And as Jamie mentioned, there are a whole bunch of other merit scholarships available, both from USC and from outside organizations. Make sure to check out some of the resources Jamie mentions in her video and also the full list of USC scholarships here.
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