Palmetto Tour: 3rd stop - USC

After spending a day at Clemson, we hit the road for USC. We arrived around dinner time and enjoyed an excellent dinner in downtown Columbia (shrimp and grits, anyone?). By 8:00 the next morning we were walking on the absolutely gorgeous campus of the University of South Carolina.

 We were told that the University of South Carolina also goes by USC (not to be confused by the "other" USC on the west coast) as well as Carolina (not to be confused with "that other" school in Chapel Hill). In the state of South Carolina, everyone knows what school you are referring to if you say USC or Carolina.

First up was a presentation from the admissions office. It was very interesting to hear about all of the changes at USC in recent years. We have certainly seen increased interest in USC from Visitation students and have noticed that their admissions process has become more selective. Apparently we are not the only school that is sending more applications their way!

• In the 1970's and 1980's USC received 70% of their funding from the state of South Carolina. In 2011, they received 9% of their funding from the state. Unlike the state of North Carolina, there is no out of state enrollment cap.
• Interest in USC is WAY up. They have experienced a 283% (that's not a typo) increase in visitors (ie prospective students visiting the campus) since 2003. In 2003 they hosted 8864 visitors and in 2011 they hosted 34, 027!
• This year they received 23,000 applications and they plan to bring in a class of 4700. Over the last ten years USC has grown from an undergraduate student body of about 15,000 students to 20,000 students.
• We heard a lot about USC's academic succcess center, their honors program (which was recently ranked #1 in the country according to the soon-to-be published guide, "A Review of Fifty Public University Honors Programs."), and their University 101 orientation program.
• 45% of the students at USC come from out of state; USC has the higest number of out of state students of any university in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), except for Vanderbilt.
• USC has an 86% retention rate and a 70% six year graduation rate.
• A note about USC's October 15th Early Action deadline - THERE IS NO ADVANTAGE in the admissions process for students who apply by this deadline. Only students who are clearly admissible will be admitted Early Action. Talk to your college counselor about whether this would be a good deadline for you!
Highlights of the USC tour included the new residence hall for students in the honors program. It was absolutely gorgeous and located in the best spot on campus. I have NEVER seen a college dorm like this one!

The highlight of the trip for me was meeting up with '08 Visi grad Caitlin Mayo. She was a top student at Visitation and will be graduating from USC's honors program with a degree in Accounting. Wondering what USC students wear to class? Here is a picture of Caitlin and me:

She has studied aboard in Barcelona and is a member of a sorority at USC. Best of all, she has already secured an accounting job back in DC after she finishes up her last semester. Caitlin would be happy to talk to any Visi students who are interested in USC and/or the honors program there. Ask your college counselor for her email.
Published by: TSM