2025: a year that seems way in the future, but somehow it’s a benchmark that’s already breaking barriers for USC. The class of 2025, also known as the current freshman class, is the most diverse group of students this campus has ever seen.
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The class of 2025 is very diverse racially and ethnically.
This is something that we have long been working towards.
Tim Brunold is USC’s Dean of Admissions. He says the latest news is good, but it is just a step.
And you know, we can never say, Oh, OK, we’re diverse enough or, you know, we’ve succeeded and we have to stop trying.
USC freshman biochemistry student Taran Gupta shares his experiences on campus.
I think USC is a place where you can be yourself. And I’ve found that through the many clubs that I’ve joined and just the people I’ve met. I’ve met people from all different walks of life.
The applicant pool was huge -- over 70,000 students from around the world applied for fall admission. And, this was during a global pandemic when the admissions office had to conduct most of its recruitment virtually. They also changed some of their requirements. Most notably, last year’s applicants did not have to submit a standardized test score. Again, USC’s Dean of Admissions Tim Brunold.
This is going to be a very interesting year this year to see how the students that we selected do in their first year of college because the standardized tests have really been designed to predict first year performance in college.
Because SAT or ACT scores were optional, less than half of applicants ended up including one. USC freshman Anthony Guzman did not submit his test scores. He’s grateful for this new policy.
I think it was pretty beneficial for me as a low income student because I just couldn’t afford like all those like fancy tutoring services.
USC won’t require a test score for the next two years. This could incentivize an even more diverse applicant pool.
There’s another policy change that may be swaying the surge: it’s called “The Affordability Initiative.” This initiative offers full financial aid for students coming from households with less than $80,000 in income. Since this began about a year ago, USC now admits its highest ever percentage of first generation college students. Ten years ago, that number was about 14%. Now, about 23% of admitted students are the first in their family to go to college.
According to Dean Brunold, financial status is not a factor when considering a student’s admission. Instead, the university is trying more than ever to consider the applicants with what he calls a “360-degree view.” With that in mind, freshman Anthony Guzman has this advice for anyone who’s applying to USC: be as authentic as possible on your application!
A lot of people think of college admissions as like a game where you have to like, break the code and like, do these specific things and you’ll get like a higher chance to go there. Um, I would say stay clear away from that mentality. There’s not really that much that you can do other than be yourself.
While the increased diversity of the class of 2025 is a step in the right direction for the Trojan community, there is still work to be done.