This year’s USC Minority Serving Institutions Graduate and Professional Recruitment Conference took place on November 10-11. 88 students traveled from minority-serving institutions from all over the country and state to take part in the annual conference.
The conference was created in 2021 by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to introduce USC’s graduate degree opportunities to a diverse student population. Twenty graduate programs from USC were present at the conference explaining the process of admissions, cost of attendance, scholarship opportunities and campus tours.
The conference has been monumental in increasing diversity in the graduate programs here at USC. Allowing students who historically have been left out of these programs a head start in the graduate school process.
An aspiring film student Drake Stokes from Prairie View A&M University, a HBCU located 45 miles north of Houston, Texas, said of his experience during the conference “USC is that stepping stone and I want to be a part of that group that allows USC to teach them to be successful in education and the business.”
The weekend began on Friday with a welcome BBQ. The Marshall Business School lawn was transformed into a dazzling venue with lights hanging from the trees and a dj. Students were welcomed by the conference’s program director Professor Miki Turner and mingled with professors and admissions staff. The night was wrapped up with a surprise performance from USC’s majorette team the Cardinal Divas.
Saturday started bright and early with students hearing from admissions about the application process and requirements. The keynote speaker this year was Quade French the Associate Dean and Chief Diversity Officer of USC Dornsife. French said that he learned from watching his son “... how essential it is to do whatever you can to avoid shutting yourself off from joy.”
Soon after students were broken off into smaller two-panel sessions with their schools of interest. Students were able to talk with admissions, professors, and current USC students from their intended programs.
After a quick lunch and a campus tour, the students heard from an alumni panel. The alumni talked about their experience in graduate school here at USC and how it helped them get to where they are now in their career field.
The conference ended in the Center for Black Cultural and Student Affairs where Dr. Maria Romero-Morales, Assistant Chief Diversity Officer for Communication, Community, and Student Engagement, awarded prizes to those who had been the most interactive through out the conference and gave a final farewell. The room was full of smiles and hugs as the conference came to an end. Students told their fellow peers " see you next year” as they were now confident and inspired to be accepted into the programs here at USC.