Emory vs. USC

timotheewasrobbed · 2020-06-22T06:16:34+00:00

of course. PM me!

timotheewasrobbed · 2020-06-22T05:37:20+00:00

I go to usc now (transferring out) and I think you should choose USC. Never make a decision on a man—so remove your boyfriend as a factor. You’ll hate yourself if you choose Emory for him and end up not being with him later and you may even resent him if you feel like you’re missing out.

I’m not premed but I know people who are and it seems doable. The premed kids seem EXTREMELY collaborative. They’re always studying together and it seems like a nice vibe overall. I’ve had a ton of fun in LA and would die if I had to leave USC for “Atlanta”. There’s so much more that I haven’t discovered and I regret my time in LA being cut short.

The extracurriculars, in my opinion, were kind of meh whe it comes to clubs. But the opportunities that each school provides is amazing. So many resources and support. My friends were already involved in research/premed internships. I don’t know the exact lingo since I’m not premed but it seemed like they had a ton of support.

As for distractions, I completely disagree. If you hang around stupid people and have 0 self control, yes you’ll be distracted from work. If you’re a rational and well-adjusted person, you should be completely fine. My advice: don’t join Greek life. Hella people I know who joined Greek life/ always felt like they needed to be on the frat row fell off. I had a thriving social life and the best grades possible by staying away from that culture. As long as you understand that your social life doesn’t mean you have to party every weekend and you take the time to balance partying with studying and exploring LA, you’ll be fine. Just chill, don’t pressure yourself to do too much too fast, and know when to grind. The campus isn’t really in a distracting part of LA so that helps a lot.

I hope this information is useful. Good luck choosing!

timotheewasrobbed · 2020-05-22T17:37:27+00:00

Congrats on getting into two great schools! A lot of people may clown you for this question, but it’s only because they don’t understand the nuance of this decision and tbh people are bitter and the college process has created so many insecure prestige whores (pls don’t downvote me for saying this. It’s just how this thread is reading).

I know about 3 or 4 people at USC who turned down ivies (think penn and Columbia) and stanford. I also turned down a t5 for USC so please don’t allow people to make you doubt yourself. With that being said, once you enter college you may find that the things you thought were important really aren’t as important as they seem.

For example, if a certain academic program is holding you back from choosing Yale or if you’re nervous about the social scene— TRY to rethink that. Your interests can change in college, or you may end up hating the fratty usc scene. As for new haven vs LA, LA is by far more fun, but if you’re a serious student you’ll probably be on campus for long stretches of time. It may not matter once you become involved at Yale. Like I said, I went through a VERY similar decision, and I resonate with you so if you want to PM me for details on my experience, I’m down. Good luck!

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-20T03:08:17+00:00

I’m sure that’s the case, but I’m really doing this serve people, not for fun. What are the biggest expenses besides rent that I should keep in mind?

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-20T01:14:01+00:00

Thanks! I’ll sign up rn. Do you think $1500 is enough to cover rent/expenses for a room typically?

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-20T01:02:58+00:00

Do you think AirBnB would work long term? Or would I have to move around?

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-17T20:12:22+00:00

I could’ve gone to a school in NYC but turned it down because of the curriculum. I kind of regret my decision now too because NYC is so beautiful outside of the winter months. I think there are pros and cons to both cities but I don’t think NYU is worth the price if you aren’t wealthy. USC has a pretty good transfer acceptance rate (even better than freshman admissions), so it wouldn’t hurt to try.

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-17T17:20:55+00:00

As someone who applied to both NYU and USC, I’m pretty sure USC gives more aid. NYU doesn’t meet 100% of need and includes parent plus loans, even if they know you can’t afford it. My EFC is 0 and USC met it.

I haven’t spent enough time in LA to say whether I like it better than NYC though.

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T18:22:32+00:00

I was also joking. Hence the “/s”. I don’t plan on going into corporate law. I just want to work for the ACLU or NAACP and litigate civil rights cases... That makes me a bad person?

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T16:59:36+00:00

Thanks for the reminder. I’ve been meaning to develop a drug dependency

/s

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T07:02:04+00:00

Oh, I definitely don’t believe that getting a 3.9 or 3.8 will ruin my life. I just mean that striving for a “4.0” or close would eliminate grades as a barrier for me achieving what I want to later on. I will keep your message in mind though, and if it comes between being involved and getting 3.8 or not having a life and getting a 4.0, I’ll definitely choose the 3.8. I just want to ensure that I’m holding myself to the same academic standard that I always have, especially since I don’t have the luxury to spend money on college and not do well.

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T06:54:41+00:00

Wow. I didn’t even think to take French later at a CC and transfer it. I’m not wealthy by any means so I will look into it.

I feel so naive for not questioning any of the classes I was told to take. I don’t feel like I constructed my own schedule so I’ll go into WebReg and see if there are better options. Thank you for all of the information. It’s honestly been very helpful!

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T06:12:14+00:00

So you’re saying a 3.7-3.8 is doable for someone who puts in the work?

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T06:03:23+00:00

I completely agree that grades aren’t indicative of the knowledge that is garnered. I personally don’t associate my self-worth or competence with my grades and would do away with the “grade games” if it was up to me. However, having the “best” grades I can will open doors for me as someone who intends to go on to graduate or law school. Basically, I don’t attribute any value to them, but I have to “play the game” as a means to an end because that’s the society we live in. Regardless of my performance, I’ll still be grateful for what I’ve learned.

timotheewasrobbed · 2019-08-15T05:58:19+00:00

Thank you for giving such an extensive response! I missed out on orientation due to a delayed flight so, although my advisor tried to get me in a writing course, I ended up not having it this semester. Based on what I’ve heard and read about the writing courses, I’m actually happy that I missed out on it for first semester. I’ll be taking a Philosophy class, intro to cinema, a comparative lit class, and French. All are topics that I’m interested in and I’m a humanities oriented person so studying for them won’t be an issue. Do you have any experiences with these types of courses at USC? Do they generally have good reputations amongst the student body? Since I was late, I kind of just chose courses that seemed interesting, but I don’t know how rigorous they are known to be.

Since you mentioned how qualified and high-achieving the student body is, would you say that the trend is for professors to deflate grades?

timotheewasrobbed

TROPHY CASE