USC ADMISSIONS RESULTS FOR THE 2020 Applying CLASS

The USC acceptance rate is 12.5% because it is a highly desired research university with a media and entertainment bent right in the heart of Los Angeles. Acceptance rate or admissions rate often represents how enticing a school is to attend, and in USC’s case, it gets a lot of applications (it was the top #14 most applied to school in 2021). The University of Southern California is not only a school known for its sports program, USC is also home to a legendary film and cinematography program, professors with expertise in media and entertainment, a leading research university, and academics program. To get into a school like USC, you will need to perform well in almost all of your college application components, including USC’s supplemental essays. If you’re considering applying to USC, one question you may ask yourself is “What is USC’s acceptance rate?”. Read on to learn about USC’s acceptance rate in detail.

USC Early DECISION Acceptance Rate

USC doesn’t publicly release acceptance rate data about its early action program in its Common Data Set, but it has published that it accepts “about 20-25 percent” of its incoming class through its early action program. If you are curious about this data, reach out to the University of Southern California’s admissions department to learn more. Early action or early decision acceptance rates tend to be a bit higher than regular decisions acceptance rates.

USC REGULAR DECISION Acceptance Rate

USC’s regular decision process is one of the most selective in the country. USC’s regular decision admissions acceptance rate for the class applying during the 2020 cycle was approximately 12.5% because it had an around 71,031 applicants and it admitted about 8,884. USC has had far more applicants each year since at least the 2018-19 application season. The University of Southern California’s admission rate has fluctuated a bit each year, but its most recent years are trending towards historically high numbers of applications. Read some example essays from successful USC applicants to see how others have told their story and gotten accepted to USC.

USC Regular Decisions Acceptance Statistics FOR THE 2019-22 Applying CLASSes

Reporting Year	Applicants	Admittees	Acceptance Rate
2021-22	71,031	8,884	12.5%
2020-21	59,712	9,618	16.1%
2019-20	66,198	7,558	11.4%

Source: USC Institutional Research: Common Data Set 2021-2022 Historical

USC ACCEPTANCE STATISTICS and demographics

The University of Southern California accepts a relatively diverse class of students. Students that get accepted to USC often show their background and unique experiences through their college essays.

USC Student Statistics Class Enrolled in Fall of 2021

Race/Ethnicity	Students	Percentage
Nonresidents	2,562	12%
Hispanic/Latino	3,581	17%
Black or African American, non-Hispanic	1,222	6%
White, non-Hispanic	6,674	32%
American Indian or Alaska Native, non-Hispanic	29	0%
Asian, non-Hispanic	4,971	24%
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic	55	0%
Two or more races, non-Hispanic	1,270	6%
Race and/or ethnicity unknown	426	2%
TOTAL	20,790	100.0%

Source: USC Institutional Research: Common Data Set 2021-2022 Historical

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