University of Southern California Top Questions

I’m most frustrated by the immense quantity of students here who were accepted not due to their amazing academic records or their glittering portfolios, but because of their rich parents and their connections. It’s unbelievable what sort of power the wealthy and well-networked wield in the sphere of college acceptance. I know that this pattern repeats itself in all walks of life and is, to some degree, to be taken in stride, but it still gets me steamed when I learn that my rich-and-influential classmate’s high school GPA was hardly more than half mine.

The amount of coursework

It's expensive.

The school (and Los Angeles in general) is very expensive.

The most frustrating thing about my school is probably the continued "improvement." This comes in the form of annoying new security measures, inconvenient construction and the like.

There is always construction.

The most frustrating thing about my school is that it is always under construction so you never know when there is going to be a street closed or detour to get to class.

It's located in a rough neighborhood.

The division of the student body into greek and non-greek students. Although students of non sorority or fraternity background are often friends with those of these backgrounds, the presence of this division seems to divide the student body. It is frustrating to see my peers feel that they have to put on a certain personality in order to fit this bilateral mold.

There is nothing frustrating about the school. I love USC!

It's frustrating that Greek life at USC is so exclusive. I am in Sigma Nu, a large and popular fraternity of over 150 men. Even with our large membership, we have so few men of color in our chapter. Furthermore, we have a disproportionate member of gay and bisexual brothers. Furthermore, almost everyone in our chapter is wealthy. Other fraternities and sororities on campus also excluse potential members on the basis of race, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. This is not only frustrating. It is heartbreaking and destructive to my dream of equality on campus and in the world.

Every now and then, the constant partying and alcohol drinking becomes frustrating. Every week, Thursday through Saturday, the Greek Row hosts various parties and registers. You see half-naked girls in ridiculous outfits parading down the street (some of them already drunk) toward the frat houses, where anything and everything goes. During the rest of the week, you see those same partiers eating well-balanced meals and working out to stay in shape, and you wonder whether anyone is aware of the negative health effects of binge drinking.

Students are sometimes discouraged by the perception that Greek Life dominates the social scene, preventing them from becoming involved on campus. It also leads to an us versus them mentality, until Game Day.

Sorry on this one. I just like it. If anything the campus doesn't look like an astute campus, such as UCLA or Harvard-some what of a subjective account. I wanted to attend Stanford. Didn't apply. However I'm glad I'm here.

USC is located in downtown Los Angeles, and while the city is doing a lot to spruce up the downtown area and fight crime, the school still exists in a bubble. There are a lot of campus activities for students throughout the year, and there is a bus to take students down to LA Live, but if you don't have a car, LA is difficult to really experience, and USC isn't in the middle of the "hot" scene - restaurants, culture, nightlife, etc.

USC itself does not have any flaws. However, the neighborhood it dwells in is considered unsafe.

The cost of tuition.

I get extremely frustrated when the Department of Campus Security confiscates bikes that are not on bike racks even though it is obvious that there are not enough bike racks around campus. The fact that they charge us a fee to get back out bikes adds to my annoyance. The solution to getting bikes out of the way is to simply build more bike racks, but unfortunately they do not seem to understand.

It advertises that it gives a lot of financial aid, but my peers and I know that that really isn't true.

Everybody's from California!

No

Not being able to go off campus without feeling unsafe.

USC is located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles and while the school itself is beautiful and well maintained, the surrounding area is very low-income and like any city, crime ridden. It is not safe to walk alone at night; however during the day students can be seen up to 5 blocks off campus in every direction. Another thing that could be frusterating to some is how large and important the greek system is at USC-most students are greek and those who aren't are not allowed at greek parties unless invited by a friend.

It is now environmentally concious and will often avoid solving a problem in order to prevent bad publicity. There is a lot of underhanded politics that go on to keep the school in a good light.

The most frustrating aspect of USC is that the professors are fresh from their field and have so much to offer, but have little experience in the delivery of the message. Their information is valuable, but neither organized nor comprehensive, so the only way to absorb knowledge is to interact one-on-one, which can be difficult because, as leading researchers, their time is limited. We have sharp-minded professors, they just need to take a course on how to communicate the lesson with students.

Its tuition.

Lack of public transportation and local bars. (More of a city problem though) And the incredibly terrible university shopping center.

The most frustrating thing is the lack of good food available. We pay so much, and yet it's nearly impossible to find a decent tasting, healthy meal.

lack of green space to play sports

The amount of schoolwork can easily become overwhelming. I sometimes worry that professors don't realize we have homework for three of four other classes besides theirs. USC Is definitely very academically focused and competitive.

Like the worst thing, when I transferred I had no real way to make friends. I had to join a bunch of clubs and still it was difficult.

The most frustrating thing is the surrounding area, but it isn't bad at all.