Address: University Park Campus, 90089 Los Angeles, California, United States
Cinematic Arts, Engineering, Business (Marshall)
The University of Southern California is a private research university in Los Angeles and the oldest private research university in California. It opened on 6 October 1880 with 53 students and ten faculty, after Judge Robert M. Widney secured donations from several figures in early Los Angeles history. Tuition at the start was 15 dollars per term, the first class graduated in 1884 with three students, and the Widney Alumni House of 1880 remains the oldest university building in Southern California.
USC enrolls roughly 21,000 undergraduates and 28,500 postgraduates from all fifty US states and more than 115 countries. It consists of the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences and 22 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools, and it has been officially nonsectarian since 1926, when the Methodist church withdrew. The three teaching hospitals and the Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy are grouped on a separate Health Sciences campus to the north-east of the main campus.
The university is especially known for programmes in film, law, music, public administration, physical therapy, business, engineering and social work. In the 1920s it created one of the country’s first schools of international relations and of public administration, together with a pioneering cinematography programme, and it awarded its first doctoral degree in 1923. Its School of Cinematic Arts is described as the oldest and largest film school in the United States, the Information Sciences Institute founded in 1972 contributed to the growth of the internet, and the Trojans have won more than 100 NCAA team championships.
Domains taught:
AI and Machine Learning, Data Analytics, Engineering, Industrial Design, Project Management, Software Engineering, Sound Engineering
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Private
Partnerships:
Located in Los Angeles, with strong ties to entertainment, media, and tech industries. Extensive global partnerships and a large international student body. Member of AAU. Operates Institute for Creative Technologies.
Research:
A leading research university with strengths in cinematic arts, engineering (AI, robotics, game design, biomedical), communication, health sciences, and business innovation. High research activity.
Famous Alumnis:
George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Will Ferrell, Neil Armstrong (MS), Shonda Rhimes, John Wayne, Forest Whitaker
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
10200
Current students***:
49500
Foreign students***:
20%
Cumulative former students***:
405000
Pros
World-renowned film school, strong engineering and business programs, vibrant LA location with extensive industry links, large and influential alumni network (“Trojan Family”).
Cons
Very expensive tuition and cost of living, highly competitive admissions, large campus in an urban area can feel overwhelming, past admissions scandals impacted reputation.
Best For
Students aspiring to careers in film, media, engineering, business, or communication, often valuing strong industry connections, a dynamic Los Angeles environment, and a powerful alumni network.
University of California, Los Angeles lies in the same city and is known for medicine, film and television, and engineering, with about 46,500 students against roughly 49,500 at USC.
Stanford University is a much smaller private university of about 17,800 students, with computer science, engineering and a graduate school of business among its flagship areas.
New York University has around 60,000 students and offers arts through its Tisch school and business through its Stern school, a counterpart to USC’s cinema and business schools in another large city.
University of Pennsylvania enrolls about 28,200 students and is known for business through Wharton, as well as medicine and nursing, which gives it a professional-school profile close to USC.
Northwestern University has about 23,500 students and is known for journalism through Medill, communication and business, a private research university with a strong media orientation.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
University of Toronto in Canada enrolls about 97,500 students and is known for medicine, engineering and artificial intelligence, a large urban research university comparable to USC in its breadth.
University of Melbourne in Australia has about 58,100 students and teaches medicine, engineering, science, arts, law and business across a comprehensive range.
National University of Singapore counts about 35,900 students and combines engineering, computing, medicine, business and law, with a professional-school mix close to USC’s.
University of Hong Kong has around 39,200 students and covers medicine, dentistry, law, business and architecture, a set of professional faculties similar to those of USC.
King's College London in the United Kingdom enrolls about 33,500 students in humanities, law and health sciences, offering a central-London research setting.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
When was USC founded?
The University of Southern California opened on 6 October 1880 and is the oldest private research university in California. Judge Robert M. Widney led the effort, and the first term started with 53 students and ten faculty.
How large is the university?
It enrolls roughly 21,000 undergraduates and 28,500 postgraduates. They come from all fifty US states and more than 115 countries.
How is USC organised?
It has the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences and 22 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. The Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy and the three teaching hospitals sit on a separate Health Sciences campus to the north-east.
Is USC a religious institution?
It was founded under the sponsorship of the Methodist Conference of Southern California and has been officially nonsectarian since 1926. Today it describes itself as historically Methodist but nonsectarian.
What is USC best known for?
Its programmes in film, law, music, public administration, physical therapy, business, engineering and social work are especially well known. The School of Cinematic Arts is described as the oldest and largest film school in the United States.
What is the oldest building on campus?
The Widney Alumni House, built in 1880, is the oldest university building in Southern California. It was the first building of the young university.
What is the USC motto?
The Latin motto is “Palmam qui meruit ferat”, which translates as “Let whoever earns the palm bear it”. The sports teams are known as the Trojans.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Biomedical Sensors, Engineering, Innovation, Robotics, Software, User experience (UX), Value Proposition
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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