University of Southern California
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Majors: Communications and Human Biology double major
Minor: None
Student Self Identifies as: South Asian Heterosexual Female
Summary
I am involved in many programs and activities through my local mosque which work on both a local and national level. For example, I’m part of a marketing team for a global camp called Global Encounters that brings high school students from all over the world to go to camps that work on development, community, and becoming global citizens. I’m also part of a green initiative through the mosque that’s a national initiative.
Background
Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: South Asian
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual
First-Generation College Student: Yes
Majors: Communications and Human Biology double major
Minor: None
Extracurricular Activities: Right now, I don’t participate in any extracurriculars at my college. However, I am involved in many programs and activities through my local mosque which work on both a local and national level. For example, I’m part of a marketing team for a global camp called Global Encounters that brings high school students from all over the world to go to camps that work on development, community, and becoming global citizens. I’m also part of a green initiative through the mosque that’s a national initiative.
What impact has your work with your mosque had on your college experience?
In terms of my experience at school, they’ve prepared me to be a better leader and a better speaker because they put me in those positions. When I’m at USC and I have to do different presentations, it doesn’t frighten me. It made my interactions in professional settings very calm. It also gave me a nice niche because it’s a community that a lot of USC students don’t have access to.
Academic Experience
Can you describe the weekly coursework for your majors?
I haven’t started my Human Biology major yet, so, right now, most of my classes are essay-based. I have about one essay due every two weeks or so for each class. There are a few classes that have daily homework assignments as well as extensive reading. I’m still doing some of my general education requirements, so for the classes that are more science-based, they have more tests.
Is there anything you feel either of your majors’ departments do especially well or poorly?
The Communications department falls under Annenberg which includes Journalism and Public Relations. Overall, one thing they do well is they keep the material relevant. They’re always molding their curriculum or what they teach to what’s happening in the world around us, so that way we’re not left behind. We’re thinking about the future even when we’re learning about different things happening in the communications world.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I think it’s a little bit of both. People are always open to being collaborative, but, at the end of the day, it is competitive. Even when you’re being collaborative, there’s always that want to be better or to finish first.
How accessible are your professors?
They’re quite accessible. I haven’t had an issue where a professor has not given me time to meet with them. They have their office hours and, for most of the professors, if you email them asking to meet outside of their office hours, they will usually figure it out with you. Meeting with professors is not something we generally have to worry about here.
What was your favorite class you took for your majors?
It’s a class I’m taking this semester. It’s called Mass Media Communication. It’s about mass media and is somewhat related to the social sciences in that it’s very statistics and database-based. When I say that, it doesn’t mean we’re doing hardcore statistics and data analysis, but we’re given information to see how TV networks get their data and how there are different avenues to find this data and make conclusions and how that differs in different media industries. My professor is amazing. She has an insane number of connections both in the communication field and in Hollywood, so she brings in speakers which I think is really awesome.
Why did you pick your majors? Are you happy with your choice?
One of my hobbies is photography and I initially wanted to be a photojournalist and I joined USC as a Journalism major. I took a Journalism class last semester and I didn’t really enjoy the journalism aspect of everything, so I switched to Communications because it allowed me to be a little bit more open with where it allowed me to take my future. Communications is so openly relevant to so many different fields, so that’s why I switched. I still have that interest in creating media, analyzing media, and portraying and presenting different people and companies out there, while, at the same time, it gives me flexibility with where I work or who I work for.
How was transitioning academically as a first-generation college student? Were there any resources or systems in place to help you adapt?
To be honest, it’s confusing. Even now, if someone asks me stuff about college I still don’t feel like I know what I’m doing. I’m going with the flow and figuring it out. Do I wish I had parents that could help me? Of course, every day. But again, it’s not their fault. In terms of resources available, there are people in my Muslim community who have helped me get through the college experience. A lot of them are also first-generation college students, but older first-generation college students. Also, my brother’s a first-generation college student and he tried to help me with whatever he has figured out.
Have you used academic accommodations? If so, how easy are they to work with?
I have time and a half for exams plus a separate learning environment when needed. It wasn’t hard at all to set up. They just needed the forms. They also didn’t say I needed specific forms, they just let me submit whatever forms I had in the past since I had accommodations in high school. I submitted my forms and they just said okay. No one fought me on it, which I was really grateful for.
Reasons to Attend
1) The networking and the alumni. I have not ever seen an alumni network that’s this strong. If you seek out the opportunities with them, you will find what you’re looking for.
2) There are a lot of opportunities available on campus and they have a lot of things that most people are looking for.
3) The staff members here are always open to you taking different opportunities and don’t necessarily shut it down.
4) It’s a great school academically.
Reasons Not to Attend
1) It’s a big school, so if you want a tighter-knit community.
2) It’s a very social school and can be a party school, so if you don’t think you can handle that maybe consider some other place. If you’re somebody who doesn’t partake in it or drink, it can be overwhelming.
Around Campus
Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: I’m a spring admit to USC. I studied abroad my first semester. When I came back to USC, I lived in an off-campus apartment building called University Gateway. We have two bedrooms with four people.
Sophomore: I lived in the same building, University Gateway, with four people again.
How was transitioning from Dallas to Los Angeles in terms of location?
I don’t think the transition was too hard. The only thing that sometimes I would struggle with is in Dallas the only way to get around is to drive your own car. Whereas here, Uber and Lyft are your first mode of transportation. Also, walking places near campus is not something you can do in Dallas. I was looking forward to getting out of Dallas, so it was great.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I think on the surface level, USC tries to do its best safety-wise. We have security officers everywhere you look. But, at the end of the day, there is a limit to what the university can provide us. It’s downtown L.A., so it’s going to be dangerous. There’s usually some crime incident that we get a message about every night.
Social Opportunities
What kind of nightlife or weekend activities do you participate in at USC?
I personally don’t do too much of the nightlife scene. I’m usually hanging out with my friends here or with my friends at UCLA. If we go do something fun, we’ll go sightseeing around L.A. or stay home and cook a meal or hang out and watch a movie. I also spend time on the weekends helping out with my local mosque.
What are some on-campus and off-campus events that you look forward to?
I look forward to my specific Muslim community events personally. Around L.A., there are festivals and concerts that are exciting things to look forward to. It’s also a college environment where you’re not looking forward to it but you get sucked into it. For example, the football games. I don’t look forward to them, but it’s something that’s there and sometimes I guess I am looking forward to it. There are also cultural events that happen throughout the year. In the spring, there is Holi that happens in the quad for the South Asian community.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
Through my first semester where I studied abroad because we were all placed in that situation. In the beginning, none of us were really looking forward to studying abroad in our first semester because we wanted to go to USC, but that was what brought us together. We went through the struggle and ended up having a great time together and making the most of it.
How was transitioning socially as a spring admit?
That’s something that most spring admits have a problem with because socially we are a semester behind on everything. For example, a lot of clubs are recruiting in the spring but they’re not looking for a lot of recruits, usually just two or three. That’s where we get left behind because people have already established their extracurriculars the first semester, especially the first semester freshman year. Also, just in terms of getting a hang of everything, we feel left behind and you feel like a new kid who can’t act like a new kid because it’s the second semester. For me, it’s really nice to have the spring admit community because we will figure it out together.
How would you describe the overall social scene?
At face value, it’s a party school. Random nights you’ll see people partying. That’s what I personally see a lot and partying is a lot of what people look forward to. In my opinion, partying and tailgating are the main ways people socialize.
To what extent do you feel people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
Coming from Texas, I heard that L.A. as a community is very open and liberal. I see that in USC too. It doesn’t really matter what your race or sexual orientation is. I haven’t seen a situation where someone was left out or mistreated because of whatever identifier they have. But, at the same time, I might not be the best person to answer this question because I don’t participate in that big social life that most people participate in. But, I think everyone’s pretty inclusive here.
How would you describe the South Asian community? How strong is it?
I think there is a large presence of all of us here on campus, especially through graduate students. But, I don’t think we’re all unified or connected in any way. Like, there are clubs, but I didn’t hear about the club until last week, which shouldn’t be the case in my opinion. When things like Holi happen, a lot of people come together because it’s fun. The community’s there, but you have to seek them out, they won’t seek you out. [About 21% of undergraduates are Asian.]
How do you like the size of USC in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has that impacted your experience? [USC has about 20,000 undergraduate students.]
I don’t think it’s impacted my experience in a negative or positive way – it’s okay for me. A lot of people were worried for me because my high school was only a graduating class of about 125, so it was quite small. But, I get a little bit of both here because there are some classes that are very small that have around 15-25 people, and there are big lectures that have over 100 people. I think they’re really good about making each class an appropriate size for the class as well. The size is actually one of the reasons why I chose this school. It’s big enough for you to seek out all opportunities, but also small enough so you feel like you’re in a community.
To what extent do people in Greek life and not in Greek life mix socially?
I think Greek life is a huge part of our school here. For example, when the club fair was happening my friends and I were so overwhelmed because there were so many Greek life representatives shouting in our face to come join. At some points, I feel like almost everyone is involved in Greek life somehow because almost everyone’s wearing their backpack or shirt. It’s a big thing here for sure and it’s hard to not run into people in Greek life. Of my close friends, none of us are in Greek life right now and it’s not like anyone will exclude you from being in Greek life. But also, if you’re in a frat and have to choose someone either in your frat or not in your frat, you’ll always choose someone in your frat. [There are 5 Greek councils with 53 organizations.]
Careers
Have you learned any computer programs or languages through your coursework that will be especially helpful to you professionally?
Not really, except for I learned three new things in Excel last semester from one of my classes. Other than that, no.