There’s a new set of Trojans ready to storm through the University of Southern California. No, we’re not talking about a new edition of The Iliad hitting shelves. These Trojans are totally real, and they’re joining the USC Class of 2030!

The pristine private research university recently announced that 79,290 applicants applied for admission, and only 9,251 were admitted for the Fall semester. While USC did not set a record for acceptance or application volume, its 10.4% acceptance rate for the Class of 2030 still places USC among the most selective colleges in the nation. 

University of Southern California Acceptance Rate and Admissions Statistics (Classes of 2030 — 2019)

University of Southern California Class Year	Total Applications Received	Total Applications Accepted	Overall Acceptance Rate
Class of 2030	79,290	9,251	11.67%
Class of 2029	83,500	8,684	10.4%
Class of 2028	82,027	8,050	9.8%
Class of 2027	80,808	8,094	10.0%
Class of 2026	69,000	8,200	11.9%
Class of 2025	71,000	8,804	12.4%
Class of 2024	60,000	9,500	15.8%
Class of 2023	66,000	7,260	11.0%
Class of 2022	64,256	8,258	12.9%
Class of 2021	56,000	8,980	16.0%
Class of 2020	54,100	8,920	16.5%
Class of 2019	51,800	9,050	17.5%

USC’s Class of 2029 in Historical Perspective

Looking at the admissions data over the last 12 years, one immediately notices the number of USC applications rising year by year. This year, however, that trend came to a halt. Not that the roughly 80,000 prospective Trojans are anything to dismiss. That’s more people than who live in many medium-sized towns! Nonetheless, there’s no getting around the fact that USC may have lost just a little bit of admissions momentum this year.

Ivy Coach reported last year that the slightly larger size of the admitted students cohort corresponded to the University of Southern California’s stated goal of increasing the size of the student body, so we wouldn’t be too surprised if the 9,251 students admitted this year, the largest cohort recorded in the last six years, represents a continuation of this institutional goal.

Demographics of the USC Class of 2030

We don’t know a lot about this new crop of Trojans. Predictably, USC has not released any data on the racial makeup of this cohort, as doing so would violate the 2023 SCOTUS ruling outlawing the use of race-based Affirmative Action. However, the Annenberg Media press release on the subject has elucidated some crucial details:

“According to the USC Office of Admission, first-generation students comprise 20% of fall admitted students. All 50 states are represented in the admitted class of 2029, with California students representing 39% of fall admissions. Texas, New York, Washington, Illinois and Florida were the next most represented states.”

We wish we could lavish our readers with any details whatsoever, including the proportion of international students, low-income students, and the standardized test profile of this new class. Alas, this data will not be revealed until USC publishes its next edition of its Common Data Set.

Getting Started with Ivy Coach on University of Southern California Appeal

You might have stumbled across this post because you’re seeking help with an appeal after receiving a rejection from USC. If this sounds like you’d like to enlist Ivy Coach’s assistance with your USC appeal process, fill out our complimentary consultation form and indicate that you were denied at USC and are seeking to appeal your decision. We’ll then be in touch to outline our go-forward service.