When I was looking for a university to attend after high school there were a few must-haves that I looked for.
– Academics: Math and science were always my favorites in high school, therefore I was pretty certain that I wanted to study engineering in college. Naturally I wanted a school with a strong engineering program.
-Size: I really wanted to go to school that had all the benefits of a large university (research opportunities, career services, alumni connections, etc) but didn’t make me feel like I was getting lost in a crowd. USC and Viterbi were perfect since Viterbi felt like a smaller school within a large one. I never feel like i am getting lost in a crowd at Viterbi. I know most of the staff, students, and chemical engineering faculty. Outside of Viterbi I can explore things that are not related to engineering and meet people from all different majors.

Repping USC in SanFran for the USC-Cal game with friends (fellow engineers and students in PR, business, IR, and health promotion!)
-Location: Being from AZ I really wanted to live in a place with lots of SUNSHINE! I had visited California many times and was pretty certain that I wanted to go to school somewhere in southern California. Within a 20 min radius of USC there is plenty of great food, Los Angeles attractions, and the beach!! The fact that the beach was so close was a huge plus in my eyes 🙂
After narrowing down my selection of schools, my decision came down to which school felt like the right fit. I visited USC for the Explore USC program and got a chance to familiarize myself with the campus and meet students. After spending time on campus I could really picture myself at SC and I was sold!
Good luck making you decisions!