From the Director's Chair

The University is closed for the holidays and all the students are gone.  In fact, everyone is gone, except for me, it seems, and the squirrels playing on the Horseshoe.  I like this time of the semester because the campus takes on a serene mood.   A quiet campus is the perfect setting for scholarship screening, which is why I am at work today.   I just finished reading a stack of applications for the South Carolina Honors College and the McNair Scholarship program, our most prestigious scholarship for non-South Carolina residents.  All I can say is "wow".  I continue to be extremely impressed with the talents and accomplishments of these students.   It is almost an impossible task, to decide who will move on in the competition, when the caliber of applicants is so strong and all are so deserving.   But, I must choose, and choose I will.

Campus is quiet now, but when we return January 2, we begin our final phase of the admission decision cycle for the Fall 2008 freshman class, and things won't be so quiet anymore.  So far, we have received about four applications for each space in the freshman class, a new all-time record for USC.  It's nice to be so popular!

Students that applied by our October 1 early answer date have received their admission status, but for the vast majority of applicants applied after October 1, and  for these we have not yet made a decision and will not be able to do so for some time.  We will send out the rest of our admission decisions in early March, once all applicants have had a complete and thorough review. 

And so, if you are waiting for an answer from us, we appreciate your patience as we work as quickly and carefully as we can to review your application. 

May this holiday season be restful and peaceful for you and your loved ones!