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 — they’re joining the USC Class of 2029!

The pristine private research university recently announced that a new record was set during this past admissions cycle, with 83,500 applicants trying their hand at admission and only 8,700 and 2,200 students admitted for the fall and spring semesters, respectively. While USC did not set a record for acceptance, its 10.4% acceptance rate for the Class of 2029 still places USC among the most selective colleges in the nation. 

USC Acceptance Rate and Admissions Statistics (Classes of 2029 — 2019)

University of Southern California Class Year	Total Applications Received	Total Applications Accepted	Overall Acceptance Rate
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%

University of Southern California’s Class of 2029 in Historical Perspective

Taking a look at the admissions data over the last 11 years, one immediately notices the number of USC applications shooting up year-by-year, punctuated by this most recent cycle’s roughly 83,500 applicants. Accompanying this surge in applications has been a parallel decrease in acceptance rate. Last year, the Class of 2028 was admitted at a record-low rate of 9.8%, the first time and only in USC’s history that acceptance dipped into the single digits.

Still, this year’s historical applicant tally begs the question: if more students applied than ever, why wasn’t acceptance any lower? The answer lies in the fact that USC admissions officers admitted over 600 more students this year than last year. Why is this the case? It’s certainly not because USC is anticipating a lower yield this year, which would necessitate more applicants to fill out the class, not less.

According to USC Annenberg Media, “the USC Office of Admission said the enrollment numbers aimed to meet ‘higher enrollment targets for 2025-26.’” In other words, USC is curating a larger class this year than they did last year. Had they had the same enrollment targets this year as last year, the acceptance rate would have presumably been the lowest ever recorded for the Class of 2029.

Demographics of the USC Class of 2029

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 more details, 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 USC 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 seeking to appeal your decision. We’ll then be in touch to outline our go-forward service.