When I was a senior in high school, USC was my dream school. It had been a part of my life for as long as I could remember since so many of my family members were alumni. Unfortunately, I was rejected, and it was a tough blow. It took me some time to recover from that disappointment, but I soon realized that attending USC could still be within reach when I learned about the Trojan Transfer Plan (TTP). At the time, TTP was offered to a select group of students, giving us the opportunity to study at one of five USC-accredited universities in Europe.

Did you know the average bagel has a history as rich as its flavor? Originating in 17th-century Poland, bagels have traveled the world to become a breakfast (and anytime) staple, especially here in LA, where creativity and quality shine. If you’re craving a bagel that’s perfectly chewy on the inside and crisp on the outside, look no further. This roundup features some of the best bagel spots I’ve discovered in Los Angeles, each offering something unique.

The Trojan legacy is deeply rooted in the prominence of the football team: gameday traditions, tailgating, and everything surrounding USC athletics. Established in 1888, USC Trojans football has claimed several national championships, 55 bowl appearances, and over 800 wins as of 2024. This football team made their first collegiate appearance in 1889, taking victory 40-0 against St. Vincent’s College. Today, all USC home football games take place at the historic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, commissioned in 1921 as a tribute to veterans of World War I and is a site of 3 Summer Olympics.

Yes, I am majoring in sociology, but boy, do I love money as much as the next person pursuing computer science for that fat check. It is perhaps the very fact that I am pursuing a traditionally less lucrative major that I feel the need to throw myself into whatever opportunities possible to make the most of my grand fee to be at this school. 

You're walking on campus, it’s impossible not to notice the number of electric scooters. I’ve been to other colleges, and I really can’t say that this is a universal epidemic. Maybe it’s due to the number of free scooters handed out to student athletes at USC, but it is remarkable to see the sheer quantity on a campus that isn’t even half a square mile. So, since there are so many, here’s a little breakdown of the different types of scooter riders you may see around campus.

You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve woken up just minutes before my 8:00 a.m. class. After rushing through the essentials and stepping out of my dorm, that familiar sinking feeling hits me: I’m a good 15-minute walk from class. If I try to avoid showing up sweaty, it’s more like 20 minutes. Inevitably, I find myself walking in 10 minutes late, awkwardly squeezing into the only available seat right in the middle of the room, having all these eyes staring at my sweaty self.

For those who’ve tried Notion, physical planners, or just Google Calendar, sometimes it can be hard to choose and stick with a platform for that one-stop place for all your tasks. For me, since freshman year, I've created a google sheet listing out all of my assignments and deadlines for the semester and it's been a game changer. 

December is the month of changes—winter beginning (with 80 degrees weather, but so be it), grades coming to a close (scarier in the short-term than climate change), students returning home (although this is probably less exciting if your home is nearby) and the year coming to a close.

It’s peppermint season, and you know what that means: new Starbucks holiday items. Every year, Starbucks releases new treats to celebrate the holiday season. This year, they released on November 7, and are set to leave stores in mid-January. Among the new delicacies are a seasonal refresher — the Cran-Merry Orange refresher — and a new pastry — the Dark Toffee Bundt. I tried them so you don’t have to, and by the end of the article, you can decide whether you’ll indulge in the new snacks or just stick to the peppermint basics.

The start of the new year feels like a blank slate or the perfect opportunity to rewrite the script of our lives. For years, I embraced the spirit of the New Years’ resolution, partly because it was a popular grade school post-recess activity and partly because I genuinely enjoyed believing I would be a different person in the next calendar year. My lists would look a little different every year but would still be brimming with the same ambitious flavor.

Once you have gathered the Matcha personnel explored in my previous article, you can start experimenting with how you would prefer to make your matcha. I’ll give you the basic guide on what I follow when making my matcha, but feel free to adjust anything within this guide to your liking!

For most people, Sunday mornings are meant for rest and relaxation. But to a small subset of students at USC, including me, the start of the week means it’s time to put on a show. The students, identifiable by our instruments and matching T-shirts, are members of a club at USC called Remedy Through Music. This registered service organization, also called RTHM for short, is on a mission to bring live music to underserved communities here in southern Los Angeles.