College Admissions for Los Angeles Private School Students

For many Los Angeles families, two universities across town from each other anchor the college list: UCLA and USC. They run on entirely different systems, with different deadlines, essays, testing rules, and scholarship timing. Add the city's strength in the arts and entertainment, which brings portfolios and auditions into many students' plans, and the Los Angeles application season has its own rhythm.

For how colleges read an independent school application in general, see our guide to applying to college from a private school. This guide covers what's specific to Los Angeles, and our editorial guide to college admissions at Harvard-Westlake looks at one school's published profile in detail.

UCLA and USC, Side by Side

Because UCLA has no early round and USC's early deadlines fall on November 1, a student applying to both works on two very different applications in October and November. Our UC application guide covers the personal insight questions and UC's own GPA calculation.

USC: Timing Decides Merit Consideration

USC considers Early Decision and Early Action applicants for its merit scholarships, and performing arts applicants who meet the December 1 deadline. For most majors, that makes November 1 the deadline that matters for families hoping for merit aid, even though Regular Decision runs until January 10.

A few more USC specifics:

• Early Decision is binding. Admitted students must enroll and withdraw other applications. Early Action is non-binding and doesn't restrict other early applications.
• Performing arts majors follow a different calendar. Programs in the Kaufman School of Dance, the School of Dramatic Arts, and the Thornton School of Music don't participate in early plans; their only deadline is December 1.
• No interviews or demonstrated interest. USC says its admission office doesn't conduct interviews and doesn't track demonstrated interest, though some schools within USC have their own requirements.

Our guides to Early Decision and Early Action and merit aid cover the trade-offs between binding and non-binding plans when scholarships are part of the plan.

Arts and Entertainment Applicants

Los Angeles students interested in film, theater, music, dance, art, or architecture should plan for extra steps. At UCLA, the School of the Arts and Architecture, the Herb Alpert School of Music, and the School of Theater, Film and Television review applicants through supplemental applications that, depending on the major, include a portfolio or an audition, with their own deadlines after the UC application. At USC, performance majors may require auditions, and some programs ask for portfolios, résumés, or writing samples.

These supplements are often where arts applicants are really evaluated, so they deserve the same attention as the main application. Build the portfolio or audition repertoire over junior year and the summer, not in November.

The Rest of the California Picture

Los Angeles students applying as California residents benefit from the UC's resident GPA minimum and honors weighting, and from its local and statewide guarantees, which our Silicon Valley guide explains in detail. The Cal State system, through Cal State Apply, adds campuses across the region with their own application and a $70 fee per campus.

Testing is a planning question on a Los Angeles list. The UC doesn't consider scores, USC is test-optional, and some highly selective colleges elsewhere, such as Stanford and MIT, require them. Our testing strategy guide covers how to decide.

A Timeline for Los Angeles Students

• 9th and 10th grade: Plan A–G coursework, and for arts students, start building a body of work.
• 11th grade: A demanding schedule, testing if the list needs it, and a first list that includes both UC and private options.
• Summer before 12th grade: Draft the Common App essay and the four UC personal insight questions, and prepare portfolios or audition material.
• November 1: USC Early Decision and Early Action, and many other early deadlines.
• November 30: UC application deadline, followed by UCLA's arts supplemental deadlines.
• December 1: USC performing arts deadline.
• January 10: USC Regular Decision for most majors.

Advising from Anywhere

Passage Point Admissions, based in South Florida, offers virtual advising to families across the U.S. Our private school college counseling coordinates with a school's own counseling office.