Congratulations on your recent admission to the USC Thornton School of Music!
We are excited about your admission and we look forward to personally welcoming you to the Thornton School in August.
Letter of Admission and youSC Portal
USC issues Letters of admission electronically via a secure portal called youSC. To view your admission letter, you must create an account (register) on the youSC portal, then log-in. Note that the YouSC login is not the same as your application log-in credentials. If you do not see your admission letter in the youSC portal right away, please be patient, it may take 2-4 business days for it to appear.
Be sure to print your admission letter and also save a copy to your computer. Admission letters are only available via the youSC portal for a few months. Once the letters are removed from the portal, they are no longer available, so it is very important to save a copy of your letter now.
Read your letter of admission carefully. If the second page of your letter indicates that you have “continuing registration requirements,” you must satisfy them as stated in the letter. (For example, you may need to verify your previous degree, or your department may require you to maintain a specified grade point average.) If you have questions about these requirements, you may contact Thornton Admission and Student Affairs, or speak to your academic advisor when you meet before fall classes begin.
Statement of Intent and Commitment Deposit – Deadline April 15, 2025*
Please communicate your plans to us through the online Statement of Intent form.
- To accept the offer of admission, submit the statement of intent form and pay the $500 deposit via youSC.
Note that the $500 deposit is waived for Teaching Assistants. - To decline the offer of admission, indicate your decision via the statement of intent form in youSC.
* Applicants admitted after April 15 may be assigned a later commitment deadline. Please abide by the deadline listed in the e-mail you received.
USC Graduate Welcome Website
Please visit the Graduate Welcome Website to find information on a variety of important topics including financial aid, housing, orientation, immunization requirements, tuition and fee payment methods, prior degree verification, and more.
Be sure to review the New Student Checklist to ensure that you complete the steps necessary to enroll at the university. (Exceptions to the checklist: you’ll register for classes during or soon after Thornton’s Graduate Orientation, and you can’t pay your tuition until after registration – all other items on the checklist should be completed before orientation.)
Tuition and Fees
Tuition and Fees for USC Thornton programs are different than most other programs at USC. Please be aware that the cost of attendance figures you find on the Financial Aid website and in your Financial Aid Summary may not accurately reflect the actual tuition and fees for your program. In particular, MM and DMA students in Jazz and Classical Performance, Music Teaching and Learning, Early Music, Choral and Sacred Music, and Music Composition should note that the most accurate representation of tuition and fees for Thornton Graduate Students can be found on our website. Please refer to the tuition and fee estimates posted on the Thornton website for the most accurate information. (scroll to the bottom of the page to “tuition and fee estimates”)
Please be aware that the tuition and fees listed in the FAST portal and on the USC Financial Aid website may not match the actual cost of attendance for Thornton students.
Financial Aid
Thornton Merit Aid: Scholarships and Assistantships
- Scholarship and TA award notifications are sent by April 1, or within about 2 weeks of the admission notification.
- International and Domestic students in all eligible programs are automatically considered for scholarship funding – a scholarship application is not required.
- Assistantships for 2025-2026 have been awarded. Click here for full details about Thornton Assistantships.
Financial Aid: Student Loans And Work-Study
- Domestic Students (US Citizens and Permanent Residents) are eligible for student loans and work-study funding through the USC Financial Aid Office.
- Use the FAST portal to monitor your financial aid status, submit documents, request loans, and communicate with the Financial Aid Office.
- Loan funding up to the full cost of attendance (tuition + living expenses) is available if needed.
- Work-study funding allows students to apply for on-campus jobs. Pay starts at about $17.00 per hour, and students are limited to working 20 hours per week. Many offices and departments in the Thornton School and across USC offer work-study positions. Students can apply for work-study jobs in the fall.
- Need-based grants are not available to graduate students.
- Details and Financial Aid application instructions are available on the USC Financial Aid website.
- Graduate Financial Aid packages are released during the summer, only to applicants who have accept the offer of admission.
- Graduate students will not receive their financial aid package before the commitment deadline. As there is no variability with graduate loan availability and work-study funding, the financial aid office prioritizes undergraduate financial aid packaging in March and April.
USC Graduate Housing
If you are interested in living in USC housing, we encourage you to apply early as graduate housing tends to fill quickly. You’ll be eligible to apply for housing 24 hours after you submit your statement of intent through the YouSC portal. There are some accommodations reserved especially for Thornton Graduate Students – Click here for details.
Information about all other USC housing options can be found on the USC Housing Website.
Off-Camus Housing (not owned or managed by USC) is available in the USC neighborhood and around greater Los Angeles. To locate housing near USC, do an online search for “apartments near USC, Los Angeles” or “Apartments in University Park, Los Angeles.”
USC Housing also provides an online listing of non-USC-owned housing: Off-Campus Housing Listing Service
USC Thornton Orientation, Advisement, & Course Registration
New students are required to attend two orientation sessions, both will take place in August 2025:
1. USC’s General Graduate Student Orientation Session (in person in August 2025). Follow the link for more information.
2. Thornton Graduate Student Orientation session (online in August 2025).
At Thornton’s Graduate Student Orientation Session, new students will meet their academic advisor, receive information about their curriculum and degree requirements, and will learn how to register for classes.
Music Graduate Entrance Exams (MGEEs) for master’s and doctoral students will be administered online for the most part, on August 14-15, 2025. Piano Literature and Choral Conducting exams will be administered in-person on August 19. The Instrumental Conducting exam is administered online and is due August 19. These entrance exams are not part of the admission process, but are required of students entering a graduate degree program in the Thornton School in order to assess their background knowledge in core music subjects. Follow the link above for details.
Students in Screen Scoring, Music Industry, Arts Leadership, as well as Graduate Certificate and Artist Diploma students do not take MGEEs.
Detailed information about orientation, academic advisement, registration, MGEEs, and other important items will be provided separately to applicants who accept the offer of admission and choose to enroll at USC Thornton via our “New Student Information Website.” A link to that site will be sent starting in mid-April to all students who accept the offer of admission. Additional details related to orientation, advisement, and registration will be emailed to students in July.
Important Dates
For planning purposes, please make a note of the following.
Specific dates and times for most items will be provided after May 1 to students who accept the offer of admission.
- USC General Graduate Student Orientation – August 2025
- Thornton Orientation and Registration (online) – August 2025, specific date and time TBA
- Orientation and registration information will be provided to new students in July so they can prepare for orientation and registration sessions which will take place in August.
- In-person welcome events and departmental meetings – August 18 – 22.
- Arts Leadership Intensive – August 18– 22. For Arts Leadership students only.
- Departmental Activities for Screen Scoring students – will be scheduled during the week of August 18-22. Screen Scoring students will receive information directly from the Screen scoring department when plans are finalized.
- Fall Deadline to register and pay tuition: Friday, August 22 at 5:00 p.m. (orientation and academic advisement will be scheduled in advance of the deadline)
- First day of Fall Classes: Monday August 25.
- The full academic calendar can be found on the USC website.
International Students – Important Information
I-20s are issued to international students after the offer of admission has been accepted. Immigration documents such as the statement of financial support and letter of sponsorship must be submitted after a student has accepted the offer of admission (submitted Statement of Intent).
If you plan to enroll at USC Thornton, be sure to submit your Statement of Intent as soon as possible so you can begin the I-20 process as soon as possible. Details about the process to submit immigration documents and request an I-20 can be found on USC’s I-20 Processing Website, and USC’s Trojan International Checklist.
VERY IMPORTANT – Special I-20 budget amounts have been set for students in some Thornton programs.
I-20 budget amounts are available on the Cost of Attendance page on the financial aid website. As of March 15, the figures on the COA page have not yet been updated to reflect tuition and fees for 2025-2026. When the updated figures have been posted, this page will be updated.
I-20 Budget Amounts for MOST Thornton MM, MA, and DMA programs:
- Master: $71,871
- GCRT & ARTD: $50,435
- Doctoral: $71,871
International Students in the following programs should refer to the I-20 budget amount posted on the USC I-20 Processing Website ($75,899):
- MS Music Industry
- MM Screen Scoring
- MS Arts Leadership
Be sure to carefully review all the details and requirements on the I-20 Information Page.
Connect With Us!
Online Information Sessions for Admitted Students
Open Information Sessions offered Wednesdays from 3:30 – 5:00 PM PST
(Wednesdays March 19 & 26, April 2 & 9)
Zoom Link: Click here
Passcode: 876884
Join Kit Bellamy, Associate Director of Graduate Admission to learn more about USC Thornton graduate programs, curricula, cost of attendance, financial aid, and more. A brief slide deck will be presented at each session, and attendees will have an opportunity to ask any questions they have. Feel free to join any time during the session.
Experience the Thornton School
If you’re in Southern California, consider attending a Thornton concert or performance event. Upcoming concerts and events are listed on Thornton’s online Events Calendar.
Attend a Performance
Questions? Contact Us!
USC Thornton Admission Office
Email: uscmusic@usc.edu
Phone: (213)740-8986
Office: The Music Complex (TMC) 200 – the office suite on the top floor of TMC
Kit Bellamy,
Associate Director of Graduate Admission
Email: keb@usc.edu
Phone: (213)740-8986