University of Southern California The University of Southern California (all known as USC) is located in Los Angeles. California is known for its nice weather. The weather here is perfect especially for people who are afraid of freezing cold weather. As an exchange student in fall semester, you would get a chance to experience every activities arrange for new students. All the clubs are recruiting as well as sororities and fraternities. You would also get a chance to participate in one of the biggest thing for USC students that is USC american football As a Thai student going to USC gives you an advantage that is you could join and hang out with Thai people in USC (USC Thai club). Unlike most places this gives you the advantages of having someone to help get you settled and ease your homesick condition. But if you want to improve your English you can skip this and associate with mostly native speaker. However a combination of both seems to be the optimal solutions. Despite the fact that there are many things to see in California, public transportation is ineffective. Most people travel by car and it is very hard to rent a car if you are under 21 years old. But you could still travel it just might be a little harder than other states. But one of the advantages is that there are a lot of America s tourist attraction nearby such as San Francisco, San Diego, Las Vegas etc. Academicals aspect of USC is great for your resume. USC Marshall school of business is in the top 10 business school in the US. This is a great school to go to if you are business major, fortunately all BBA students are! But don t let the ranking scared you. The level of class difficulties is relatively easier than BBA simply because the grading system of USC. In most cases (not all) if you are at the mean of the class you will get B+ as your final grade. But don t underestimate this you should study as hard as you were as an Thammasat student despite grading system.
Some students may have heard that the area around USC is unsafe. That statement is correct. However USC provide you with securities guard around campus and a free taxi service call campus cruiser along with tram to take you around. So despite the fact that its unsafe around USC, student rarely need to visit those area so you don t need to worry about this too much. Lastly, I would like to say that USC is a great university. The weather is nice. There are numbers of great places to visit. It is strong academically. And last but not least you will get a chance to broaden your would! Pumchanut Ruangchainun
Pinyaphat Aurchaikarn (BBA#17) Never a second, I regret my decision going to USC If you are considering about where to go for exchange student in the States, USC is definitely one of the best alternative you can ever think of. The ranking in top US business schools already guarantee the reputation and quality of Marshall Business School. If you seek for gaining educational knowledge, USC is the one! If you long for perfect life experience, USC is the one! If you pursue to have the time of your life, USC is the most perfect place to go! Good to know before departure USC is located in downtown area of Los Angeles, and you will expect quite a good number of Thai students there, nevertheless they mostly study in master program. The Californian weather is nice and warm; only gets cold around November. On average you will be located in apartment around 20 minutes walking distance from the campus, and you will count on your own feet a great deal so bring comfortable shoes! Bring enough money to settle down for at least 2 weeks as well.
Selecting Classes at USC USC offers variety of classes, select them well! The classes in USC are not too difficult as BBA students might find it s easier, yet you should expect a lot of group projects and you will be responsible for all group meeting as it will come frequently during semester. At last, remember that USC is regarded as one of the top schools; you will have to put great effort for good grades! Food is the BEST! In your apartment, you will have a shared kitchen with roommates, and if you can cook, you will survive pretty easy as there are 2 grocery stores nearby. You can find pretty much every kinds of good food in LA, recommended places are such as Cheesecake factory, Midori Sushi, Gyukaku, Joe s Carb Shack, Urth Café, Paulette, In-n-Out Burger and Freebirds, etc. It s not a surprise for girls to gain weight Travelling is crucially mandatory There are many interesting places to go in LA such as Disneyland, Rodeo Drive, Six flags, Universal Studio, Santa Monica, Kodak Theater, and many museums. However, it s not the best recommendation to go by bus. You can rent a car, or get a carpool from friends. Also if you have a chance, there are amazing cities in California such as San Francisco, San Diego, Santa Cruz, San Jose, Napa, Sonoma, etc. which you should not miss! Don t forget Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, or east coast such as trip to New York, Chicago, or Washington DC!
USC The place where journey begins Welcome to LA LA LAND! My name is Kasinit Pansuthirangkul or GG from BBA 17. And I will walk you through some of my experience while joining exchange program at Marshall Business School, University of Southern California, Fall 2010. Why did I choose USC? Since I m very into the American culture and individualism, and I don t want to go to countries that don t use English as their formal language because at least if they speak English, I can communicate with them in case of emergency or something like that so, the States is my first choice. After considering all the universities in the US, I found that USC is the most interesting option because of many factors. First, the weather is great. Sometimes, it can be very (freaking) hot, but I think it s better that going out and about in cold weather all semester long. Second, California is one of the most fabulous cities in the whole world. The people are outgoing and casual and very friendly. And it s also close to many other cities, such as San Francisco, San Diego, and Las Vegas. So it s good for my travel plan. :) After being chosen from USC, they were very helpful for all the international students in all means. Housing has been provided by the USC housing website that includes all the information about each and every off-campus apartments since they have reserved on-campus ones for their students. The information given is reliable. The condition of my apartment is exactly like their descriptions. Also, we had to prepare for Visa, vaccinations and all that. But the instructions are very thorough and in-detail (included in a VERY long e-mails from Sean, director of Marshall lol). Alright, phase I has already finished. Begin Phase II after my feet stepped in their border. I can t deny the fact that I was immediately in love with LA. USC is like 15-minute away from downtown and about 10- minute away from the Staples Center by car, if you re basketball fans, you must know what I m talking about. LA Lakers is their most popular team there. But if you re not a sports fan, shopping and sightseeing is your second most desirable option. All the choices, I include in the boxes below. Check them out! Don t forget the other important point which is to STUDY. USC has very good facilities. Teachers are very nice and kind. One of the privileges we get is to be able to reserve the seat in many classes before their students. The campus is not too big to walk around. The places to visit on campus are included in the boxes below as well. As some of you might
USC have or have not known about the USC location, let s put it this way. Let s think of the campus is like a square, 3 sides of them are fine, it s where most of the apartments and fraternity/sorority houses are but the last side is the place where you shouldn t go by yourself. However, don t panic, USC has a very good security around their campus. There are like security guards standing every block corner 24/7 to assure your safety. MAKE FRIENDS this is very important. USC has many friendly and helpful Thai seniors there but I recommend you not to stick with them too much. Since the main point of going abroad is to learn other cultures, grow up and at least improve your English. Other exchange students are who you should look forward to. Start with your roommates, for instance. Go hang out with them, they are fun especially the Europeans. Based on my experience, they are so friendly and very nice! EXPLORE get yourself out of the box and explore the outside world. Go see what you haven t seen, eat what you never had. Life is short guys, live it up! HOMESICK my advice for you is not to think about it in the first place. There are only 5-6 months for you to be there, make the best out of it. But if you really can t help it, phone is your choice, call it up! (see phone advice below). TRAVEL don t forget to plan your trip! Domestic flights are way cheaper when you book early. I recommend you to check with priceline.com (they have both flights and hotels). Last but not least, I hope you enjoy going abroad no matter you are going to USC or any other places in the world. And I d like to give thanks to BBA THAMMASAT for giving me the most precious opportunity. THANK YOU. :) TAKE CARE don t get yourself in trouble, that s all I want to suggest you guys. I know for fact that your heart almost pop out after knowing that you could be far away from home and have full freedom (been there, done that). BUT! Freedom can be two-way sword for you guys. So, behave yourself and stick with good friends.
PHOTO DIARY
GET TO KNOW USC Attractions in LA Hollywood walk of fame Hollywood hill Disneyland Universal Studio Six Flags Griffith Observatory ETC. General Fact about USC UCLA rival USC mascot is Tommy Trojan Well known for football Fraternity and Sorority are like hi-so people there. (they even have chef in their houses) RICH PRIVATE school full of party-loving people At night, you can call campus cruiser which is like taxi for USC people safe and free! If you want to choose housing, I recommend Regal Trojan (same standard room size but live only 2 people, others have 4) and Annenberg (I lived there) GREAT PLACE to be! *** = highly recommended Must-Visit beaches Santa Monica Venice beach *** Malibu Etc. Around campus restaurants/supermark ets Superior Ralphs University Village University Gateway On campus restaurants/snacks Canteen around Bookstore Lemonade *** Another café opposite to the gym Seeds for salad, sandwich, snacks and drinks Night Life Frat parties (free drinks) 901 (closest to school) Velvet Room (Korean) *** Nariya (Thai) Soi 56 (Thai) Cork Bar (downtown) ETC. Must-Visit malls Beverly Center The Grove Nordstrom, farmer s market etc. 3rd Street Promenade Century City Rodeo Drive Barneys New York Saks Fifth Avenue Melrose Trading Post flea market *** Melrose Place *** Fashion district *** Desert Hills Outlet mall *** Be aware of.. Fasten your seatbelt even you sit in the back If u get caught by police for not fastening your seatbelt, J-walking, exceeding speed limit, underage drinking (<21yrs old), the fine and penalties are HUGE (>$300). Homeless Blackout LOL Must-Visit restaurants Gyu-kaku *** (Jap BBQ) Furaibo (Jap) Cheesecake Factory BCD tofu house (Korean) Paulette (Macaroons) Sprinkles (Cupcakes) *** Karnda (Thai) Jitlada (Thai) *** Kagaya (Shabu) *** Shabu House (Shabu) *** Daikokuya (ramen) Wakko (katsu) And SO MANY MORE Phone Advice Family plan it s a monthly service, need contract (have contractbreaking fee, can be waived in some cases), normally around $60-70 monthly. Same service free calls e.g. AT&T calls AT&T. Full internet service so-called data plan, weekend and after 9pm, cross-service free e.g. T-mobile calls AT&T. Rebtel for international calls. You can check their website. (50 satang per minute!) Skype Phone cards buy at Thai town