Majors & Minors

In addition to the general education, writing, foreign language and diversity requirements for a degree in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the following courses are required.

In addition to the general education, writing, foreign language and diversity requirements for a degree in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the following courses are required. Note that for this major, CHEM 350 satisfies General Education in Category D: Life Sciences. 

In addition to the general education, writing, foreign language and diversity requirements for a degree in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the following courses are required.

In addition to the general education, writing and foreign language requirements for a degree in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the following courses are required.

A chemistry minor is available for students who wish to broaden their exposure to the chemical sciences. In addition to a core of five chemistry courses (year-long sequences in general chemistry and organic chemistry and a one semester course in analytical chemistry), students must take one upper-division chemistry elective in either advanced organic or advanced inorganic chemistry.

Biology majors must take CHEM 300L, CHEM 426 and CHEM 453.

In addition to the general education, writing, foreign language and diversity requirements for a degree in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the following courses are required.

The Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures offers a minor for undergraduate students who wish to pursue a future career in the greater China region or communities requiring advanced Chinese linguistic and cultural competence. The minor provides opportunities for students to gain real world experiences in work environments and explore career opportunities from various perspectives. The language prerequisite for admission to the program is the completion of EALC 206 at USC or its equivalent.

Four EALC upper-division courses (16 units) and 4 units of EALC 366 are required to complete the minor.  The four upper-division courses must include at least two from EALC 404, EALC 406, EALC 407, EALC 412a, EALC 412b, or the equivalent. Course selections must be approved by the faculty adviser for the minor.

Overview

The Bachelor of Arts in Choral Music combines the flexibility of a Bachelor of Arts program with an in-depth education in choral music that includes an introduction to choral music and course work in choral conducting, choral development, choral arranging, diction and choral ensemble.

Entrance Requirements

Admission to Thornton programs is granted through the USC admission process. Applicants are screened by appropriate faculty selection committees. Specific entrance requirements are reviewed on an annual basis and published online at music.usc.edu.

General Education Requirements

The university's General Education program provides a coherent, integrated introduction to the breadth of knowledge you will need to consider yourself (and to be considered by other people) a generally well-educated person. This program is effective for all students entering USC in fall 2015 or later, or transfer students beginning college elsewhere at that time and subsequently transferring to USC. It requires eight courses in six Core Literacies, plus two courses in Global Perspectives (which may double-count with courses in the Core Literacies) and two courses in writing. In addition, all entering freshmen are expected to complete a General Education Seminar during their first year at USC. These seminars satisfy one of the Core Literacy requirements above.

Note that courses within the major will also satisfy certain Core Literacy requirements. Please work with your major adviser to determine those courses.

Overview

All USC Thornton undergraduate programs in classical performance and composition combine a rigorous foundation of the finest conservatory training with curricular flexibility for students to chart their own artistic pathways. All curricular components are designed to support students in creating a distinctive musical voice and preparing for a fulfilling musical career.

Entrance Requirements

Admission to Thornton programs is granted through the USC admission process. Applicants are screened by appropriate faculty selection committees. Specific entrance requirements are reviewed on an annual basis and published online at music.usc.edu.

General Education Requirements

USC's General Education program, revised in fall 2015, provides a coherent, integrated approach to the study of the liberal arts, with the goal of nurturing habits of thought that are essential for professional success, personal development, and meaningful lifelong learning. Eight courses are required in six Core Literacies, in addition to two courses in Global Perspectives, two courses in Writing, and one General Education Seminar taken during the first year at USC. With careful planning, certain courses (including courses required for the music major) can fulfill more than one of these general education requirements. Academic advisers in the Thornton School carefully guide Thornton students in making their course choices. This typically will result in Thornton students taking a total of eight courses (including two writing courses) in order to fulfill all of the USC general education requirements.

Capstone Project

Young Artist Project

During the junior and senior years of the program, students develop and fully realize unique individualized, mentored projects related to their work as classical musicians. This could involve developing a hybrid performance, conducting original research, exploring new creative technologies or applying creative expression to a pressing social issue.