As the USC Alumni Association continues to celebrate our Centennial during the 2023-24 academic year, we are pleased to present the results of our 2023 USC Alumni Survey. From April 12 to May 10, we invited all e-mailable alumni to participate in an online survey to share their opinions and experiences to help us understand how we are doing so we can improve our programs and services for the next century of alumni engagement. We thank all of you who participated, as your feedback is essential to what we do and how we move forward. Your voice will be heard, lifelong and worldwide.
Participation
How was the survey conducted?
Via email and social media, we invited all degreed alumni to participate. Respondents answered over 50 questions about their experience as students, their post-USC lives, how they view USC today and more.
Population
Responses
Who responded to the survey?
Respondents were demographically similar to the overall alumni population, reflecting USC’s diverse, geographically dispersed alumni network. Every USC school was represented in proportion to the number of its degreed alumni. Younger alumni (for purposes of these results, all alumni 45 or younger) were slightly underrepresented compared to older alumni (46 or older).
Gender and Sexual Identity
- 50% male
- 50% female
- < 1% non-binary
- 7% LGBTQ+ (16% of young alumni; 3% of older alumni)
Geography
- 49% LA and Orange County
- 30% US (outside California)
- 17% California (outside LA and OC)
- 4% International
Ethnicity
- 47% White
- 20% Asian
- 12% Latino/a/x
- 5% Black
- 6% Multiple
- 4% Other
- 6% Declined to state
Financial Aid
Family
- 43% received financial support while at USC
- 41% have a family member who attended USC
Student Experience
What do alumni think about their time at USC?
The survey asked several questions to measure how alumni feel about their experience as students. Using the results, we can compare USC to other universities in the United States that conducted the same survey. For each of these statements, USC ranked well above average.
Student Experience Statements
Survey US Peer Benchmark Institutions include: University of Arkansas, Brown University, Denison University, Miami University OH, University of Alabama, University at Buffalo, University of Kansas, University of Portland
Alumni Careers
76% agree that their degree remains professionally valuable to them
85% of currently employed alumni indicated their employment is related to their USC education
15% of alumni reported they are looking for a change in their current job or job status
Engagement
How do alumni feel about USC?
The measurement of alumni engagement takes several factors into consideration, including values/opinions, actions of support and interest in future action. Results demonstrated a high level of alumni engagement—both overall and in several specific areas.
Overall, 84% of alumni respondents reported they are proud of their association with USC, which was significantly higher than averages for peer institutions.
In addition, respondents agreed nearly twice as often with several statements measuring their attitudes toward the university and interest in remaining actively involved. The one statement on which they lagged other university alumni (by 3%) was “My financial support will make a difference.”
Alumni Engagement Statements
What do alumni value most from USC?
In short, alumni value forging Trojan Family connections and want USC to continue to provide these opportunities. Specifically, two of the top three advantages alumni value most about USC relate to careers and career development. Along with professional connections, alumni also value connecting to each other in their local communities.
Why do alumni contribute to USC?
Paying it forward
The top reasons cited by alumni who give to USC were to support current students and fulfill an overall sense of duty to support their alma mater.
Looking ahead
Alumni indicated interest in supporting areas aligned with USC “moonshots,” including:
- scholarships and student support
- research
- diversity, equity and inclusion
- athletics
- health
- the arts
- sustainability
How do alumni prefer to hear from USC?
Information sources
USC Alumni Association emails were cited as by far the most common source of news and information from USC. Trojan Family Magazine, emails from academic programs, and social media channels were mentioned as additional sources.
Topics of interest
Alumni indicated they were most interested in receiving notices about alumni events, stories about USC’s impact on various fields, and updates about their particular area of study.
Charting Our Future
What are our next steps based on the survey results?
Tailor our programs
Continue to create personalized, custom experiences for alumni based on what we know about them and their preferences.
Spread the word
Promote stories about USC’s impact, both overall and within specific areas of study. Positive stories drive alumni engagement, instill pride and enhance USC’s reputation.
Follow the data
Use data-driven strategies that encourage alumni to stay involved and support USC. Alumni giving is essential to advance USC’s core academic mission along with ambitious new commitments, such as increasing scholarships so every admitted student can afford to attend.
Connect Trojans to each other
It was clear from the results that our role in building and maintaining Trojan Family connections is essential. With that in mind, we’ll analyze what we’ve learned about engaging alumni and enhance our efforts to reach more Trojans, build an even stronger alumni network and create the best possible alumni experiences.
