Understanding Your Academic Record as an International Applicant
One of the most common questions we hear from students around the world is some version of: “How will USC understand and evaluate my high school curriculum?”
It’s a fair question. There isn’t just one way to complete secondary school. In fact, there are hundreds of different curricula globally, likely well over a thousand, when you consider national systems, regional variations, and individual school models.
The good news: we know them. And we mean that sincerely.
Each year, we review applications from students studying in a wide range of systems, including the U.S. curriculum (with AP coursework), the IB Diploma Programme, A-Levels (in the UK and in places like Singapore and Hong Kong), the French Baccalauréat, Indian curricula such as CBSE and ISE, and many more across Latin America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and beyond. While the structure of these systems may differ, our approach to reviewing them is consistent and thoughtful.
At USC, we don’t evaluate you against a U.S. curriculum if you didn’t study in one. Instead, we evaluate your academic record within the context of your educational environment.
So what does that actually mean? We’re asking questions like:
Are you taking advantage of the most competitive academic opportunities available at your school and in your environment?
Are you performing at a high level relative to your peers?
Is there evidence of growth, challenge, and intellectual curiosity?
Are you preparing yourself for your intended major?
Those questions apply whether your transcript includes term grades, national exam results, or a combination of both.
For some students, that might mean a traditional transcript with grades across semesters. For others, it may center on external examinations such as GCSEs and A-Levels, or national board exams (such as in India). IB students often present a mix of coursework and predicted exam results. No matter the format, we understand how to read your academic profile and how to place it in context.
The same principles we discuss in this blog post apply to students outside of the United States, too. We look for rigor. We notice trends over time. We pay attention to context: what was available to you, what challenges you may have faced, and how you responded. We’re not just scanning for numbers; we’re building a full picture of your academic journey.
Preparation for your intended major is especially important. If you’re applying to a program like Business Administration (BUAD), for example, strong quantitative preparation, including coursework in mathematics through calculus, can be an important signal of readiness. But again, that preparation might look different depending on your curriculum. We’re not looking for one specific class title; we’re looking for the underlying skills and foundation.
To help bring more clarity to this process, we’ve created a resource on our website outlining academic expectations across many of the most common international curricula we see. If you haven’t already, we encourage you to explore the “International Qualifications” tool on our website.
Lastly, here’s what you should know as you prepare your application:
Your school, not you, must provide official copies of academic records from all secondary or senior secondary schools, pre-university programs, and colleges and universities you have attended.
These records must be sent directly from the schools or testing agencies. If the document is not written in English, they must also be submitted in the native language, accompanied by a certified English translation.
You must send external examination results and/or predicted results, such as GCSE/IGCSE results, as well as predicted IB or A-Level results, Indian board examination results, Australian ATAR, etc.
At the end of the day, no matter where you’re studying, the takeaway is this: your curriculum is not a barrier to admission because we know it. Our job is to understand your academic achievements in context and to see how you’ve made the most of the environment you’re in.
Written by: Dr. Nathan Mack, Associate Director of International Admission - USC Office of Undergraduate Admission