Wake Forest University vs University of Southern California

Winston-Salem, NC · Los Angeles, CA · largest Scorecard gap: acceptance rate

Scorecard match plate

Pair NC:CA

PRIVATE-NP-PAIR · CROSS-STATE · ACCEPT-PAR · NET-SPLIT · EARN-SPLIT · DEBT-SPLIT · COMPLETE-HIGH · GAP-ACCEPT

  • PRIVATE-NP-PAIR Private nonprofit pair
  • CROSS-STATE NC × CA
  • ACCEPT-PAR Admission near-par
  • NET-SPLIT Net-price split
  • EARN-SPLIT Earnings split
  • DEBT-SPLIT Debt split
  • COMPLETE-HIGH High completion
  • GAP-ACCEPT Largest gap · Acceptance Rate

Instrument codes from this pair's College Scorecard ownership, geography, acceptance, net price, earnings, debt, and completion, plus the ENROLL-RACE · narrow · 2013–2023 decade-path stamp below, not a ranking or recommendation.

Decade path · College Scorecard

Nearly parallel enrollment growth

ENROLL-RACE · narrow · 2013–2023

Undergraduate headcount rose at both Wake Forest University and University of Southern California across 2013–2023 on similar paces, while acceptance rates tightened on both sides, a growth-under-squeeze pattern rather than a pure size race.

  • University of Southern California: enrollment grew +15.1% over 2013–2023; fitted +285 students/yr fitted, r² 0.94.
  • Wake Forest University: enrollment grew +13.7% over 2013–2023; fitted +78 students/yr fitted, r² 0.94.
  • Wake Forest University: acceptance rate tightened -38.7% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.71).
  • University of Southern California: acceptance rate tightened -49.5% across 2013–2023 (r² 0.80).

College Scorecard institution series; dollars are nominal. Direction claims require r² ≥ 0.40 on the fitted annual slope, otherwise the page reports the observed range. Descriptive history, not a recommendation.

Scorecard metrics

Cards ordered by relative gap on this pair. Teal = better side.

Largest gaps: Wake Forest University vs University of Southern California

  1. ACCEPTANCE-RATE University of Southern California leads on acceptance rate (9.8% vs 21.7% at Wake Forest University)
  2. MEDIAN-DEBT-AT-GRA University of Southern California leads on median debt at graduation ($18,000 vs $21,500 at Wake Forest University)
  3. MEDIAN-EARNINGS-(1 University of Southern California leads on median earnings (10 yr) ($92,498 vs $78,158 at Wake Forest University)

Wake Forest University profile · University of Southern California profile · Compare other colleges

Acceptance Rate and other Scorecard questions

On acceptance rate, who leads between Wake Forest University and University of Southern California?
University of Southern California leads on acceptance rate at 9.8% versus 21.7% at Wake Forest University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On median debt at graduation, who leads between Wake Forest University and University of Southern California?
University of Southern California leads on median debt at graduation at $18,000 versus $21,500 at Wake Forest University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
On median earnings (10 yr), who leads between Wake Forest University and University of Southern California?
University of Southern California leads on median earnings (10 yr) at $92,498 versus $78,158 at Wake Forest University. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard College Scorecard institution outcomes (earnings, completion, debt); acceptance rate focus for this pair · 2025