Allena Villanueva - University of Southern California

Where did you go to high school? And what year did you graduate?

Punahou School, 2022

What is your college major?

Computer Science

Location of College

Los Angeles, CA

Type of College (liberal arts, research, community college)

Research

How do you feel about the location of the college that you chose?

I'm really glad I chose to live in California (I had originally planned to go to the east coast). I like it because it is warm and there are a lot of people from Hawai'i and the Hawaiian food here is not bad. I like it because my parents are only a 6 hour plane ride away and a 3 hour time difference. I like LA because it is a cultural hub and I get to meet so many people. I like LA because there are a lot of things to do because it is a big metropolitan. That being said, it is not the safest city to live in and the people can be a little fact.

Are there any distinct features of the school geographically that stand out to you as either a negative or a positive?

Positive: the weather, in the cultural hub of LA
Negative: USC is not in the safest area.

What is the surrounding city/town of the school like? Is it a place that you like living?

We live in the city of LA so it's really easy to get to places down town and explore and go to different museums, sporting events, etc. THere's never a dull weekend with nothing going on in LA. There's festivals, farmers markets, sports games, etc. USC is in central/south LA so if you go one block too far you will feel unsafe. LA is a place I'm glad to go to college in but it's definitely not a place I see myself staying in after college.

Are there entrepreneurship programs and support at your college? If so, what are they called?

There are tons of entrepreneurship programs. I can talk specifically about the ones in the Engineering school (Viterbi). There's a few entrepreneurship programs specifically for engineers with mentorship. One is the Min Family Challenge which I think had like a 50k prize. THere's tons of others. There's also entrepreneurship fraternities for engineers. There's tons of clubs at USC for engineering entrepreneurs. Viterbi is basically super dedicated to creating entrepreneurs. Additionally, there's the Engineering honors program and you can go on the innovation track where they basically prepare you for being an engineer and entrepreneur. There's also a lot of seminars and workshops on entrepreneurship through Viterbi. And then also TONS of entrepreneurship opporutnities through Marshall school of business.

Have you interacted with the programs from the above question? If so how were they, and would you recommend them to someone interested in entrepreneurship in your school?

I just got into the engineering honors program this year on the innovation track which starts in the fall. I really liked the mission of the program and I think it will be a good decisions. I would recommend taking advantage of that but also a lot engineering pitching competitions. I did not take part in those but my roommate for my internship did and she liked it.

Do the entrepreneurial programs cater to certain majors, or are there entrepreneurship majors available at the school?

I believe there is an entreprenuership major and minor at USC. I have not looked much into it because I know there is a big concentration for engineering majors where we can learn entrepreneurial skills and business skills without picking up a major. There's also a combined CS and Business Administration degree which might be the closest degree within the Engineering school specifically.

Is there school support and funding for entrepreneurs looking to get their business funded? If so, where would a student look?

Tons and tons of support. THere are a ridiculous amount of pitch competitions and lots of these students come to talk at freshman engineering seminar classes to talk about these opportunities. These resources are very easy to find on the Viterbi website and especially once you become a USC student. And even if you're not an engineer, there are a bunch of competitions.

How does the surrounding community engage with the entrepreneurial community at the school?

I'm not too sure about this question. There might be a way to connect to businesses in the area but I am not too sure.

How/Why did you chose this school?

USC, although it is a private school, has really great financial aid. So when I got all of my decisions back and had to compare all of the packages of aid and weigh the outside scholarships I'd been awarded, I chose USC because it had the best engineering school for the amount of aid that they gave me. It made sense for my future and for my family financially. I also was fortunate to visit with my best friend from high school and I loved the culture. I loved the school pride and the vibrancy and life I immediately felt on campus. I liked the people that I met when I visited. My parents liked the safety precautions they had. I liked the food in LA. I still wonder about what my life would've been if I chose a different school. But it doesn't change that USC had the best engineering program and was also affordable. It was based on my family's circumstances and the career path I wanted. It was a family decision and I am happy at USC.

What were things that surprised you? It can be about the school itself or the college experience as a whole?

Slippers are not normal, they weren't kidding. Grades do matter for scholarships and some opportunities at USC but definitely not as much as high school. USC is a party school but you will find yourself and a community no matter who you are. College is a crash course at life and I was surprised that all adults have no idea what they're doing. My parents decided to tell me that once I'd already moved to college.

What has been hardest about college so far? Was there anything that was really frustrating for you? It can be anything related to your college experience or application process thus far.

Being so far away from my family and home has been the hardest. Trying to navigate that support network and forming it in LA has been hard. In fact, I almost dropped out and moved home. I struggled with this decision in the spring. But I knew that USC would open a lot of doors for me, especially as an engineer and the tech industry is not that big in Hawai'i right now. It was frustrating to not know my next step and of course roommate issues were a headache. And gosh college apps was probably the worst experience of my life. To be judged on every part of myself. It was frustrating to see my life summed up on a sheet of paper. It was frustrating to have to make a decision based on money when my heart wanted something else. But I'm happy now.

What are some of the main ways that you interact with your college? (i.e programs, clubs, greek life, etc.)

There is no better bonding than trauma bonding (and also orientation week). So, I met a lot of my immediate close friends on orientation week and we just hit it off super well. I got really lucky that we've remained friends for thsi long. The way that I met a lot of my other friends was crying through classes with them. Having late night study sessions wondering if you're going to pass the class.

What has been your favorite part of your college experience so far?

This is gonna sound so cheesy but definitely meeting people. I've met people from all of the world of all different backgrounds and really I can't rememebr much of what I learned my first year. And we only ended school two months ago. But I remember so many fun nights and conversations. So many people I can't wait to see in the fall.

Also I liked the independence. I called my parents every day, sometiems twice a day when things got hard. But I lived life all on my own, financially, physically, and ultimately emotionally because there's only so much they can help on the phone. So I grew up. And I liked that.

How did you go about searching for colleges? What were the good, bad, and the ugly when you were going through the school search? What were the criteria that mattered to you?

Wow this is a loaded question. Well, I started off with all of my dream schools. Where, in an ultra ideal world, would I want to go? What "sounded cool"? THen, what made sense realistically. Where could my family afford? What colleges were in cities/locations I wanted to be in? What had a good engineering program and a good social life? Where was my family? And then where would I realisitcally get in? (all colleges tell you reach, target, safety) My advice would be apply to as many schools as you can (you can get scholarships for college application prices) because you wnat to have as many options as you can in the end. You never know where you're going to get in and where you're not going to get in. You only know in March you will have your decisions and then you will be deciding where you're going. So to be honest, I cried every single day in my second semester senior year. I thought to myself, how was I supposed to right like three essays that represented my life? I cried about all of the life decisions being made in the process. And I know, I promise you I know, that it's going to feel like the end of the world if you don't get into your dream school. But I know I ended up exactly where I needed to be.. Financial aid was important to me. Location was too (but ultimately, was not the reason I chose USC). Program strength for my major was important. THe programs outside of engineering mattered to me too just in case I didn't like engineering... And then also work life balance and connection to Hawai'i. I knew a lot of Punahou people went ot USC and that I'd have at least one way to connect home.

What application components did you find the hardest or most important, and what role do you think that played in the way you filled out applications?

I'm honestly not sure what is most important but I thought what was hardest is that there's only so much you can change (like by senior year, your GPA is set, so are your SAT scores for the most part, and so are your extra curriculars/leadership positions). SO how do you best "leverage" or "hide" each of those unchangeable things by senior year. THat was very hard for me because I had a lot of Cs and B- on my transcript so I needed and wanted to emphasize my extra curriculars. Those Cs and B-s were in math and I was na engineering student so I had to make sure my SAT was high. And the essay process is horrible because you disect every word you write. I found it important at that point to list all of the things I did in middle school and high school. And then all of the memories I had from those events. And then think if there was any part that made me, me.

How was your experience with the financial aid process? How large of a factor was it in your final decision?

FInancial aid was probably one of the largest factors. THe FAFSA and CSS are super important so fill that out ASAP. And I mean ASAP. It is so much work for you and your parents so just get it out of the way while you still have your sanity. start scholarship searches early. Some scholarship applications are due in August. Some in September. You will be balancing scholarship and college applications. So get on those as soon as you can. You might have to take on loans but be fully aware of the gravity of that decision. I am still applying for scholarships each year, each summer. I worked two jobs first year to start paying off my loans. I will work two jobs my sophomore year.

How did you ultimately decide on the college that you did? From your criteria that previously mattered to you, do you presently think you made the right choice?

I knew that I wanted to go to a school that would help me grow. I knew that I wanted to go to a school with lots of student pride and that I was proud, which my friends, to go to. I knew I wanted a big sports culture because I watned to go to football games and find fun little rivalries. I wanted to be apart of a research university because I wanted to eventually take a research position. I knew I wanted diversity and culture. I knew I wanted a challenging and good engineering program. I knew I wanted strong alumni relations. USC ticks off all of these boxes. Granted, there are many other schools that ticked off that box too. Financial aid was the biggest factor so USC ticekd off that box and all of the others. I knew that my parents were happy too. They were sold before I was.

I do think I made the right choice and I can connect the dots to where I am today. So, I got a really great internship because I was able to work remotely to a job back in Hawai'i. The job started at 4pm Hawai'i time and ended at 6pm. The time difference to Cali is easy and I definitely wouldn't have gottenable to do this job if I was on east coast time. It does feel like luck that I made this decision and it turned out this way. But USC is closer to silicon valley, which is similar to my field of study/interest (computer science), so it also makes sense. I think I ended up exactly where I needed to be (I also wouldn't have been able to survive at a faster or even slower pace environment).

And finally, If you were to give any advice to a Hawaii high school student applying to college, what advice would you give?

Apply to schools (that meet your criteria) that you don't think you'd go to or don't think you'd get into. I didn't apply to USC because I wanted to go. I applied to USC because I talked to a friend and he got a half ride scholarship to USC. Because financial cost was importnat to me, I applied "just in case." Best decision I made. Apply to your dream school. Apply to your safeties. Apply to schools on the mainland. Apply to schools at home. Apply to maybe one school abroad. Have options that will open doors to change your life. THe college admissions space is so competitive today and you never know where you'll get in or denied from. Where you'll get a scholarship and not a scholarship.

I would also say find a person that you can talk to about the stress and find a stress outlet. For me, there were some nights I would just do paint by numbers because I mentally could not keep doing school work and college apps.

My last advice is, worst case scenario, you transfer. So many of my friends are transferring and they are so excited for their school in the fall. I know somebody transferring to University of Pennsylvania. I know sombody transferring out of Harvard. The school that you go to your first year is not the school you need to graduate from.