USC Graduate Admission

Immigration regulations require that all international students provide proof of ability to pay tuition and living expenses for themselves and their dependents (if applicable) before being issued an I-20 or DS-2019. We recommend you bookmark this page for easy reference.

All financial documents MUST have:

Date of issuance (No earlier than one year before the start of your admitted term at USC)
Student’s name (Or account holder’s name if sponsor is someone other than student such as a parent)
Official letterhead and include signature/stamp of a bank/administrative official.
Final available balance of individual liquid accounts or solvency amount (Currency must be clearly defined)
Sufficient English to validate financial information. If document is not issued in English, then certified, professional translations will be required.

If the account holder(s) is someone other than the student, submit also a signed USC Sponsored Studies form. (Undergraduate students may submit the Financial Statement of Personal or Family Support instead). These are not required for government scholarships or funding by major, recognized companies; a formal letter is enough.

Please see the Trojan International Checklist for guidelines on how properly separate your documents for uploading.

Types of financial support that are normally accepted:

Savings deposit and checking accounts
Approved/sanctioned education loans. “In-principle” sanctioned loans will not be accepted.*
Bank letters or solvency certificates from bank
Time/fixed/term deposits or government bonds available for withdrawal at any time
Employer, government, or organization sponsorships/scholarships.
Provident funds ONLY IF document states amount available for withdrawal
USC scholarships (i.e. athletic awards, PhD funding, etc.)

Please see the examples below of sample Financial Documents:

Sample Company Sponsorship Letter

Sample Bank Letter

Types of financial support NOT accepted:

Investments in fixed assets such as property, Demat accounts, mortgages, jewelry, residences, automobiles, etc.
Retirement funds, pensions, insurance policies
Tax Returns
Salary/Income/Payroll Statements
Pending or Provisional Educational Loans
[Chartered] Accountant portfolio
Candidate scholarship letters or scholarship applications
Cryptocurrency accounts or wallets.
Online account screenshots

If USC is unable to determine your available funds because the documentation is unclear, excessive, or too difficult to read, the financial statement will not be accepted. Only the total, final balance of an account is needed, not an extended history of transactions.

*A note about Private Financing from the United States: Private loans are available to international students, but 2 forms of U.S.- based ID are required for approval (such as an I-20, I-94, DS-2019, and/or valid student visa). If you are unable to produce these at the time of loan application, your loan will not be fully approved. Conditionally approved loans are not acceptable forms of financial proof. Please be sure you are able to receive a fully approved, unconditional loan before submitting documents to USC, even from US lenders. An I-20 will not be issued under any circumstances if a conditional loan approval is submitted.