Huff and puff all you want: Harry, you’re a Dornsife student! 

Though Hufflepuffs are known for being warm and kind, despite the Sorting Hat’s claims in The Philosopher’s Stone, this is what wizards and muggles alike hold to be true: 

“When you don the hat, if Hogwarts doesn’t quite know what to do with you but thinks you aren’t likely to commit a serious wizarding crime, you’ll be sorted into Hufflepuff.” 

Slytherins have a reputation for being cunning and strategic. Gryffindors are selected for their bravery, confidence and hearts of gold and iron. Ravenclaws tend to gravitate towards academia and consistently house epistemophiles and philomaths. But Hufflepuffs? They’re often sorted upon the “we love your qualities and what you bring but don’t have a tailored placement for you” approach. 

Though USC isn’t as historic or magical as Hogwarts, at times it’s easy to notice the wizarding world manifesting on campus. And no, I’m not talking about Bovard as the Ministry of Magic or Marshall as Slytherin. I’m talking about life as a USC Hufflepuff: a Dornsife student.

USC has several top-ranking schools, but it is best known for three in particular: School of Cinematic Arts, Marshall School of Business and Thornton School of Music. Yet, with 22 schools finite resources, the focus of administration is often divided, and doled and diminished — which means that unless you’re a student at one of those 3 schools, sorry, but you’re not Mom’s favorite. And if you’re in Dornsife, you’re on your own, kid.

The Hufflepuff of USC colleges, Dornsife, houses students whose studies range from neuroscience to creative writing to mine: philosophy, politics and economics. 

With such a broad emphasis and diverse array of disciplines, it is virtually impossible for Dornsife  to aid and guide students in the way that Thornton or SCA does. Where Thornton and SCA are specialists, Dornsife is a generalist. 

If you browse Dornsife’s website and scroll to their “About Us” page, what you’ll see is a lot of “fact figures.” In Dornsife, it’s not just easy to feel like a number — per their website, it seems like you are a number, simply quantified in their 36 academic departments, 97 undergraduate majors and 7,965 undergraduates. 

Compare that to Glorya Kaufman School of Dance’s 1 major and 4 minors or Annenberg’s 2,300 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students. 

While there’s no denying Dornsife’s Hogwarts affiliation, I’d be lying if I denied the hidden perks of life as an ‘SC Hufflepuff.

It’s true that Dornsife students outnumber those studying at schools like Annenberg which is made up of 2,300 students and Marshall with 4,064 undergraduates. Upon closer inspection, however, this may prove an advantage.

Larger numbers help foster a broader sense of community and encourage the formation of sub-communities and interest groups of students helping students. Thus, one might argue for the strength of the “Dornsife connection” — with a larger student body, students seeking community are required to invest more energy in their endeavors, leading to the formation of tight-knit groups by diverse, incredibly motivated individuals. 

Changing or declaring a new major or minor within a student’s current school is typically a much easier process than doing so within another. Thus, with a wide variety of majors and minors, Dornsife students are able and encouraged to pursue a well-rounded, liberal arts education. In preparation for a career in diplomacy, one might pair a major in international relations and the global economy with minors in linguistics and philosophy. For those interested in a career in the business of biotechnology, a double major in biological sciences (biotechnology) and economics with a minor in sociology is possible as well. 

Though it may seem like Dornsife is playing a numbers game, the benefit may be on the side of its students. Don’t be fooled — being a small fish in a big sea can actually prove valuable for the refinement of character, grit and accountability. With a parenting style that discourages coddling, Dornsife toughens its students to become independent self-advocates. The resources are there, it’s just a matter of knowing when, where and how to look.  

Organizationally, can Dornsife be chaotic? Yes. Are students in Dornsife the USC version of Hufflepuffs? For sure. Can life as an ‘SC Hufflepuff prove challenging? Absolutely. But, challenge and chaos is where growth truly occurs — otherwise, contentment fosters complacency and in turn, mediocrity. 

So hold your heads high ‘SC Hufflepuffs, Dornsife might be a generalist, but we’ll walk out of here with more Golden Snitches than you’ll think. Take it from a Slytherin. (I solemnly swear.)