Our Impact
There is no more powerful mission than truly effecting change. The USC community — faculty, students and staff — work side by side with partners in Los Angeles to solve immediate problems, creating a constellation of people and networks collaborating toward the public good. Worldwide, our efforts address global health inequities, develop leadership and research in key cultural areas, train diplomats from myriad countries and more.
Inventing Solutions
Exploring Medical Frontiers
Creating New Knowledge
![Scientist handling vials of blood.](https://usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/ATRI-Labstyle-078-768x432.jpg)
Discovery, Creativity, Impact
USC is a premier research institution that provides a steady stream of new knowledge, art and technology. It has more than $1 billion in annual research expenditures, with the largest graduate program in science, engineering and health of all private research universities.
Research Highlights
From unexpected climate solutions to unearthing truths about today’s information ecosystem and more, USC researchers roll up their sleeves for the problems of today.
The welcoming community that greeted USC’s first openly transgender social work grad student
Christina Munguia credits her graduate school journey as a life-changing experience of acceptance and personal growth.
Witnessing violence harms brains of older teens, but ‘transcendent thinking’ may be an antidote
Teens who think about social issues and violence in reflective ways show greater resilience to the effects of violence exposure on their brain development, USC research finds.
2024 Republican National Convention: USC experts available
The Republican National Convention will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from July 15-18, 2024. USC experts are available to provide commentary on various aspects of the convention.
New ‘smart bandages’ hold potential for revolutionizing treatment of chronic wounds
USC researchers are co-leading an effort to develop advanced electronic bandages and other tools to improve chronic wound monitoring and healing.
Brutal heatwave sparks wildfires across California
USC researchers are actively developing solutions to combat wildfires. They are available to discuss the ongoing blazes and the promising research underway that could help mitigate future threats.
Brutal heatwave sparks wildfires across California
USC researchers are actively developing solutions to combat wildfires. They are available to discuss the ongoing blazes and the promising research underway that could help mitigate future threats.
Cirrhosis affects twice as many transgender adults as cisgender adults
The study from Keck Medicine of USC suggests a need for more supportive, preventive care.
USC Family Caregiver Support Center launches innovative caregiving educational program
CalGrows grant-funded project focuses on the needs of care workers serving adults with Alzheimer’s disease.
How AI might help in diagnosing mild concussions
A USC undergraduate student’s research could offer vital insights in diagnosing traumatic brain injury early with 99% accuracy.
No GPS, no problem: Quantum sensing tools to the rescue when signals from satellites aren’t available
USC Viterbi Information Sciences Institute researchers are working on instruments that can be used to navigate when GPS is down.
![Multiple dancers in red, orange, green, and yellow dresses perform in unison.](https://usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/52533999624_3cabc8e0db_o-768x432.jpg)
Creative Expression
Los Angeles is considered the “Creative Capital of the World.” With six major arts schools, USC is one of the city’s driving forces for new ideas and emerging talent, playing a prominent role in the film, television, music, architecture and arts industries.
Faculty Spotlight
USC’s award-winning scholars and researchers look beyond the ordinary to bring new, much-needed insights and developments to a rapidly changing world with complex needs. Within the health and medical fields, this has translated to a wide range of breakthroughs and discoveries that affect every aspect of our daily lives.
An influential force at USC, Ellis Meng explores the intersection between technology and medicine. Meng directs the Biomedical Microsystems Laboratory, which specializes in advancing medicine using microsystems technologies. She is associate professor of biomedical and electrical engineering and chair of USC’s Women in Science and Engineering program.
Working in genetics since 1995, Marlena Fejzo’s research focuses on conditions and diseases that primarily affect women, including ovarian cancer, breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. Fejzo discovered the first genes associated with uterine fibroids, nausea and vomiting during pregnancy known as hyperemesis gravidarum. She is a science advisor and board member for the global nonprofit Hyperemesis Education and Research Foundation.
Paul Aisen is founding director of the Alzheimer’s Therapeutic Research Institute and professor of neurology. A distinguished Alzheimer’s researcher for over two decades, Aisen pioneers novel methodologies and extensive therapeutic trials to advance understanding of the continuum of Alzheimer’s disease, from the long pre-symptomatic phase through cognitive and functional decline.