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
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.
USC-led study introduces improved way to grow cells that give rise to kidney’s filtration system
Scientists report significant progress in cultivating nephron progenitor cells.
Can carbon capture solve climate change?
EARTH MONTH: Removing excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere could go a long way towards slowing global warming, experts tell USC Dornsife event.
Direct-to-patient educational material helps older adults reduce use of drugs like Valium, Xanax
Study finds that patients who received brochures about risks, alternatives and tapering recommendations were more likely to successfully quit taking benzodiazepine medications.
No. 1 USC captures fifth Pac-12 beach volleyball championship
The Women of Troy took down No. 2-seeded UCLA in a 3-0 sweep in the Pac-12 Championship match.
Laws requiring doctors to report a dementia diagnosis to the DMV may backfire
USC researchers investigate whether state reporting mandates are associated with clinicians’ likelihood of underdiagnosing dementia.
USC researchers find genetic variant contributing to disparities in childhood leukemia risk
The variant helps explain why Latino children face a higher risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and offers insights about what causes the disease.
Keck Medicine of USC opens transplant care clinic in Las Vegas
The clinic is the first in Nevada to offer in-state heart transplant services.
People with rare longevity mutation may also be protected from cardiovascular disease
Patients with growth hormone receptor deficiency, or Laron syndrome, appear to have lower than average risk factors for cardiovascular disease, according to a new study.
USC announces 2024 commencement celebrations
Dozens of student-focused events will recognize the newest graduates.
USC welcomes reinstatement of Reggie Bush’s 2005 Heisman
Bush had a legendary career at USC and an electrifying 2005 season, scoring 18 touchdowns.
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.