QuestBridge Instructions

To be considered for financial aid, applicants should submit the following items:

• The 2026-2027 CSS Profile, available starting October 1, 2025.
• The 2026-2027 FAFSA, available starting October 1, 2025.
• Other required forms, beginning in mid-October 2025.

Deadline: Documents must be submitted no later than November 8, 2025.

If you have not already done so:

• Apply for admission to USC.
• Complete the 2026-2027 CSS Profile.
  • Be sure to include your Social Security number.
  • USC’s CSS School code is 4852.
•  Complete the 2026-2027 FAFSA.
  • USC’s Federal School Code is 001328.
  • Report 2024 parent and student income on your FAFSA.
  • If you are a California resident who is AB-540–eligible, complete a Dream Act Application.
•  If your parents are separated, divorced, or never married and do not live together:
  • Your noncustodial parent must also submit a CSS Profile.
  • If you do not have any contact with your noncustodial parent, you may submit the Noncustodial Parent Waiver/Appeal form online.
  • Submit a statement from a third party who can verify your situation.

Note: Although you are encouraged to submit your FAFSA and CSS Profile as soon as possible, these forms may not be recorded in our system until November. 

• Applicants must submit a complete and signed copy of their 2024 federal income tax return, including all W-2 forms.
  • If you did not file a 2024 tax return, submit a Student Non-Filing Statement online.
• Parents must submit a complete and signed copy of their 2024 federal income tax return, including all schedules and W-2 forms.
  • If your parents did not file a 2024 tax return, submit a Parent Non-Filing Statement.
•  Parents must submit a Parent Income and Expense Declaration Form.

1. Log in through the USC Applicant Portal beginning in mid-October.
2. Follow the instructions provided to navigate to the Financial Aid Summary and Tasks (FAST) portal. Select “Academic Year 2026-2027.” 
3. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the “Document Library” link. Select “Academic Year 2026-2027” to locate the form you need.

Please upload or fax your documents through the student portal, following the instructions provided. To submit parents’ tax returns, be sure to select the “Parents’ 2024 Federal Income Tax Return Form 1040” option. Please use the “QuestBridge Documents” option from the “Document Library” for all other documents. 

Documents can also be mailed to:  
 
University of Southern California 
Financial Aid Office 
700 Childs Way 
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0914 
 
Documents can be submitted beginning in mid-October 2025 but no later than November 8, 2025.  
 
Documents submitted to the USC Financial Aid Office become the property of the university and cannot be returned to the student or duplicated for any purpose.