Our Impact
There is no more powerful mission than truly creating 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.
$6 million grant advances potential treatment for common cause of vision loss
The funding supports USC research into a therapy for dry age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness in older adults.
Vapers and smokers exhibit similar DNA changes linked to risk of disease
USC researchers compared young adults who vaped, smoked and did not use nicotine products at all.
Cannabis use tied to head and neck cancer
A USC study reveals that people with cannabis dependence are up to five times more likely to develop head and neck cancer than non-users.
Study maps how genes instruct kidneys to develop differently in mice and humans
USC stem cell researchers wanted to know: How similar is kidney development in humans and in the lab mice that form the foundation of basic medical research?
Exploding popularity of Ozempic, Wegovy among privately insured patients may worsen disparities
A USC study of prescription data shows that people with Medicaid or Medicare Part D may be missing out on powerful new obesity and diabetes drugs.
How USC engineers are using ultrasound to restore vision
A USC Viterbi research team is using non-invasive technologies to target degenerative visual impairments.
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.
Art & Science Interdisciplinary Collaborations
Bridge Institute & the USC School of Cinematic Arts
In pursuit of a cure for diabetes, faculty and students collaborate to explore the molecular structure of the pancreatic beta cell — the molecule responsible for creating insulin.
Brain & Creativity Institute
The Brain & Creativity Institute studies the effects of music processing on the developing brain, how the brain organizes narratives, and the role of feeling and consciousness in humans and machines. Applications include the diagnosis and treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders, child development and education.
Wrigley Institute Storymakers Program
Scientists become storytellers through this weeklong intensive workshop that teaches hands-on tools such as podcasting, creative content production and more to empower the people behind the science to move hearts and minds with their work in order to accelerate change.
Arts and Climate Collective (ACC)
Inspired and fueled by students, the ACC is a collective commitment to sustainability and environmental justice using the building blocks of arts, culture and storytelling. Participation develops essential skills and attitudes that prepare students for long-term success and create a shared sense of USC community.