Living on campus immediately makes you part of a close-knit community with other students with whom you can make new connections and build potentially life-long relationships. The huge variety of delicious and nutritious food available through our residential dining program offers a shared space and common experience that can nurture and encourage these connections.
Creating communities within the Residential College Experience is an essential part of student life at USC. That is one reason why our Cardinal Meal Plan is anchored in the three residential dining halls. However, there are variety of meal plans offered and you can choose the one that best fits your campus lifestyle.
Options for Fall 2025 / Spring 2026
Meal plans are assigned based on class standing. Students whose residential location does not require a meal plan may choose to participate in any plan on an optional basis.
First Year Students
- All first year students living in University Housing will be assigned the Cardinal Meal Plan.
- Residents may elect to upgrade their meal plan.
- All plan changes must be submitted by September 3, 2025 for Fall 2025 and by January 22, 2026 for Spring 2026.
Sophomore, Juniors, and Seniors
- All sophomores, juniors, and seniors living in USC Housing Apartments will be assigned the Flex120 Meal Plan when they confirm a USC Housing contract.
- Residents may elect to upgrade their meal plan.
- All plan changes must be submitted by September 3, 2025 for Fall 2025 and by January 22, 2026 for Spring 2026.
Meal Plans
The Cardinal Meal Plan gives you unlimited access to our residential dining halls, no matter how often you’d like to visit them. They offer a comfortable space and a variety of food choices for a meal, a snack, a visit with friends or a convenient place to work on a class project. Since you may need to grab a quick meal between classes when you’re not near a dining hall, the Cardinal Meal Plan also includes two Campus Center Meal Swipes per week that can be used for meal combos at many locations at the Ronald Tutor Campus Center.
What you’ll get:
- Unlimited Residential Meal Swipes + plus 7 guest swipes per semester
- 2 Campus Center Meal Swipes per week at Seeds Marketplace, Yaki Bowls, Slice Shop, TacoTaco, Burger Crush, and C&G Juice Co., located at the Ronald Tutor Campus Center (these swipes do not roll over week to week, they reset every Sunday)
All sophomores, juniors, and seniors living in USC Housing Apartments will be assigned the Flex120 plan when they confirm a USC Housing contract. This plan includes 120 meal swipes that can be used at all three Residential Dining Halls or at most Ronald Tutor Campus Center food court locations, plus $150 Dining Dollars per semester. Residents may elect to upgrade their meal plan.
If you exhaust your Flex120 plan and decide that you want a new plan, you can purchase a new Flex120, Community 25, or Community 50 plan when the Meal Swipes run out. Any unused Dining Dollar or swipe balance will reset at the end of the semester.
Graduate students are not required to purchase a meal plan.
What you’ll get:
- 120 Meal Swipes that may be used at all three Residential Dining Halls or at most Ronald Tutor Campus Center food court locations
- $150 Dining Dollars per semester
The Community plans are great options for students who are not required to have a meal plan but would like one that offers the combination of Residential Meal Swipes with Dining Dollars. You may purchase a new Community plan once the previous plan has been exhausted.
Community 25:
- 25 Residential Meal Swipes
- $50 Dining Dollars
Community 50:
- 50 Residential Meal Swipes
- $100 Dining Dollars
If you’d like to switch things up as your campus lifestyle evolves, you can add an extra block of 250 or 500 Dining Dollars to your plan at any time during the semester. This Dining Dollar block is offered at a 10% discount. Please note that Dining Dollar Blocks reset on the last day of the semester and do not roll over.
What you’ll get:
- $250 or $500 worth of Dining Dollars