milmil, so far I have only heard examples of people using their relatives to co-sign, but I can't see the harm in trying to use a USC friend to co-sign the loan, it is not a very simple request either, you are asking them to put their credit on the line for you, if you fail to pay their credit gets damaged, but if you have a USC friend willing to do this, try it, the worst they can do is say no, and even if they say no at first on the phone, tell them that you know people that have received the loan in similar predicament to yours, the person I talked to started saying I could not get a loan until I mentioned that fact and he went to ask his supervisor and it was smooth sailing from there.

BTW... as of today I have the money in the bank, received a check to deposit which had to be endorsed by both the co-signer and the beneficiary.