Hi,
I’m a rising senior in high school and I live in Massachusetts. It’s always been my dream to go to a California school but I’m really worried I’ve already messed it all up in high school.
My unweighted gpa is a 2.7
My (new) SAT score is 1280
I was really interested in Santa Cruz but their minimum out of state gpa is 3.40…
Any reccomendations of California schools that I would be a good match for are welcome.
If there’s a way to bump your SAT score up another 120 points, you would be eligible for CSU schools. Otherwise you’re looking at private schools.
If you are considering the Cal States, you will receive no financial aid as an OOS applicant so if $40K/year is affordable then you could apply to some of less impacted Cal States such as Bakersfield, Channel Islands, Humboldt, Stanislaus, Dominguez Hills, San Marcos, East Bay to name a few. Other than these schools, you would need to look at private schools such as Azusa Pacific, Whittier College, Cal Lutheran, Cal Baptist are a few.
I also recommend you bump up your SAT score for better chances. The UC’s are out since your need a UC capped weighted GPA of 3.4 and even at this minimum, UC Merced might be the only option.
I would consider your in-state schools first. If you want to come to California, consider graduate school or a post graduation job in California.
You won’t qualify for any of the CA Publics that would be worth OOS tuition. Unless your family is really wealthy, full tuition at a Pvt is also going to be tough. I’d encourage you to find a school in MA.
Good luck
Unfortunately, your GPA would not be competitive for some of the schools in California.
You wouldn’t qualify for any UCs. The CSUs where you might have a chance would be in the middle of nowhere.
If you really want to be on the west coast, you might want to look at options in Oregon and Washington.
Southern Oregon U in Ashland is only 15 miles north of the CA border. It’s a lovely LAC-like campus with an artsy vibe (not entirely unlike Santa Cruz), in the town that hosts the Oregon Shakespeare festival. Your GPA is low for them but they advertise a holistic admissions process (completely unlike the CSU’s) and accept recommendations, writing samples, and other supporting materials. https://sou.edu/admissions/apply/freshman/ COA is around $39K for out-of-state.
Farther north in the great college city of Portland, OR, Portland State U provides a matrix to show how applicants with sub-3.0 GPA’s can qualify with compensating test scores. You would need a 1350 SAT or a 29 ACT to balance a 2.7 GPA, which is the lowest GPA they’ll consider. https://www.pdx.edu/undergraduate-admissions/freshman-how-when-to-apply. I believe this refers to weighted GPA’s, and your 2.7 is unweighted, so maybe you’re over the line? (GPA to get into PSU with a 1280 SAT is a 2.8 - is your weighted GPA >2.8?) OOS COA is around $43K. Great opportunities at PSU, and great west coast vibe.
Still farther north, there’s Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, which has essentially an open admissions policy, with a 98% acceptance rate. http://www.evergreen.edu/admissions/criteria Very “alternative” type school but if that’s your jam it could be perfect if you have $42K/year to spend.