<p>I am a female high school senior applying to the USC undergraduate program for Screenwriting. They only accept 26 people out of several thousand, so I am really worried.</p>
<p>My GPA: 3.47 UW, but I'm getting all As this semester so it should be above a 3.5 by the time I send in my apps.</p>
<p>I usually get Bs in math and science, but I always get As in all my English classes.</p>
<p>I have taken 5 AP classes + 1 Honors English class.</p>
<p>SAT: 1910, but I'm taking it again on Oct 6</p>
<p>Extracurriculars: </p>
<p>-Theater (acting & tech) for all four years, a total of about 12 productions. Most recently I have been Assistant Stage Manager for 3 shows, and I will be Stage Manager for the spring musical this year.
-School literary magazine (regular member soph. year, club leader junior and senior year)
-GSA all four years
-Cinematography club senior year
-Copy editor for the school newspaper senior year
-Film Appreciation Club senior year</p>
<p>Other:</p>
<p>-Essay published in school newspaper
-Poetry/fiction published in school lit mag soph. + junior year</p>
<p>Awards:</p>
<p>-National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards: 3 gold keys soph. year, 1 silver medal junior year
-Nominated for the National Student Poets Program junior year
-2 school English awards soph. and junior year
-1 award for Best Fiction for the lit mag soph. year
-3 #1 ranked stories on HarperCollins Publishers website called Inkpop, 5 stories ranked in top 5</p>
<p>WOW that's a lot of info, sorry! But yeah, I'm worried that my GPA or SAT scores will put me at a disadvantage...can anyone help me out???</p>
<p>USC would be lucky to have you - seriously. You’re a perfect fit for the film school and the writing program, as well as Hollywood in general.</p>
<p>That said, creativity isn’t rewarded in the B.S. traditional academic environment (shut up and do what the teacher tells you) which is why for creative programs like film school or drama school or music conservatories that portfolios and auditions matter so much. A 3.47 and 1910 are very good and respectable (they look mostly at the verbal side of the SAT; not sure how they handle the newer writing portion) but you’re right that you need to improve on them as much as you can, so a test prep class to hone your standardized test-taking skills may be in line. It’s not that you’re bad (really) but that the process is ridiculously competitive and you want to be able to give yourself as much opportunity to shine as possible. And in the case of USC, admission to the university proper is ever more difficult with every passing year and there are plenty of kids (Steven Spielberg) that the film school wants but who don’t pass muster with the university. We should all be as unfortunate as Spielberg though because as any Trojan will tell you, they can’t kiss his rear end enough these days.</p>
<p>You’re definitely on the right track though and asking the right questions. Just make sure that you put together the best portfolio that you can, with letters of rec that speak to what you bring to the school and what kind of potential you have as a writer. Do the best you can in your math and science classes (everyone in the writing program isn’t good at math and science; that’s why they’re in the writing program) and make sure that you apply to several different programs - if you don’t crack USC you can always crack NYU or Chapman or whatever. I also looked at the English departments at Berkeley and the University of Chicago, as a lot of kids get a BA in English or film and then get an MFA in writing.</p>
<p>Good luck! I’ll never forget how stressful it was when I was in your shoes…</p>
<p>I’m a USC spring admit and I think your ECs are really impressive! I’m pretty jealous, I’ve done lots of writing too, am the head editor of my school literary magazine with about two pieces of work featured each year of high school but you certainly have amazing writing credidentials! I got rejected from Inkspot </p>
<p>I’m a bit worried about the GPA but then again, I had a 3.48 and got in so it does happen. The SAT score though definitely needs to go up a bit. Their 25% is at around 2020 but a high score in the CR and writing sections should really help you out. </p>
<p>Feel free to message me if you have any other questions.</p>
<p>kettle, the good news is you fit the profile and your ECs & awards are outstanding. However, the truth about admission to the Writing for Screen & Television major in SCA is all in the writing samples in the SCA supplement. Seriously. And no one on an online college list can possibly judge how your submission will stack up against the others that come in this year. I have a strong feeling–considering your amazing honors so far–that your writing will be very competitive for this program. Just make sure you have other great schools on your list. Best of luck.</p>
because as any Trojan will tell you, they can’t kiss his rear end enough these days.</p>
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