Hello, my name is Sarah and I am a 17 year old high school senior from the Minneapolis area. My GPA is a 3.25 and my ACT score is a 29. I was wondering if you guys think I have a good chance of getting into CSUN, my first choice would be film production but I know it’s a competitive program so my second choice would be journalism. I was also wondering if there’s a lot to do in the Northridge area and on campus, I toured this summer but obviously class wasn’t in session so I didn’t really get the full experience. Do you recommend bringing a car to CSUN freshman year?
Thanks so much everybody,
-Sarah
First question: Can you afford the CSU’s?
There is no funding for OOS students. No scholarships, grants or anything for non-residents.
It is a public school funded by state taxpayers.
Priority admission goes to locals first.
You would be paying about $40K per year.
If you bring a car, which is needed in Southern California, your expenses will be even more impacted. Californians pay the highest rates for gas (outside of Hawaii and Alaska) and you will be driving often and sitting in traffic.
It is an impacted campus.
Your GPA and ACT score may not be competitive enough since OOS students usually have to have better stats than in-state residents.
You are a nonresident of California. Out-of-state freshman applicants are required to meet a higher Eligibility Index than local area freshman applicants even without impaction; this has not changed.
The following impacted majors and their options admit applicants directly to the major program based on their CSU eligibility index:
- Biology B.A. and B.S. (new)
- Cinema and Television Arts
- Communication Studies (new)
- Health Sciences majors (new):
How to calculate your Eligibility index and CSU GPA. Note as an OOS applicant, only AP/IB or DE courses count for the extra honors points in the GPA calculation.
https://www2.calstate.edu/apply/eligibility-index
https://www.csun.edu/admissions-records/freshman-impaction
If you can afford CSUN, I think you have a chance but much will be depend upon how competitive your EI is in relation to the other applicants for your major.
Make sure you have some solid Match and Safety schools on your list.
Best of luck.
CSUN is in LA but it is still a substantial distance from almost everything, as it’s located at the top of the LA basin. The area surrounding campus is rather blah, as well. During the courting/application process, the school quickly fell behind its rivals in virtually all areas. There is nothing I’ve discovered at CSUN that isn’t done better at any number of rivals in a superior environment. We also had some correspondence from the administration that was unfriendly and uninviting to the point where we simply withdrew our kid’s application. Life is too short to be subjected to a five-year DMV experience. I’d recommend looking at other options.