Hi, I am currently a high school senior and I was wondering if I have a chance in getting into a college. I have a 3.4 GPA and my SAT score is around 1200, I’m planning to take two more. I have volunteered 1000+ hours and been a board member of a club at my school. I obviously know that I am not the best student. But I was wondering if I even had a chance at Cal State Long Beach. I know that I might have a chance if I apply to CSULB as an unpopular major but I was planning on applying as pre-nursing. I’ve heard that it was very competitive but I wanted some opinions. Thank you so much! 
Cal States do not consider SAT subject scores, so if you are targeting the CSU’s, I would not spend the time taking any more. I would focus on your SAT score instead and bump it up.
CSULB like all Cal states admit by major and Eligibility index. You are correct that Pre-Nursing is very selective and you need a high Eligibility index to a solid chance at CSULB or any other CSU Nursing program.
Eligibility index: (CSU GPA x800) + (SAT Math + ERBW) so if 3.4 is you CSU GPA then you EI is 3820.
An EI of 3900+ can be competitive for CSULB, but for Pre-Nursing, you would need a much higher EI (unfortunately the EI threshold is not published).
You can apply to CSULB with a different major but to declare the Pre-Nursing major, you just still meet the following requirements::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Pre-Nursing majors must complete the following requirements within four semesters of being admitted as a Pre-Nursing major or declaring a Pre-Nursing major. Some students may need to take courses during Summer Session to meet these requirements. At the end of the four semesters after Declaration of a Pre-Nursing major, students who have not met the requirements must either declare another major or meet with an Academic Advisor to determine if the student’s performance in the courses merits an additional semester to complete.
At the end of the second semester, pre-nursing students must have a grade of “C” or better in general education certified written communication, oral communication, and critical thinking courses, STAT 108 or STAT 118, and CHEM 140 as well as a combined GPA of 3.0 or better in these prerequisite courses.
Pre-Nursing students with an ELM score that places them in MAPB 1 or MAPB 7 or MAPB 11 may petition for an additional semester.
At the end of the fourth semester, pre-nursing students must have a “C” grade or better in BIOL 201, BIOL 207, and BIOL 208 as well as a combined GPA of 3.0 or better in these prerequisite courses.
The following suite of courses must be completed with a minimum GPA of a 3.0: BIOL 201, BIOL 207, BIOL 208, CHEM 140, and STAT 108 or STAT 118.
Students must have a minimum cumulative GPA of a 3.25.
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If you are interested in Pre-Nursing, take a look at some of the less selective CSU campuses such as Channel Islands, Dominguez Hills, San Marcos for example. All CSU Nursing programs are impacted so all will still be competitive.
thank you so much!
If you have volunteer experience in nursing and know its right for you then I have a suggestion of a path that gets you a nursing degree. If you don’t, then you can at least apply but ought to start NOW volunteering so that by spring you know if if nursing is right for you or not. Lots of kids start college intending to be engineers, lawyers, doctors, etc. but as they learn more about it they find it isn’t really for them; exposure now will help you see what the career is really like.
The concern with the path in post #1 is that if you are turned down when you try to change into the nursing program then you have to pick another major and you are not a nurse when you finish college.
Instead of a 4-year program at one school you could get an RN at a community college (an ADN degree) and then go to one of the RN->BSN programs. After 2 years at the CC you get your RN certificate and are employable, then you go on to get your BSN which is increasingly important for promotion (and even hiring at some hospitals). I know nurses that have done this, RN->BSN programs tend to be easier to get into. See http://www.rn.ca.gov/education/rntobsn.shtml for a list. Many are part-time and/or online, but some are campus based. Fullerton, for example, offers both online and on-campus and says
Compare that to the pre-nursing transfer program which is competitive; you can call them and ask the apply/admit numbers.
If you go the CC->BSN path you are a RN and are highly likely to get a BSN if you continue, the downside is the college experience is not quite the same as the 4-year path.