<p>there will be surprises every now and then, but zzzboy is right…</p>
<p>as a general rule of thumb, if your stats are good, you’re probably in ucla/cal and guaranteed all others. if your stats arent good, then the essay may save u. unless the essays are completely trash, theyre not that useful, for elite students.</p>
<p>Even though I am a USC Trojan and a happy member of the Trojan family who would not trade USC for any other university in the world, I know I can give an unbiased opinion of UCLA as an institution. What I will say will probably shock you but just like USC, UCLA is an excellent university and is not overrated at all. UCLA is great for studies in the sciences, liberal arts, and pre-professional schools. It takes a GREAT PERSONAL ESSAY and good everything else or A GREAT GPA+GOOD SATS+GOOD EXTRACURRICULARS+A GOOD PERSONAL STATEMENT to get in. It might not be on the level of Berkeley, Stanford or the Ivies, but its still great. The only real knock is the the lack of a real undergrad business program.</p>
<p>Another thing,(I don’t mean to make this post about USC), but don’t let USC’s 50K price tag fool you. USC has a HUGE financial aid budget. Most aid comes from institutional grants (don’t have to be repaid).Don’t worry if USC cost > Yearly income. If you meet all the financial aid deadlines, your EFC will be pretty low.</p>