I echo cadreamin’s advice above. You can never really tell what will or will not suffice in terms of grades/stats. USC is now an university with over 56K applications per year. And USC is likely only going to accept 8750-9000 of those, given current yield trends and their goal of netting 3K freshman commitments. During that process, they have recently denied 9K out of 10K or 90% of all legacy applicants and have also denied over 3K applicants with test scores in the 99th percentile. USC thus admits many applicants with lesser stats, favoring instead those who sparkle or shine somehow in other ways… ECs, leadership, auditions, creative portfolios, writing samples, artwork, demonstrated passion, etc. Those applying to the creative schools… SDA, SCA, etc… have a certain amount of potential leeway if the applicant demonstrates the creativity or performance skills that sway the admissions staff and faculty reviewing such within each individual program. But keep in mind that unless you are admitted Undeclared (no assigned major), you are basically being evaluated and granted admission twice… once by USC generally and once again by the individual school that houses the major being sought. If only the university overall admits you, you can be admitted Undeclared. But - if the university overall is not likely to admit you (and they do consider everything - grades/stats, ECs, writing), the individual school may choose to fight for you to be admitted as an exception. But… those fights are likely limited in both scope and number.
In general, USC is not looking to create a freshman class of 3000 or so well-rounded & perfectly crafted new Trojans. Instead, they are actually looking to create a well-rounded and diverse freshman class made up of 3000 or so unique, passionate and talented individuals. Therefore, the passion aspect described above is likely your best way to differentiate yourself and stand out, especially by writing about such.
From my experience, the range where applicants are deemed acceptable… or the safe minimal level (other than those really being sought after - like recruited athletes, etc.) is with an unweighted GPA of 3.7 or higher, being ranked in the top 10%, having an ACT score of 30 or higher and/or an SAT score of 1370 or higher. Obviously… there are exceptions to every rule (like being the son or daughter of someone super famous, etc), but doing that well or better… plus having strong ECs, good writing samples, showing and demonstrating a true passion and making it clear both why USC is a good fit for you and vice versa seems to be the safest approach. I am sure they admit some with lesser grades/stats, but there would most likely need to be some justification… URM, First Gen, QuestBridge, etc. With 84% or so of all applicants getting denied these days, you need to find a way (or more than one way) to convince USC that you belong in that 16% or so category.
For anyone looking to get “Chanced” as a potential USC applicant, I suggest reading an excellent thread on the topic from the beginning…
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/1558825-what-are-my-chances-read-this-first-p1.html
I also suggest reading through the following very helpful insider’s guide to USC admissions…
https://tfm.usc.edu/a-guide-to-uscs-college-admissions-process/
Best wishes… good luck… and Fight On!
