**申请求问。。。

I am preparing for my grad school application right now and hoping I can get in next Fall semester. I have some questions for ppl who've been through a similar situation.

I have a background in B.A. Architecture with an overall GPA (Freshman to Senior) 3.07 and the last two years GPA (Junior and Senior Year) 2.66 at UC Berkeley. I am working on my GRE test and SOP currently. Applying to Standford, UW, Indiana University Bloomington, UC Berkeley, Mich, UT Austin, Cornell, Purdue, Northwestern in human-computer interaction program.

My questions: Does getting a decent GRE score (300-320) helps with a low GPA circumstance? Should I even mention why was my GPA so low during undergrad in my SOP? If I would reach out to the administration office and ask them questions related to my poor, unqualified circumstance, would I leave them a bad circumstance? Does a highly ranked undergrad help with grad school application at all?

Thanks! Stay healthy and positive.