Hi PeaceLoveSowk! Good for you for being so proactive.
Yeah, MSWs are generally more forgiving. They want to see that you have a realistic view of the profession and have expressed interest through work experiences. I agree with louise86 -- I am from California and MSWs there are harder to get into, especially if they're public MSWs, because of the huge population.
I applied to University of Denver last month and got in this past week, with $17,000 total in scholarships. My cumulative GPA is a 3.19, but I had over 2400 hours of relevant social service experience and a good essay.
USC is expensive and the program doesn't have that great of a reputation among my peers in California. I personally wouldn't go there, but that's just my unsolicited opinion!