How much does GPA matter for a masters at a State U?

[frenchiiie]

i have a B.S. In CS and i would like to do a masters degree at a State University in the future. Either a state university like NJIT, SJSU, UC Santa Cruz, UC Riverside, Cal Poly pomona, or some private universities like Stevens Institute of technology or Santa Clara University. These are obviously not anywhere near the top ranking universities. Would a low GPA like a 2.8, strong GRE scores, and a few years of work experience along with some projects related to what the area of the masters i am interested in be enough for serious considerations? Or does a low GPA like that really deflates any chances of getting accepted? Do GRE scores for state schools play more of an important role in the descision process versus a school like MIT that does not care for GRE scores? Or for CS is it still just a criteria to filter people("there are no good GRE scores, just bad ones")?

Edited November 27, 2014 by frenchiiie