Program-Specific Info / Q's Maine OT Schools: USM vs. UNE? Help!

[winnie1234]

I have been accepted by both USM and UNE for 2015 Occupational Therapy programs, now I need to choose.

UNE requires a deposit of $1000 by Feb 17 (which will be applied towards tuition) so I need to make a decision soon. Having a difficult time weighing my options-there are pros and cons to both.

UNE is more expensive and begins in May so I have less time to prepare, but it is a GREAT school!

USM is in Lewiston (not great) and has been undergoing financial issues and layoffs in different parts of the school, but it begins in the Fall and the staff and current students seemed happy and down to earth, and it is cheaper than UNE.

Hoping there are some voices that could weigh in on these programs out there? Any input would be GREATLY appreciated!! Thanks!!

( I am also applying at Pacific U here in Oregon where I am currently living, but the prohibitive cost of their OTD program is a major turnoff, for that reason alone I am leaning towards my home state for school)

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[katahdin]

I'm going to USM this fall. I loved that the faculty all had backgrounds in education as well as in OT. I realized during my USM interview that the things I thought made a great school (professors with impressive backgrounds in the field, state of the art facilities, being super competitive) aren't necessarily accurate. One of the professors I interviewed with said that facilities call them asking for USM MOT students for fieldwork. They never need to look for new sites because they come to them because USM has such a great reputation in the area. Lots of people said they commute from Portland. Also, when you look at the cost difference, remember you will be paying it back with 7% interest, it makes the difference in price quite a bit more pronounced

 

[winnie1234]

@katahdin Thanks for your input!! I also got a very good impression from the staff/faculty at USM, and found the emphasis on Mental Health to be particularly attractive since many other programs do not give you that experience. That's a great sign that facilities seek USM students for fieldwork-it is very important to me that my program provides ample experience for future work in the field! I am leaning in the direction of USM for many reasons, but I did like the fact that UNE is a Medical School and allows you to interact with students from other disciplines, similar to the interdisciplinary teams we will be working with in the field. I also think their facilities and labs are nicer, although I heard USM will be renovating theirs over the Summer. UNE also has a cadaver lab, which although not my favorite, it is a great learning tool. You are right-the cost difference is helpful, although anything cheaper than Pacific to me sounds like a bargain! (108,000 in tuition alone. Ridiculous.) My family lives in Portland but if I choose USM I am planning on finding a place in the "Dirty Lew", much cheaper all around, and I can always go to Portland on the weekends. Plus, USM starts in the Fall, where UNE begins in late May, which is almost too soon for me! I will likely be seeing you in the Fall

 

[Bokonomy]

Hey, I'm trying to learn as much as I can about USM, but there's not much out there! Do you know whether or not you could do both Fieldwork IIs out of state? Can you guys please post your stats? I noticed they have a gpa requirement of 3.2 now...right now my gpa is a 3.4...I should be able to bring it up to a 3.5, but that's nothing amazing. I think USM is my cheapest option so I'm hoping to get in in the fall. Thanks!

 

[Heatheraburke]

I had applied to USM this previous fall and did not get accepted. My gpa is 3.4 (last 60 credits 3.8) and pre-req gpa was a 3.8. I contacted them multiple times about why I wasn't accepted and they basically told me they only scaled people based on their GPA's and I think that is incredibly unfair. I have almost 200 observation hours and an internship with an OT. They said the average was almost a 3.7 for this past fall. I also have a friend who works within USM's general graduate admissions and since they are undergoing financial issues they are favoring out of state applicants too. I shadowed 2 OT's from southern maine, one who went to UNE and the other USM and their was an extreme difference in knowledge between the two. My friends older sister graduated from UNE's program last may and she said her fieldwork sites always said they preferred UNE's students over USM because they were much better prepared. I'm not trying to knock USM because they were my first choice for a long time but, I wanted to share what I know.

 

[Bokonomy]

I had applied to USM this previous fall and did not get accepted. My gpa is 3.4 (last 60 credits 3.8) and pre-req gpa was a 3.8. I contacted them multiple times about why I wasn't accepted and they basically told me they only scaled people based on their GPA's and I think that is incredibly unfair. I have almost 200 observation hours and an internship with an OT. They said the average was almost a 3.7 for this past fall. I also have a friend who works within USM's general graduate admissions and since they are undergoing financial issues they are favoring out of state applicants too. I shadowed 2 OT's from southern maine, one who went to UNE and the other USM and their was an extreme difference in knowledge between the two. My friends older sister graduated from UNE's program last may and she said her fieldwork sites always said they preferred UNE's students over USM because they were much better prepared. I'm not trying to knock USM because they were my first choice for a long time but, I wanted to share what I know.

Thanks for letting me know! I'm regional, so I'd almost definitely not get accepted (since they wouldn't be able to get the full amount off of me)...wow. I've heard of people getting in with 3.4s in previous years, so they must have REALLY upped competition. Have you gotten into other places? I was thinking of throwing one into Husson, but I'd rather stay in southern New England if it's not going to save me a lot more/time.

 

[winnie1234]

Hey, I'm trying to learn as much as I can about USM, but there's not much out there! Do you know whether or not you could do both Fieldwork IIs out of state? Can you guys please post your stats? I noticed they have a gpa requirement of 3.2 now...right now my gpa is a 3.4...I should be able to bring it up to a 3.5, but that's nothing amazing. I think USM is my cheapest option so I'm hoping to get in in the fall. Thanks!

When I interviewed with USM, they did say that they do Fieldwork placements outside of the state, and have people go as far as Oregon, which appealed to me as that as where I am currently living. ( I will also mention that when I interviewed at UNE, the student panel spoke about how none of them were planning to stay in Maine after graduation as there are very few OT jobs? Perhaps this is why they make out of state fieldwork an option?) My undergrad GPA was around 3.4, but prereq GPA was a 4.0 (still not sure how I pulled that one off here) . I had about 65 hours of OT observation in 4 different settings, and also volunteer for a program that supports adults with developmental disabilities, an area I would like to continue to work in if possible. What I have heard about USM's OT program outside of exploring the school on my own is all positive, from other OTs and also from a girl I spoke with who graduated from the program. The financial problems the school is having are of concern, but that has not affected the OT program, and they have even received funding to remodel their lab-the Lewiston Campus is small but sufficient. I really got a great impression of the staff and faculty-all very warm and down to earth. I would encourage you at apply to a large number of programs-I did so this year and it paid off much more than putting my eggs in one basket like I did the previous year!

 

[winnie1234]

Thanks for letting me know! I'm regional, so I'd almost definitely not get accepted (since they wouldn't be able to get the full amount off of me)...wow. I've heard of people getting in with 3.4s in previous years, so they must have REALLY upped competition. Have you gotten into other places? I was thinking of throwing one into Husson, but I'd rather stay in southern New England if it's not going to save me a lot more/time.

I had applied to USM this previous fall and did not get accepted. My gpa is 3.4 (last 60 credits 3.8) and pre-req gpa was a 3.8. I contacted them multiple times about why I wasn't accepted and they basically told me they only scaled people based on their GPA's and I think that is incredibly unfair. I have almost 200 observation hours and an internship with an OT. They said the average was almost a 3.7 for this past fall. I also have a friend who works within USM's general graduate admissions and since they are undergoing financial issues they are favoring out of state applicants too. I shadowed 2 OT's from southern maine, one who went to UNE and the other USM and their was an extreme difference in knowledge between the two. My friends older sister graduated from UNE's program last may and she said her fieldwork sites always said they preferred UNE's students over USM because they were much better prepared. I'm not trying to knock USM because they were my first choice for a long time but, I wanted to share what I know.

I'm sorry to hear that you didn't get in this year

I had applied to USM this previous fall and did not get accepted. My gpa is 3.4 (last 60 credits 3.8) and pre-req gpa was a 3.8. I contacted them multiple times about why I wasn't accepted and they basically told me they only scaled people based on their GPA's and I think that is incredibly unfair. I have almost 200 observation hours and an internship with an OT. They said the average was almost a 3.7 for this past fall. I also have a friend who works within USM's general graduate admissions and since they are undergoing financial issues they are favoring out of state applicants too. I shadowed 2 OT's from southern maine, one who went to UNE and the other USM and their was an extreme difference in knowledge between the two. My friends older sister graduated from UNE's program last may and she said her fieldwork sites always said they preferred UNE's students over USM because they were much better prepared. I'm not trying to knock USM because they were my first choice for a long time but, I wanted to share what I know.

Did you also apply to UNE this year? Were you at least waitlisted at USM? I would like to think that they were not only basing admission upon GPA, especially since we had an entire day consisting of interview, group activity and writing sample (we did a writing sample, right? feels so long ago). Hopefully there will be some movement on the list and you still have a chance for this Fall! Sounds like you have a lot of great experience!!

 

[Heatheraburke]

I'm sorry to hear that you didn't get in this year

Did you also apply to UNE this year? Were you at least waitlisted at USM? I would like to think that they were not only basing admission upon GPA, especially since we had an entire day consisting of interview, group activity and writing sample (we did a writing sample, right? feels so long ago). Hopefully there will be some movement on the list and you still have a chance for this Fall! Sounds like you have a lot of great experience!!

I didn't even get waitlisted! I was so upset at first and spoke to admissions on multiple occasions about it. They told me if I really wanted to get in my best bet was to retake classes and get my gpa up. They said unless you blow them away during the interview, they rank applicants by GPA. Like I said, I was upset at first but I don't really want to goto a program that only looks at your GPA anyway because I don't believe that really determines who will be a good OT or not and it makes me question the attitude of their program. I applied to a few other programs and am still waiting to hear back! I didn't apply to UNE because my school doesn't offer neuroscience and I couldn't take it before their program begins. I applied to Husson and am still waiting to hear back.

 

[winnie1234]

I didn't even get waitlisted! I was so upset at first and spoke to admissions on multiple occasions about it. They told me if I really wanted to get in my best bet was to retake classes and get my gpa up. They said unless you blow them away during the interview, they rank applicants by GPA. Like I said, I was upset at first but I don't really want to goto a program that only looks at your GPA anyway because I don't believe that really determines who will be a good OT or not and it makes me question the attitude of their program. I applied to a few other programs and am still waiting to hear back! I didn't apply to UNE because my school doesn't offer neuroscience and I couldn't take it before their program begins. I applied to Husson and am still waiting to hear back.

I'm sorry, that's really frustrating to hear! Hopefully you hear good news about the other programs you applied to!

 

[katahdin]

Hey, I'm trying to learn as much as I can about USM, but there's not much out there! Do you know whether or not you could do both Fieldwork IIs out of state? Can you guys please post your stats? I noticed they have a gpa requirement of 3.2 now...right now my gpa is a 3.4...I should be able to bring it up to a 3.5, but that's nothing amazing. I think USM is my cheapest option so I'm hoping to get in in the fall. Thanks!

I had around a 3.3 overall, my pre-reqs for them were maybe 3.7. I had about 80 hours directly with OTs and another 80 in health care related settings. The impression from faculty is that they really wanted well rounded people who were academically capable but also personable, professional, and passionate. I don't think they only look at GPAs, they said one of the reasons they don't participate in OTCAS is that those schools get flooded with applications and you are forced to play the numbers game when there are that many applications in front of you, and they wanted to make sure they were considering the bigger picture. They also felt like OTCAS can draw a lot of applications from people who may or may not have spent much time looking into the program to see if it is right for them.
I think with a 3.5, good experiences, and a strong interview, you have a great shot. Good luck!