What are my chances and is PT still a good financial investment?

[dkgrubby]

Here are my stats: B.S. in biopsychology at a top 40 ranked university. ogpa: 3.1 scigpa:2.8 100 hours as pt volunteer haven't taken my gre yet will be taking it soon, but for now lets just assume I get an average score on the GRE. Currently work in healthcare hospital as receptionist so had a good look at different health care professions.

I am still considering PT however one thing that concerns me is the payscale and debt amount. Ideally I want my state school but my stats aren't that strong so would a loan over 100k for pt school be even worth it? Besides PT I would like to have a comfortable living and not worry about money that much. Being 150k in debt making 60k a year does not make much financial sense to me that is worst case scenario. Just want to hear your guys opinions.

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[dylanh]

good post. on indeed.com the average dpt salary is listed at 88k so Im not sure if the 60k holds true still

 

[dkgrubby]

good post. on indeed.com the average dpt salary is listed at 88k so Im not sure if the 60k holds true still

yeah i checked on indeed 88k sounds good to me I would be fine with that, but I heard starting is probably around 50 to 60k, I just don't want to make that much and have alot of loans. Ideally I would want to go to my state school near my house, but my gpa isn't that strong. Whats your thoughts on my chances?

 

[DesertPT]

the average dpt salary is listed at 88k

Very few new graduates make this amount. Could be possible with the right setting, right part of the country or PRN work. But assume you will be making around $70k as a new grad for now.

 

[DesertPT]

yeah i checked on indeed 88k sounds good to me I would be fine with that, but I heard starting is probably around 50 to 60k, I just don't want to make that much and have alot of loans.

Extensive thread on this subject here:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/starting-salary-for-dpt-new-grads.931151/

Many other discussions on this topic can be found by searching the forums as well.

As for your chances, your pre-req GPA (the GPA in your PT school-specific prereqs) is the more relevant number than sGPA at most schools. What is this number for you? Your chances are very low if it is not above a 3.5.

As a good starting point, take the following classes and calculate your GPA based on the scale used by PTCAS (A+/A = 4.0, A- = 3.7, B+ = 3.3, B = 3.0, B- = 2.7, C+ = 2.3, C = 2.0):

• 1 year of general biology w/ labs
  
• 1 year of general chemistry w/ labs
  
• 1 year of anatomy and physiology w/ labs
  
• 1 year of physics w/ labs
• Introductory psychology
• 1 other psychology course (generally either developmental or abnormal)
• 1 statistics class

Many schools have pre-reqs other than these "core" ones, and some schools do not have all these, so your pre-req GPA will vary by school. But a GPA based on these classes will tell us where you really stand in general.

 

[DesertPT]

Also, I see you have posted quite a bit in the pre-dental, pre-med and pre-PA forums. Why PT? PT school is only worth it if you really want to be a PT, not because you think it is easier to get in to then dental school or PA school (in general it's not) and not because you can't be bothered to go to medical school and complete a residency. Have you spent any time observing/shadowing PTs? As a general rule of thumb, getting in to PT school requires at least 100 hours of PT observation in at least 3 different settings. You should get started on this and see if you really like what PTs do before you invest too much in this path.

 

[dkgrubby]

Also, I see you have posted quite a bit in the pre-dental, pre-med and pre-PA forums. Why PT? PT school is only worth it if you really want to be a PT, not because you think it is easier to get in to then dental school or PA school (in general it's not) and not because you can't be bothered to go to medical school and complete a residency. Have you spent any time observing/shadowing PTs? As a general rule of thumb, getting in to PT school requires at least 100 hours of PT observation in at least 3 different settings. You should get started on this and see if you really like what PTs do before you invest too much in this path.

pt was my original choice, I used to volunteer while in school. disregard my previous posts they are just looking into other professions. As for what I want to do PT is prob the one I like after taking a look at different professions, the clinic I volunteered it seemed very chill to me. Probably sports physical therapy would highly interest me, pt is a field that I could see myself doing and enjoying after looking at various health professions. The only drawback for me that deterred me was the the pay, but if its in the 80k range I am fine with that. As long as I am living a comfortable life and not bogged down by lots of debt. I am concerned if I can get in at this point. I prob need to try other fields of pt areas to get a good idea. My pre req gpa is not good prob 2.7 maybe higher actually. Should I retake statistics I felt like that was a pretty easy class but I took it freshman year and was goofing off. Got a C in that class. I am not going into pt for the money, if I wanted money I would do something else. But PT seems interesting to me.

 

[DesertPT]

^^you will most definitely need to retake every pre-req you got less than a B in, and target your application to schools that allow for grade replacement, rather than averaging grades of retaken classes. There are quite a few threads on this subject and a lot of threads in general about what to do about bad grades/low GPA. Start reading!

Also, by the time you get to an interview you will need a much better answer to "why PT" than "this one clinic was very chill".

 

[dkgrubby]

man it seems like sub 3.0 you are screwed

 

[shaymonte924]

^^ Well you will be having to spend extra money on retaking pre-reqs, GRE, applying.. if you are counting all that. I think it is a great investment, because PT goes beyond a "chill sports therapy clinic." There are so many fields in PT, it's amazing. I think you should really look into what the profession is about before you go any further.

 

[DesertPT]

man it seems like sub 3.0 you are screwed

More or less. There is an occasional person who gets in with a 2.9 or something if the rest of their application is stellar and they apply strategically to the right schools. But these people are few and far between and you can't assume you will be one of them.

I really recommend doing some thorough reading on this forum, there is a ton of great advice about how to move forward when you have a poor GPA.

 

[SwampPT]

Here are my stats: B.S. in biopsychology at a top 40 ranked university. ogpa: 3.1 scigpa:2.8 100 hours as pt volunteer haven't taken my gre yet will be taking it soon, but for now lets just assume I get an average score on the GRE. Currently work in healthcare hospital as receptionist so had a good look at different health care professions.

I am still considering PT however one thing that concerns me is the payscale and debt amount. Ideally I want my state school but my stats aren't that strong so would a loan over 100k for pt school be even worth it? Besides PT I would like to have a comfortable living and not worry about money that much. Being 150k in debt making 60k a year does not make much financial sense to me that is worst case scenario. Just want to hear your guys opinions.

Applying this next cycle would likely be a waste of money. I would concentrate on retaking prerequisites and getting that prerequisite GPA around a 3.5. I also get the feeling that you don't really know what you want to be as of yet. Take the time to thoroughly look into all the professions that interest you and find the one you are passionate about.

 

[starrsgirl]

For what it's worth, I helped at my schools admissions event and we are advertising new grads make $64K. Knowing my school, that is hard data from recent grads (Midwest). I was proud they put it out there at admissions as that's one of the more realistic numbers I've see.

 

[brooklynyc]

I do not think PT is a good financial investment. A low level finance job in New York pays more than PT, with less schooling and less debt.

I would say your chances are not strong due to your low science GPA.

 

[Apollo#1585...]

Here are my stats: B.S. in biopsychology at a top 40 ranked university. ogpa: 3.1 scigpa:2.8 100 hours as pt volunteer haven't taken my gre yet will be taking it soon, but for now lets just assume I get an average score on the GRE. Currently work in healthcare hospital as receptionist so had a good look at different health care professions.

I am still considering PT however one thing that concerns me is the payscale and debt amount. Ideally I want my state school but my stats aren't that strong so would a loan over 100k for pt school be even worth it? Besides PT I would like to have a comfortable living and not worry about money that much. Being 150k in debt making 60k a year does not make much financial sense to me that is worst case scenario. Just want to hear your guys opinions.

Travel PT.
If you're willing to sacrifice moving around a lot you can make serious bank. The numbers of $100K in 9 months in Alaska was thrown around. Add PRN work to that and maybe some off shore accounts , live very modestly, and you should be able to pay back loans pretty quick. Not to mention you are helping people. Just veterans learning how to walk, a kid, a mom, a dad, making it so they can live a normal life again when doctors tell them they "will never do XYZ again" That's pretty damn satisfying.

 

[Azimuthal]

Low and no.