What are my chances as a personal trainer?

[little_fighter]

I recently graduated from University of California San Diego with my bachelors in Psychology (last week). In addition, I have my personal training certification through National Academy of Sports Medicine. EVERYONE tells me my calling is physical therapy (DPT), since everything I do as a personal trainer who specializes in corrective exercise and injury prevention/pain management is similar to what a Physical Therapist would do. I read about biomechanics and back pain for fun, a lot of what I do is self taught. However, a lot of my clients actually say working with me helps manage their pain better than working with their DPT!! Honestly, I would love to get accepted into a DPT program and gain the extra knowledge to help further my skills, but I'm not sure I'll even get accepted.

I have a 3.9 GPA at UCSD, but all of those classes were for Psychology and my Healthcare/Social issues minor. My science prerequisite GPA at community college is a 2.6. I also still need to take Human Anatomy, Human Physiology, Physics I and II, Chem lab and a biology class. PLUS the GRE and volunteering hours. I don't think I can score A's in all these prereq courses to salvage my GPA (I have ADHD and try really hard not to take my adderal, since I don't want to adversely affect my health).

I wanted to ask:
1) How much more of an emphasis do DPT programs put on the science GPA as opposed to the overall GPA?
2) Do DPT programs even value experience as a personal trainer? I am trying to get a job as a PT Aide, but it is hard.
3)How much do they care if the person is actually passionate about the material? Would they rather a perfect science student than a person who researches Q angles for fun in attempts to prevent future injuries in my clients? Can passion in the subject salvage a shoddy GPA?

I basically don't want to spend the next two years of my life going back to community college to pursue lower education if my chances are bleak for being accepted as a physical therapist, since it's a waste of time and money.

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[NewTestament]

I basically don't want to spend the next two years of my life going back to community college to pursue lower education if my chances are bleak for being accepted as a physical therapist, since it's a waste of time and money.

I worked as a personal trainer after I finished undergraduate school. I realized I could not make a living doing it so I decided to go into physical therapy. Personal training should be an adjunct to your primary job. Whether or not you want to spend the next two years of your life going to CC to obtain all your pre-requisites, you will survive as a personal trainer. PT school places a lot of emphasis on that pre-req GPA, and 2.6 is not good enough at any school.

Corrective exercise and pain management are part of what PTs do, but PTs do much more. PTs are found in multiple settings (acute, sub-acute, home health), and only in an orthopedic clinic would you find corrective exercise. Personal trainers know nothing about gait training, posture, pathology, neuromuscular rehab, or manipulation.

Go to PT school, or barely survive as a personal trainer.

 

[DPT41]

It sounds like you would be passionate toward the profession and it would make a great career for you. With the science classes, just get your head in the game and think of the possibilities if you do good. It will be worth it.

Plus, you mentioned that you have quite a few science prerequisites left. What have you taken so far, just chem 1 & bio 1? If so that leaves you with a lot of room for improvement to obtain a higher prerequisite Gpa.

And PT isn't the only way, I know quite a few personal trainers that get good results with their clients and make great money because of it, plus they don't have huge school debt. So you will be successful in either profession if you apply yourself.

Good luck with what ever path you choose.

 

[Watson27]

I think you're missing a key part of the puzzle: do some shadowing/observing in various PT settings. The majority of schools require clinical observation hours verified by a PT, and without these your chances of being accepted anywhere are zero percent. I would suggest that you spend time in a few settings, because this will hopefully help you see that physical therapy is so much more than personal training. That's a misconception that drives me crazy!

To answer your questions:

1. Most of the DPT programs I have spoken with place more emphasis on the science/pre-req GPA. You can have the best overall GPA in the world, but if it's because you got A's in business classes while you were pulling B's or C's in Physics, Chem, or Anatomy/Physiology, expect to have a hard time gaining acceptance to many programs. DPT programs like to see that you can handle the rigor of a science-based curriculum.
2. Experience as a trainer will only help a bit. Depends on the school. One of my professors on a DPT committee told me that unless you were working as a PT Tech or Aide, any other job (personal trainer, waitress, retail) is weighted the same, to the extent that you were able to hold a job. I would say the exception is a certification with ACSM or NSCA. However, my opinion is that any interest or previous experience in a health related field is helpful.
3. There are schools that take a more "holistic" approach to admissions and place more weight on essays, letters of recommendation, and PT observation hours, and less on GPA and GRE. But you would absolutely have to raise your GPA.

Another note, if you do decide to pursue it and end up applying to DPT schools, I would be careful to make sure it doesn't seem like you are practicing beyond your scope as a personal trainer. Telling an admissions committee that you want to be a PT because you have been rehabing your clients for years may not be the best strategy.

Overall, my suggestion is to observe and talk to some PTs before deciding if you want to pay for the pre-req classes. If you do want to pursue a DPT, you have to find study strategies that work for you. I also have ADHD. I worked with a behavioral therapist to modify my study skills and found the right medication (not Adderall). Since then, I have only gotten A's. It's possible!

Keep in mind that this could be an additional 1-2 years of pre-reqs, and 3 years of PT school. Make sure that this is truly what you want to do. Don't do it because everyone else says you would be good at it!

 

[a7rcana]

Just wanted to say (at least for the school I was accepted at) the reason they want a good science and cum GPA is that they want people who can pass the boards. I know people on here say they have a passion for PT but being able to score As and Bs in your science courses is the other end of succeeding in school. You have to be able to do the curriculum. You have to be able to pass the boards. No matter how passionate you are for a profession if you can't do well enough memorizing, practicing, retaining in school you won't become a PT. It's a Doctorate degree that requires extra classes like Pharmacology - heavily based in understanding science and chemistry. It's not simply rehabilitation and orthopedic/movement testing. If you really want to become a PT you are going to have to use all your resources -tutoring, studying like crazy, ADHD treatments. etc to get the grades. These matter.