Accepted!! Now what...

[HopefulPTStudent92]

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I am hoping I can get some good input from people who have been through the same process I am currently going through. Any advice is appreciated!

So I recently got accepted to a program after applying to 6 programs. 4 rejects, 1 still waitlisted, and 1 acceptance. The school that I have been accepted to is a private school located in a different state from which I currently live. I was late admitted, and am set to begin school in a little over a month.. (Yikes!). I spoke to the school and they are willing to let me defer my acceptance 1 cycle should I decide that I want to wait. Here is my reason for waiting:

The private school is located in Virginia and tuition is 109k for the 3 years, adding in cost of living, books, etc. I am looking at about 140-150k worth of debt I could be inheriting. Because I am a late admit many grants and scholarships that would help offset the debt are not available to me and I do not want to be another graduate student graduating with a 6 figure debt above my head. For that reason, I have considered differing until June 2018 and working full time at my job to save money, as well as looking into scholarships and grants that can help with the cost. On top of that it gives me time to figure out a living situation that will be good for me, and get acclimated to the new state, and city I will be living in.

If you were in my situation would you defer, or bite the bullet and start in June? I know waiting a year will cost me about 60k as a entry level PT, but I think saving money and looking into money I can get and not pay back may, in the long run, save me more money.

Also does anyone know of any Federal and or state grants/scholarships for PT's in VA that I can look into applying for?

Thank you for any advice you can provide me, and good luck to those hopeful pre-PT students still waiting for that acceptance call. Don't ever give up!

 

[NJ DPT HOPEFUL]

There are very few grants and scholarships for DPT so I think delaying yourself a whole year on something that is a unlikely to happen would be a poor decision.

 

[Dinked]

I would just go to the accepted school, get it done with, so you can come out and make more money than you would be making during this off year.

 

[DPThopeful1859]

I'd say just go. I know the last thing you want to do is inherit a lot of debt coming out of school, but unfortunately whether it's 60k or 150k, it's debt nonetheless and how you choose to handle taking care of it is your choice. I know I will be graduating with about the same amount (~140-150k) but, in the meantime I'm using that money to pay off any current debt I have and help my partner and I begin a family towards the end of my 3rd year, because we'd have to cough up the money somehow...might as well be with money I'm paying back eventually right? Plus, and correct me if I'm wrong, but there is a loan forgiveness program you can get on where if you work for a non-profit organization for 10 years (doesn't have to be the same one) and you pay your normal payment every month for those 10 years, they forgive the rest of what you have. Like I said, unless that recently changed in the last few years or plans on changing soon, I know therapists I've worked with who went to Emory, had tons of debt and are on that program in order to ensure that debt gets cleared.
Just a thought 🙂

 

[preptkittty123]

It's totally understandable to be nervous about moving so suddenly, and about the debt involved with going to a private school. It is a lot of $. However, I agree with what everyone has said above.

I looked for scholarships for PT school and either I sucked at searching or I couldn't find any that applied to me. I found one grant (maybe it was a scholarship, I don't remember,) which someone posted in one of these threads on this site, but a stipulation was being accepted to an accredited school, the school I'm going to wasn't accredited by the deadline for the grant, so I couldn't even apply for it and the max they gave out if you were awarded it was like $1,500 a year. The school I got into offers VTAG (you have to be a VA resident though,) I was able to apply to that but again the max they will award if they even give me anything is $1,600.00 a year. I was able to find a few other scholarships through looking at the links APTA provides but everything I found didn't apply to me or they havn't given awards in years.

I wouldn't wait a year to go to that school in hopes of getting scholarships/grants.

However, that year you take off if you were to raise your GPA, GRE, get more hours, then get into a state school instead, then that might be worth taking a year off. But thats never guaranteed that you will get in even if you do all those things.

It seems like you are worried bc you're scared of moving, they sprung the acceptance on you, you don't have as much time to prepare as other students, etc. (That's how I would be feeling). & if that is the main reason you are thinking of waiting a year I don't think you should (none of us are really prepared for this in my opinion.) I got into a private school off a waiting list a little over a month ago which also starts in June, also located in VA, costs the same amount as the program you are talking about, and it honestly took me only 2 days to find a place to live and roommates. Within a week I was signing a lease, filled my FAFSA, submitted a background check, etc. It doesn't take long to get your health records forms in, you'll probably need a two step TB test, and you'll probably need CPR training. Even though this sounds like a lot you CAN squeeze it all in a month. Since you got in off the waiting list the school should extend your deadlines for paperwork and you should be fine.

A month may seem close, but some people get in off waitling lists only a few days before classes start!!!! At least you have some time to plan.

Keep us posted on your decision! & sorry about my long post.

 

[HopefulPTStudent92]

You all have been very helpful. Unfortunately, I did not get to your replies until after I made my decision. I decided to defer which was a hard decision for me to make but I believe it was the right one.

I am working full time. I plan on saving money for the year and applying for any scholarships and loans I can find. I found a VA loan forgiveness program, where they pay up to 100% of your tuition and also a 1.1k stipend. In exchange, you work for the VA for 2 years. I plan on applying for this and using it to pay for most, or all of my expenses. Thank you all for your input!

 

[dptwannabee1]

Good luck to you for sure. Perhaps feeling like all your ducks are in a row and you are ready, will make PT school easier in the long run, so that would make deferring the right choice for you. I took a gap year to get ready, so I understand that fully. Just want to caution you about counting on scholarships, especially ones like the VA. Competition is extremely fierce, and I know people with great stats who do not get any scholarships. Good luck to you, hope the VA scholarship works out and that your decision ends up being one you are happy with.