Baylor DPT Questions

[bushidosurvives]

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[BBPT17]

Hey! I go here for undergrad so I might be able to help on some of your questions. I've heard about the Baylor Army DPT program first hand, so hopefully that'll help on some of your questions!
1. It has no preference, as long as you complete all of your prerequisites and have a bachelor's degree. Just focus on making good grades on those and you'll be as competitive as the next person.
2. They don't specifically count the quantitative section for the admission process, instead they use your GRE score as a whole. Everything on the GRE counts.
3.You said you only have 50 observation hours but could get that up as high as 400, right? 400 is definitely good! That shows them that you've had a lot of exposure to the PT field. However if you're asking if 50 is enough, I would recommend to try and get that up. I'm not sure how they factor that into their admission decision, but the more you have the better. You might also want to keep in mind that everyone applying has at least 100 hours. So definitely shoot for those 400!
4. Definitely do a school visit!!! That is a must! That's how you really get a feel about that program and whether it's right for you or not.
5. The only other advice I have is what our professor told us: that is to apply as early as you can, especially to this program. Make yourself stand out somehow, whether that is in your personal statements or in extracurriculars, etc. For you that's easy, because you can talk about how you are a nontraditional student and are now pursuing a career in physical therapy after having worked at a bank for so long. If you can show them that this truly is your passion, then you are good to go! Let me know if you have more questions. 🙂

 

[WarriorPT]

3. Observation hours are very important for Baylor, and they need to be diverse. Think about what an Army PT would need to treat: ortho, sport injury, TBI, vestibular (dizziness, etc.), traumatic amputation, and the like. Your hours need to be in these areas. I had a student with a master's degree in Kinesiology and 1.5 years of observation at the VA who applied to Baylor and was passed over. It's very, very competitive. Letters of reference from active duty Army PTs are a must (O-5 if you can swing it). I see that you ARE a Marine, but also keep in mind that you are being assessed for a commission as well. Were you an officer in your prior service? If so, the commissioning may be smoother for you, and less of a factor in your application. This is also where your previous evals from the USMC will come back to haunt or help you.

5. Network, network, network. Visit clinics on base. Don't just apply to Baylor PT; you need to sell why you want to be an Army PT. Learn about Army PT by networking.

I hope Baylor gives you a serious look. Good luck.

 

[CortneyDPT]

Hi All,

I am humbly seeking guidance from the US Army Baylor University admits.

My Story:
I am a nontraditional pre-physical therapy student hoping to obtain admission to Baylor University in the 2017 DPT class. I currently work 50-60 hours a week at a bank and my first bachelors degree is in economics. I will be taking the majority of my prerequisites at a 4 year university. The remainder will be taken at a community college. I have obtained 50 observation hours thus far in the PT department at a skilled nursing facility. I am in the process of scheduling the remainder of my hours at the local VA, which I estimate to total around 400 hours by the time of my application.

1. Does the Baylor program have any particular preference for students who take their classes at a four year institution versus a community college?
2. Does the quant score on the GRE hold any value whatsoever on applications? I have seen numerous threads citing that the Quant section is irrelevant in terms of the final decision making process?
3. Will my VA observation hours suffice? I will not be able to make it into an active duty environment unless I quit my job. This is not an option at the moment. I may however, be able to take Fridays off once a month to do a shadowing gig. I do have prior military experience in the Marine Corps. Will on base shadowing truly be necessary?
4. I am in contact with my recruiter. Should I approach her regarding a school visit?
5. Is there any additional advice that you can provide me? Any suggestions etc. I have read through the slew of threads on the program but am interested in additional insight.

In advance, thanks for all of your assistance.

I applied for the 2015 year but was unsuccessful. I luckily had a backup plan and will pursure goals of joining the military after I complete a civilian program. I learned a lot in the application process, so I will answer your questions to the best of my ability 🙂

1. As long as you preformed well in your courses, the school doesn't specify that the students must go to a four year university.
2. Yes it does. In the most recent applicant cycle, the average applicant's GRE score that I saw was a 310 or higher. The schools is very competitive, so any advantage you have is helpful.
3. They perfer you to do hours at a military base and will look unfavorably upon people who are close to a base and do not do hours there. But if you live extremely far from a base, VA hours are acceptable. They just want you to understand the difference between civilian PTs and PTs who are in the military or PTs who work with military personnel. I.E. the different injuries they aquire, and the moral of the patients and the intereaction between the PTs and the patients who are or were in the military. I highly suggest you try and get hours at a base because the day in a life of a PT in the military is very different than you'd expect. In a good way.
4. You could definitely go visit the school! They encourage you visiting the campus to get an idea of the program. They are very open to having you visit and will give you a tour.
5. Improve any grades you haven't done well in, relax during the phone interview; they really just want to get to know you and make sure you are right for the program. Try an finish your packet as soon as you can and be patient. Also, apply to other schools in addition to Baylor. They are very competitive, so it'll be good to have a backup plan.

GOOD LUCK 🙂

 

[Bruin8722]

Bushidosurvives, I'd be happy to help.

1. I honestly don't think that is an issue. As a nontraditional applicant myself, I ended up taking three courses at a community college and I was accepted. I know of a few others who did the same.
2. Yes, it does matter. It's true that they place significantly more emphasis on the verbal reasoning section, but if you can do well on both, of course you will look better.
3. On base shadowing is basically a must. It's understandable that you live far away from the nearest facility and once a month is the most that you can do. If you are able to do so, I would strongly recommend it. When you get around to writing you statement of motivation, by all means include that. That sort of dedication will show you really want to be a military PT, and they really look for that sort of thing. Keep getting VA hours, however, the more the merrier. When I applied they required 80-100 I think but nearly everyone accepted had 300-500 or in some cases, far more.
4. Yes, visit the school. Even if you're already sure that you want this program. You will meet the current students, and the faculty. On my visit, I met the professor who ended up interviewing me months later, and he remembered me. Taking the time and money to go make that first impression goes a long way, trust me.
5. As WarriorPT mentioned above, your recommendation letters are crucial. Every applicant (to basically any program) has letters saying they are phenomenal candidates and will be great PTs. But if the selection board members aren't familiar with the recommender, it doesn't mean nearly as much. If possible, get at least one letter from a Baylor graduate. An O-5 or higher would be best (and by all means strive for that) but any Baylor grad would be good.

*Also, as WarriorPT said, if you were a prior officer, that might make the process smoother, but don't let that deter you. I was prior enlisted when I applied. Good luck!

 

[Traveler94]

Hi everyone,

I am just about to begin my first bachelors degree this fall. I am 19 and I am planning on applying to the Baylor Army DPT program as soon as I have my bachelors degree. Any advice? I live right by Fort Sam and maybe 30 mins from the Brooke Army Medical Center. I plan on volunteering there to get hours. Im majoring in Kinesiology and will minor in psychology. Any information will help tons!

 

[tb1065]

Hi All,

I am humbly seeking guidance from the US Army Baylor University admits.

My Story:
I am a nontraditional pre-physical therapy student hoping to obtain admission to Baylor University in the 2017 DPT class. I currently work 50-60 hours a week at a bank and my first bachelors degree is in economics. I will be taking the majority of my prerequisites at a 4 year university. The remainder will be taken at a community college. I have obtained 50 observation hours thus far in the PT department at a skilled nursing facility. I am in the process of scheduling the remainder of my hours at the local VA, which I estimate to total around 400 hours by the time of my application.

1. Does the Baylor program have any particular preference for students who take their classes at a four year institution versus a community college?
2. Does the quant score on the GRE hold any value whatsoever on applications? I have seen numerous threads citing that the Quant section is irrelevant in terms of the final decision making process?
3. Will my VA observation hours suffice? I will not be able to make it into an active duty environment unless I quit my job. This is not an option at the moment. I may however, be able to take Fridays off once a month to do a shadowing gig. I do have prior military experience in the Marine Corps. Will on base shadowing truly be necessary?
4. I am in contact with my recruiter. Should I approach her regarding a school visit?
5. Is there any additional advice that you can provide me? Any suggestions etc. I have read through the slew of threads on the program but am interested in additional insight.

In advance, thanks for all of your assistance.

I recently applied to Baylor DPT this last cycle and I'm also a non-traditional student with a very similar background to yours,

I'm prior service Air Force (enlisted) and I completed my initial undergraduate degree in Finance. When I decided to apply to Baylor I was working full time while taking my pre-requisites at a 4 year institution and attempting to obtain all of my observation hours, it was a ton of work and at the end of the process I was wait-listed. Here are some of the challenges I ran into while attempting to work, study, observe, and apply all at once.

1. I almost wish I took some of the pre-requisites at a CC to ensure a smaller class size and a better teacher/student ratio. For Gen Chem I & II I had over 200 students in my class, teacher was never available for help and I ended up with B's
2. GRE is a huge, I'm not sure how much AW weights on your overall application. If you can, try to take the GRE by itself, meaning not while you are taking A&P and Physics and all of your other pre-requisites and working full time, so you can really just focus on the GRE and get the highest combined score possible, definitely shoot for something around 310 or higher. I took it in the middle of A&P and Physics and work and observation hours and I didn't study and I scored below 310 and I didn't allow myself enough time to retake it before the deadline.
3. I did most of my observation hours at the VA as well however, I was able to get out to West Point and meet some Baylor graduates, gain some solid military observation hours and a great LOR but I was only able to rack up ~200 hours. Definitely try to gain as many AD Military observation hours as you can and if possible, in a number of different settings.
4. If you can swing a school visit do it.
5. Make sure you start your application now, try to get your physical done as soon as possible , if you need a medical waiver for any reason they take months to get approved and this could potentially keep your packet from going to the board. Also, I'm not in any type of position to advise anyone to quit their job but attempting to do all of this while working full time is extremely difficult (which is exactly where I was last year) and could result in a weaker packet than you are truly capable of. If you have any portion of your GI bill remaining and you could take this year off or even cut down to part-time try to do it so you can focus solely building the most competitive packet you can put together.

Best of Luck, Baylor is an amazing program.

 

[scrawnyguy]

Did anyone complete observation hours with another service? I completed about 40 hours at a VA before I moved and right now I am completing an internship at a TBI/SCI rehab hospital which will give me another 500 or so hours. I want to complete at least a handful of hours on an installation. I'm in Denver and we have an Air Force base just outside of town. Fort Carson is about an hour and a half away. I overdid it with the college courses this summer and I'm a little overwhelmed right now. I took double the recommended course load and every spare minute I have is spent studying. In the fall I am cutting back on my course load to concentrate on gaining observation hours so I may be able to make it down there one day a week. I have a feeling that once winter hits though that drive is going to take a lot longer and I won't be able to make it down there on a weekly basis.

 

[scrawnyguy]

I was finally able to get an answer back from the local Air Force base. Not only do they not have a hospital, just a small clinic, but they also don't have a PT on staff right now. They have to refer all PT appts to civilians clinics in the area. I guess I'll be hoofing it to Fort Carson starting in the spring. I might only be able to make it once a week for a few months but hopefully that does the trick.

 

[Rgvmed]

I'm in the beginning stages of this process and being realistic, not sure if I'd even have a shot. The closest VA is 2 hours away and I just sent in my volunteer packet, waiting to hear back. I have around 400 hours in various settings but obviously not military. I have a 320 gre and 5.0 awa, 3.95 post Bach, 3.8 prereq, however my original undergrad in business pulls my overall to a 3.2ish. I've worked with a lot of vets in my settings which sparked my interest in the program. It probably seems ingenuous of me to say but I feel like it would be a good fit for me. If I could manage to pull some hours at the VA would I even have a shot? Also, what is considered early and late for the program as far as application timeline goes. Great thread, appreciate the info and insight. I wish you all luck as anyone who is accepted is obviously a great candidate.

 

[scrawnyguy]

I'm in the beginning stages of this process and being realistic, not sure if I'd even have a shot. The closest VA is 2 hours away and I just sent in my volunteer packet, waiting to hear back. I have around 400 hours in various settings but obviously not military. I have a 320 gre and 5.0 awa, 3.95 post Bach, 3.8 prereq, however my original undergrad in business pulls my overall to a 3.2ish. I've worked with a lot of vets in my settings which sparked my interest in the program. It probably seems ingenuous of me to say but I feel like it would be a good fit for me. If I could manage to pull some hours at the VA would I even have a shot? Also, what is considered early and late for the program as far as application timeline goes. Great thread, appreciate the info and insight. I wish you all luck as anyone who is accepted is obviously a great candidate.

I would contact the recruiter ASAP. You need to be scheduled for a physical among other things.

 

[Nm505]

Hi All,

I am humbly seeking guidance from the US Army Baylor University admits.

My Story:
I am a nontraditional pre-physical therapy student hoping to obtain admission to Baylor University in the 2017 DPT class. I currently work 50-60 hours a week at a bank and my first bachelors degree is in economics. I will be taking the majority of my prerequisites at a 4 year university. The remainder will be taken at a community college. I have obtained 50 observation hours thus far in the PT department at a skilled nursing facility. I am in the process of scheduling the remainder of my hours at the local VA, which I estimate to total around 400 hours by the time of my application.

1. Does the Baylor program have any particular preference for students who take their classes at a four year institution versus a community college?
2. Does the quant score on the GRE hold any value whatsoever on applications? I have seen numerous threads citing that the Quant section is irrelevant in terms of the final decision making process?
3. Will my VA observation hours suffice? I will not be able to make it into an active duty environment unless I quit my job. This is not an option at the moment. I may however, be able to take Fridays off once a month to do a shadowing gig. I do have prior military experience in the Marine Corps. Will on base shadowing truly be necessary?
4. I am in contact with my recruiter. Should I approach her regarding a school visit?
5. Is there any additional advice that you can provide me? Any suggestions etc. I have read through the slew of threads on the program but am interested in additional insight.

In advance, thanks for all of your assistance.

I would also consider myself a non traditional applicant coming from a business background. I got a bachelors in business and went on to work at a bank, do retail sales, and contracts after college but didn't really find anything I truly enjoyed. I decided this past December I wanted to go into physical therapy and Army Baylor stood out as my top choice. I quit my job, moved back in with the parents so I could go to school full time otherwise it would take me years just to get the pre reqs out of the way. As it stands I took 4 classes this summer and am taking 17 credit hours this fall just so I can be able to get my application in. I recently took my GRE as well and got a 312 cumulative, 157 verbal, 155 quant. I wanted a higher score and might take it again but trying to study for the GRE and taking 17 credit hours at the local community college is tough! I understand where you're coming from in terms of balancing volunteer hours, school, and the GRE. I'm in Albuquerque, NM and am volunteering at the local VA in the outpatient pt clinic as well as the Air Force pt clinic at Kirtland. Altogether I'll have around 200 hours of volunteer experience by the time I apply. But from the sounds of it that might be a little low? Anyways wish you the best of luck. I think the advice about getting the physical done early is a good idea I hadn't really thought of that.

 

[scrawnyguy]

I know this is an old thread but I’m hoping someone will still see it. I’m using a shotgun approach. I am trying to set up volunteer time at Fort Carson but I am running into issue. The Red Cross office who runs their volunteer program told me yesterday I cannot volunteer there. I was told due to the cost of the background check only current ID card holders can volunteer. I offered to pay the cost of the background check myself but I was told that wasn’t possible. I just left the Army in May after more than 14 years of total service, including 3 deployments. I’m a veteran who wants to continue serving my fellow veterans/service members. I’m trying to do something positive but I’m running into a mess of red tape.

Did anyone else run into an issue like this when trying to volunteer on post?