Community Health Degree?

[FineGentleman]

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I need to decide what my major will be in Hunter CUNY. Would striving for a Community Health Education degree be hard to obtain a high GPA in?
I ask this because I may decide to use that degree to become a health educator or administrator of some sort, to prepare for the off chance that I may lose my interest in Physical Therapy.
Or should I stick to my original plan of sticking to a biology major?

I would really appreciate someone's opinion.

 

[dptillini]

i'm a community health major. honestly, i think you should go for it because if it is what you truly do care about it will be easier for you to get involved in projects and research in your major and thus giving you more things to talk about during your interview and put on your resume. i have gotten into a few programs this cycle and really felt that my major gave me a different perspective on PT than other applicants.

 

[FineGentleman]

i'm a community health major. honestly, i think you should go for it because if it is what you truly do care about it will be easier for you to get involved in projects and research in your major and thus giving you more things to talk about during your interview and put on your resume. i have gotten into a few programs this cycle and really felt that my major gave me a different perspective on PT than other applicants.

thank you. I'll go for it.

What kind of classes are you taking? Are they interesting/easy?

 

[Balliamo402]

I need to decide what my major will be in Hunter CUNY. Would striving for a Community Health Education degree be hard to obtain a high GPA in?
I ask this because I may decide to use that degree to become a health educator or administrator of some sort, to prepare for the off chance that I may lose my interest in Physical Therapy.
Or should I stick to my original plan of sticking to a biology major?

I would really appreciate someone's opinion.

Hey, fellow Hunter student! I'll be graduating in May, and though I do not know anyone striving for a community health education degree, I thought I'd give some input regarding majors at Hunter in general.

Do you have a specific cycle for which you plan to apply? As you might know by now, most Hunter students graduate in about 4 and a half semesters (really depends on how you've planned out your semesters - those zillions of darn prerequisites are what tend to hold back most). With that in mind, I strongly suggest you meet up with advising services to plan out your remaining semesters, in terms of PT prerequisites. Also, try meeting up with pre-health services. I've heard multiple times that they primarily cater to the pre-med, pre-dental, pre-vet, pre-optometry, and pre-pharmacy people, and this is kind of true (they even say on the website that they advise PT people "on a very limited basis"), but it certainly helps to speak to someone there.

With regards to the biology major, just know that it is twice as long (i.e., twice as many credits) as most of the majors at Hunter. Hence, a lot (but not all) of the bio majors I know tend to go beyond eight semesters. (In some cases, it's because they double-majored or minored in something else too.) All the more reason to plan with advising! 🙂

 

[FineGentleman]

Hey, fellow Hunter student! I'll be graduating in May, and though I do not know anyone striving for a community health education degree, I thought I'd give some input regarding majors at Hunter in general.

Do you have a specific cycle for which you plan to apply? As you might know by now, most Hunter students graduate in about 4 and a half semesters (really depends on how you've planned out your semesters - those zillions of darn prerequisites are what tend to hold back most). With that in mind, I strongly suggest you meet up with advising services to plan out your remaining semesters, in terms of PT prerequisites. Also, try meeting up with pre-health services. I've heard multiple times that they primarily cater to the pre-med, pre-dental, pre-vet, pre-optometry, and pre-pharmacy people, and this is kind of true (they even say on the website that they advise PT people "on a very limited basis"), but it certainly helps to speak to someone there.

With regards to the biology major, just know that it is twice as long (i.e., twice as many credits) as most of the majors at Hunter. Hence, a lot (but not all) of the bio majors I know tend to go beyond eight semesters. (In some cases, it's because they double-majored or minored in something else too.) All the more reason to plan with advising! 🙂

Hey! Thanks for the extensive reply! What major did you graduate with and how is your journey towards becoming a physical therapist?
Are you recommending that I not major in biology?

 

[Balliamo402]

Hey! Thanks for the extensive reply! What major did you graduate with and how is your journey towards becoming a physical therapist?
Are you recommending that I not major in biology?

You're very welcome! I'll be graduating this May with an anthro major and a music minor, and I'll be starting at Stony Brook this July (all in my signature, lol).

As for which major I recommend, well... I don't think there is a major you should or shouldn't take. It all depends on what you are truly interested in. Majoring in bio or something in the sciences will certainly be helpful with getting those prereqs out of the way, while fulfilling the major requirements. On the other hand, lots of schools love having diversity in their class, and honestly, my major and minor were two things that I feel helped me stand out in my interviews, and I was able to speak passionately about them because I chose them out of genuine interest. Most importantly, however, you want to make sure you are able to get the prereqs done by the time you plan to apply, and kick butt in those classes!

That said, if you want to major in bio (or anything else science-related), don't be intimidated by the number of credits or the difficulty - definitely go for it!

 

[FineGentleman]

You're very welcome! I'll be graduating this May with an anthro major and a music minor, and I'll be starting at Stony Brook this July (all in my signature, lol).

As for which major I recommend, well... I don't think there is a major you should or shouldn't take. It all depends on what you are truly interested in. Majoring in bio or something in the sciences will certainly be helpful with getting those prereqs out of the way, while fulfilling the major requirements. On the other hand, lots of schools love having diversity in their class, and honestly, my major and minor were two things that I feel helped me stand out in my interviews, and I was able to speak passionately about them because I chose them out of genuine interest. Most importantly, however, you want to make sure you are able to get the prereqs done by the time you plan to apply, and kick butt in those classes!

That said, if you want to major in bio (or anything else science-related), don't be intimidated by the number of credits or the difficulty - definitely go for it!

Cool. But, why Stonybrook? Why not stay in Hunter for its DPT as well?

 

[Balliamo402]

Cool. But, why Stonybrook? Why not stay in Hunter for its DPT as well?

Sorry for the tardy reply. In the end (ultimately torn between SBU and Hunter), I chose SBU because a 4-hour commute daily (to Hunter's Brookdale campus) seemed like too much to deal with in graduate school. My commute to Hunter now, for undergrad, is half that, and totally doable, but in inclement weather, it can certainly be a pain!

Anyway, best of luck to you. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or if there is anything I can (hopefully) do to help. Is Hunter your top choice?

 

[FineGentleman]

Sorry for the tardy reply. In the end (ultimately torn between SBU and Hunter), I chose SBU because a 4-hour commute daily (to Hunter's Brookdale campus) seemed like too much to deal with in graduate school. My commute to Hunter now, for undergrad, is half that, and totally doable, but in inclement weather, it can certainly be a pain!

Anyway, best of luck to you. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or if there is anything I can (hopefully) do to help. Is Hunter your top choice?

Yes, Hunter is the college I will definitely be attending. Any tips?

 

[Balliamo402]

Yes, Hunter is the college I will definitely be attending. Any tips?

Aside from what others would suggest on this form (e.g., varying observation sites, getting to know your PTs for excellent LORs), I would suggest checking out the Hunter PT program's open house. I'm not sure if/when there is one normally held in the spring (and whether or not it has taken place yet), but this past fall, it was in early October. I'll PM you the director's email address so you can inquire about a possible open house this semester. It also seems to me that Hunter places a little more emphasis on grades than other schools do, though I haven't had anyone confirm this; either way, you want to make sure both your prereq GPA and cumulative GPA are great.

 

[james91091]

Aside from what others would suggest on this form (e.g., varying observation sites, getting to know your PTs for excellent LORs, etc.), I would suggest checking out the Hunter PT program's open house. I'm not sure if/when there is one normally held in the spring (and whether or not it has taken place yet), but this past fall, it was in early October. I'll PM you the director's email address so you can inquire about a possible open house this semester. It also seems to me that Hunter places a little more emphasis on grades than other schools do, though I haven't had anyone confirm this; either way, you want to make sure both your prereq GPA and cumulative GPA are great.

hunter is also my top program to get into for the 2014 cycle and my overall GPA is great but i have a C in A&P II and intro to psych, by the time i retake the courses it'll be spring2014 so is it worth retaking? also im a transfer student, my GPA in my first college (hunter) was around 3.5 and my GPA in my current college is 3.7, would that matter?

 

[Balliamo402]

hunter is also my top program to get into for the 2014 cycle and my overall GPA is great but i have a C in A&P II and intro to psych, by the time i retake the courses it'll be spring2014 so is it worth retaking? also im a transfer student, my GPA in my first college (hunter) was around 3.5 and my GPA in my current college is 3.7, would that matter?

I would definitely retake those courses to get better grades, especially in A&P II. I'm not sure how Hunter factors in retakes. It will definitely look great that you put in the effort in areas where you did not initially excel, though (and I feel that in the interview, they would question you about C's that you didn't try to raise, especially for courses like A&P). I would expect admissions to look at both your Hunter GPA and your current college GPA, but as I've read on this forum a few times, some schools look especially (if not solely) at your last 60 credits. As I was told at the open house, they give you a "grade" for each part of the application, although I cannot say for certain which areas have more weight than others.

 

[james91091]

I would definitely retake those courses to get better grades, especially in A&P II. I'm not sure how Hunter factors in retakes. It will definitely look great that you put in the effort in areas where you did not initially excel, though (and I feel that in the interview, they would question you about C's that you didn't try to raise, especially for courses like A&P). I would expect admissions to look at both your Hunter GPA and your current college GPA, but as I've read on this forum a few times, some schools look especially (if not solely) at your last 60 credits. As I was told at the open house, they give you a "grade" for each part of the application, although I cannot say for certain which areas have more weight than others.

yes i've heard that they give you a grade for each part of the application as well. the only reason i got C's in both the classes was because i did not know what i wanted to do and didnt think about going to grad school , i was hoping to finish my application in late august/early september so i wasn't sure if re-taking courses would even matter since i would be interviewed (hopefully) before the spring semester would even start

 

[Balliamo402]

yes i've heard that they give you a grade for each part of the application as well. the only reason i got C's in both the classes was because i did not know what i wanted to do and didnt think about going to grad school , i was hoping to finish my application in late august/early september so i wasn't sure if re-taking courses would even matter since i would be interviewed (hopefully) before the spring semester would even start

Oh, I see. The Hunter application becomes available in mid-August (at least last year it was; I'm assuming the same for the upcoming cycle), so perhaps you can consider taking the class(es) in the early summer session. (Btw, I sent in my Hunter application late October, if I remember correctly, and I had my interview in the first week of December.) I feel that to be a really strong candidate for Hunter's program, you should at least retake A&P.

 

[james91091]

Oh, I see. The Hunter application becomes available in mid-August (at least last year it was; I'm assuming the same for the upcoming cycle), so perhaps you can consider taking the class(es) in the early summer session. (Btw, I sent in my Hunter application late October, if I remember correctly, and I had my interview in the first week of December.) I feel that to be a really strong candidate for Hunter's program, you should at least retake A&P.

i feel that way as well but unfortunately the earliest i can retake A&P is in the spring. i guess i can always give them a call and do my best on my GRE's to strengthen my application. the A&P grade is really the only thing holding me down right now

 

[Balliamo402]

i feel that way as well but unfortunately the earliest i can retake A&P is in the spring. i guess i can always give them a call and do my best on my GRE's to strengthen my application. the A&P grade is really the only thing holding me down right now

Sounds good. Get in touch with them and try to make your name familiar to them! Let me know if there's anything I can help with, or if you have any more questions. Best of luck!

 

[HughLee]

To James 91091
If possible, I would recommend to try and take A&P II and Intro to Psych this summer somewhere, possibly at a community college. That way you at least have the possibility of the new grade counting when you apply to them. Check with Hunter College first to see if they would accept the credits. And also check on their retake policy.

You might also want to check with Hunter College and ask them about your grades. Depending on your other grades, you may still be a good applicant, even with the C's.

 

[james91091]

To James 91091
If possible, I would recommend to try and take A&P II and Intro to Psych this summer somewhere, possibly at a community college. That way you at least have the possibility of the new grade counting when you apply to them. Check with Hunter College first to see if they would accept the credits. And also check on their retake policy.

You might also want to check with Hunter College and ask them about your grades. Depending on your other grades, you may still be a good applicant, even with the C's.

yeah the thing is that i cant take it over until spring 2014 since i dont have time to take it. i will definitely call hunter to ask about it though. my overall application is good besides my 2 C's. just gotta nail the GRE's in 2 months. also, there arent many schools that offer A&P II in the summer. it would be too crammed and i would hate to do poorly again on it

 

[RTaylor2013]

I graduated with a degree in community health science and I will be starting PT school fall 2013, I just took the pre reqs for PT and it all worked out!