General Admissions & OTCAS Honest thoughts on getting accepted into an OT Program

[Slothfarmer316]

Hello all,

So I recently decided that I want to apply to OT programs this upcoming year. I graduated with a psychology degree and wanted to become a counselor, but after working a little bit in the mental health area, I've realized this job isn't for me. I graduated with a psychology degree with a minor in Health & Excercise Science. I knew about Occupational THerapy but didn't know much information about it until recently and it is something I can see myself doing and enjoying. The part that I am worried about is that my grades are not up to par to be very competitive and it feels like I'm stuck in a hole trying to get myself out of it.

My cumulative GPA is a 2.97, which is due to me being very immature and lazy my first 2 1/2 years of undergraduate and going by the motto "C's get degrees' and ever since then I've been trying to dig my GPA out of this hole. I am aware of the the pre-reqs of some programs that I am interested in applying too and I am retaking those pre-reqs to help get my GPA up as well as my pre-req gpa for those programs. I have yet to take the GRE but I have taken a practice GRE online by Kaplan and I scored a 162 on the Verbal and 164 on the quant sections. There wasn't a writing portion on the practice test though. I plan on starting my observational hours very soon to help them rack up (aiming for 3-4 a week) so by the deadline for 2019 comes around, my hours will be way above the required amount.

My main question is how realistic would it be for me to get into an OT Program with these stats. I am interested in OU, Texas Tech, and Texas Women's University, because they are close to home and that OU would be in-state tuition for me, but I need realisitc views on this situation instead of my hopeful and optimistic views on it, I'm hoping for the best but I feel I need other's views on it that won't be biased either.

Please be as brutal as you need to be and don't hold back. It'll only help me out in the long run.

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[nbot]

Hello all,

So I recently decided that I want to apply to OT programs this upcoming year. I graduated with a psychology degree and wanted to become a counselor, but after working a little bit in the mental health area, I've realized this job isn't for me. I graduated with a psychology degree with a minor in Health & Excercise Science. I knew about Occupational THerapy but didn't know much information about it until recently and it is something I can see myself doing and enjoying. The part that I am worried about is that my grades are not up to par to be very competitive and it feels like I'm stuck in a hole trying to get myself out of it.

My cumulative GPA is a 2.97, which is due to me being very immature and lazy my first 2 1/2 years of undergraduate and going by the motto "C's get degrees' and ever since then I've been trying to dig my GPA out of this hole. I am aware of the the pre-reqs of some programs that I am interested in applying too and I am retaking those pre-reqs to help get my GPA up as well as my pre-req gpa for those programs. I have yet to take the GRE but I have taken a practice GRE online by Kaplan and I scored a 162 on the Verbal and 164 on the quant sections. There wasn't a writing portion on the practice test though. I plan on starting my observational hours very soon to help them rack up (aiming for 3-4 a week) so by the deadline for 2019 comes around, my hours will be way above the required amount.

My main question is how realistic would it be for me to get into an OT Program with these stats. I am interested in OU, Texas Tech, and Texas Women's University, because they are close to home and that OU would be in-state tuition for me, but I need realisitc views on this situation instead of my hopeful and optimistic views on it, I'm hoping for the best but I feel I need other's views on it that won't be biased either.

Please be as brutal as you need to be and don't hold back. It'll only help me out in the long run.

To be very honest your chances will be pretty slim with a gpa that low. I believe the MINIMUM requirement for all the texas programs is a 3.0 and most usually don't look at applications unless its a 3.5. Your GRE scores are good so that could help you out to compensate for the gpa. Tech does not use the GRE for applications so it won't help you with that school. I would recommend getting a minmum of 200 hours in at least 4 settings. I know that sounds crazy but the programs want to make sure you have a firm grasp of the OT world. Hope that helps!

 

[beestrng]

Hello all,

So I recently decided that I want to apply to OT programs this upcoming year. I graduated with a psychology degree and wanted to become a counselor, but after working a little bit in the mental health area, I've realized this job isn't for me. I graduated with a psychology degree with a minor in Health & Excercise Science. I knew about Occupational THerapy but didn't know much information about it until recently and it is something I can see myself doing and enjoying. The part that I am worried about is that my grades are not up to par to be very competitive and it feels like I'm stuck in a hole trying to get myself out of it.

My cumulative GPA is a 2.97, which is due to me being very immature and lazy my first 2 1/2 years of undergraduate and going by the motto "C's get degrees' and ever since then I've been trying to dig my GPA out of this hole. I am aware of the the pre-reqs of some programs that I am interested in applying too and I am retaking those pre-reqs to help get my GPA up as well as my pre-req gpa for those programs. I have yet to take the GRE but I have taken a practice GRE online by Kaplan and I scored a 162 on the Verbal and 164 on the quant sections. There wasn't a writing portion on the practice test though. I plan on starting my observational hours very soon to help them rack up (aiming for 3-4 a week) so by the deadline for 2019 comes around, my hours will be way above the required amount.

My main question is how realistic would it be for me to get into an OT Program with these stats. I am interested in OU, Texas Tech, and Texas Women's University, because they are close to home and that OU would be in-state tuition for me, but I need realisitc views on this situation instead of my hopeful and optimistic views on it, I'm hoping for the best but I feel I need other's views on it that won't be biased either.

Please be as brutal as you need to be and don't hold back. It'll only help me out in the long run.

Your gpa is too low. I had a 3.2 or 3.3 cgpa and didn't get in the first time. My sgpa with retakes was significantly higher. I went to a private school and supposedly they are getting more qualified applicants now compared to when I applied some years ago. I wouldn't overdo the observational hours. If your last 60 credits were better you should look at schools that count that in admissions like WMU. Your best bet would be St. Aug in Texas (if you want to stay in state). But they probably still need a minimum 3.0. I would not be too picky. You may have to reconsider careers for the time being and come back to it when you have better grades (masters or post bacc?).

If I was in your position and really wanted to become an OT I would become an OTA for the time being and go to a hybrid program later where you can still work as an OTA and study to become an OTR. Make sure you get a good GPA in OTA school.

Do you know your sGPA?

 

[hopefullonghorn]

Hello all,

So I recently decided that I want to apply to OT programs this upcoming year. I graduated with a psychology degree and wanted to become a counselor, but after working a little bit in the mental health area, I've realized this job isn't for me. I graduated with a psychology degree with a minor in Health & Excercise Science. I knew about Occupational THerapy but didn't know much information about it until recently and it is something I can see myself doing and enjoying. The part that I am worried about is that my grades are not up to par to be very competitive and it feels like I'm stuck in a hole trying to get myself out of it.

My cumulative GPA is a 2.97, which is due to me being very immature and lazy my first 2 1/2 years of undergraduate and going by the motto "C's get degrees' and ever since then I've been trying to dig my GPA out of this hole. I am aware of the the pre-reqs of some programs that I am interested in applying too and I am retaking those pre-reqs to help get my GPA up as well as my pre-req gpa for those programs. I have yet to take the GRE but I have taken a practice GRE online by Kaplan and I scored a 162 on the Verbal and 164 on the quant sections. There wasn't a writing portion on the practice test though. I plan on starting my observational hours very soon to help them rack up (aiming for 3-4 a week) so by the deadline for 2019 comes around, my hours will be way above the required amount.

My main question is how realistic would it be for me to get into an OT Program with these stats. I am interested in OU, Texas Tech, and Texas Women's University, because they are close to home and that OU would be in-state tuition for me, but I need realisitc views on this situation instead of my hopeful and optimistic views on it, I'm hoping for the best but I feel I need other's views on it that won't be biased either.

Please be as brutal as you need to be and don't hold back. It'll only help me out in the long run.

Hi! I am currently in the OT program at TWU Dallas. May I ask what your last 60 hours GPA is? That's what they focus on at TWU. They know that the first year of college can be rough. I applied with a 3.5 as my last 60 hours GPA, which got me waitlisted. So if your last 60 hours GPA is low, I would say your chances are not great yet. However, you do have some options. They also look at pre-req GPA. You could retake some of your pre-reqs at community colleges to boost that. You could also take some post-bacc classes. I am not sure of the exact number but I believe they will look at your post-bacc GPA if you have 12+ credits... If this is something you really want to do, I do not think you should give up. It may require you to take some classes and maybe even apply a couple times. But you can make yourself more competitive! Let me know if you have any other questions!

 

[nOTeworthy]

It'll be tough, but it's not impossible. If you scan the site, there's people with GPAs under 3.0 that were accepted to programs. Many programs focus on the last 60 hours. Try to apply to programs that focus more on that. I'm at TWU as well, but in Houston. I had a 3.3 overall OTCAS, and I got into both schools (TWU & Tech) I applied to my first try. So you don't have to have a high GPA. The application and process is holistic. Grades alone won't get you into a school. There's a ton of people with near perfect scores that were rejected and people with scores lower than mine that weren't. If you have the time, try retaking prerequisite courses that may be lower than you'd like. It couldn't hurt. And since it is a holistic process, where you're weakest, strengthen the rest of your application. I didn't have the strongest GPA or GRE, but I had great letters of recommendation and probably a good personal statement.

 

[Slothfarmer316]

Hi! I am currently in the OT program at TWU Dallas. May I ask what your last 60 hours GPA is? That's what they focus on at TWU. They know that the first year of college can be rough. I applied with a 3.5 as my last 60 hours GPA, which got me waitlisted. So if your last 60 hours GPA is low, I would say your chances are not great yet. However, you do have some options. They also look at pre-req GPA. You could retake some of your pre-reqs at community colleges to boost that. You could also take some post-bacc classes. I am not sure of the exact number but I believe they will look at your post-bacc GPA if you have 12+ credits... If this is something you really want to do, I do not think you should give up. It may require you to take some classes and maybe even apply a couple times. But you can make yourself more competitive! Let me know if you have any other questions!

I have a 3.2 GPA for my last 60 hours. I am currently retaking some pre-reqs that I didn't do so well in at the beginning of undergrad. Would those retakes that I take count for pre-reqs as well as account for my last 60 hours? I want to retake all/a majority of the pre-reqs that I made a C in and replace them with A's (Ideally) which I'm on track for replacing 7 hours of C's with 7 hours of A's this semester. and taking another 10 hours next of retakes of pre-reqs as well as pre-reqs I haven't taken yet like Physics and Medical Terminology. I was hoping that the places I apply to will take into consideration my GRE Score and hopefully having great LORs,personal statement, and different varieties of OT observation hours.

 

[hopefullonghorn]

I have a 3.2 GPA for my last 60 hours. I am currently retaking some pre-reqs that I didn't do so well in at the beginning of undergrad. Would those retakes that I take count for pre-reqs as well as account for my last 60 hours? I want to retake all/a majority of the pre-reqs that I made a C in and replace them with A's (Ideally) which I'm on track for replacing 7 hours of C's with 7 hours of A's this semester. and taking another 10 hours next of retakes of pre-reqs as well as pre-reqs I haven't taken yet like Physics and Medical Terminology. I was hoping that the places I apply to will take into consideration my GRE Score and hopefully having great LORs,personal statement, and different varieties of OT observation hours.

Yes, new classes you take will count toward your last 60 hours. I do not believe medical terminology counts toward your pre req GPA. And TWU fore not require physics. Just know that TWU is the only school in TX that focuses on last 60 hours (I believe). A 3.2 is a good start. Hopefully you can retake some classes and bring that up even more. Good luck!!

 

[OT3]

You can definitely get into a school if you stay dedicated and motivated about getting into a school. Instead of focusing on being in Texas, look at all schools and find a program that resonates well with you and will view your application as strong. Limiting your options can really hinder you! I'm from California and I applied to schools in North Dakota, Connecticut, and was recently ready to move to Michigan to attend a program, but luckily a school in California changed their requirements and it made me a stronger candidate and I got accepted!

My one piece of advice is to be all in and don't limit your yourself!

 

[Ceeluu]

It'll be tough, but it's not impossible. If you scan the site, there's people with GPAs under 3.0 that were accepted to programs. Many programs focus on the last 60 hours. Try to apply to programs that focus more on that. I'm at TWU as well, but in Houston. I had a 3.3 overall OTCAS, and I got into both schools (TWU & Tech) I applied to my first try. So you don't have to have a high GPA. The application and process is holistic. Grades alone won't get you into a school. There's a ton of people with near perfect scores that were rejected and people with scores lower than mine that weren't. If you have the time, try retaking prerequisite courses that may be lower than you'd like. It couldn't hurt. And since it is a holistic process, where you're weakest, strengthen the rest of your application. I didn't have the strongest GPA or GRE, but I had great letters of recommendation and probably a good personal statement.

Hi I have a question about the application if you don't mind. What is your advice on writing the personal statement? TWU's website doesn't give actual questions to answer or anything, what did you include in yours? I just think an outline would be so helpful, thank you!

 

[McMa1987]

My OTCAS application was verified Jan. 8, 2018 and two of the three schools I applied to has sent emails stating they received my application. Still waiting for them to reach out if accepted for interview process.
My info is:
AAS degree in Occupational Therapy Assistant
Bachelor degeee in Psychology from University of Phoenix
Freshmean: 1.92
Sophomore: 3.12
Junior: 3.85
Senior: 4.00
Overall GPA: 3.11
Pre-req GPA: 3.9 (repeated a few)
Hours: Been working as a COTA since June, 2012 and worked as a director of therapy for the past two years. Have thousands of hours in OT as I currently work full time. Work in a SNF and have observed in other areas (acute rehab, out patient, home health, hand therapy, mental rehab, etc.
GRE: Did not take the GRE
LOR: 2 OTs (each school I applied to this year only requires a minimal of two)

Applied to: Midwestern (Glendale), Belmont, and Gwynedd
Rejections:
Waitlist:
*Haven’t heard from any schools yet.

What do you guys think are my chances of getting accepted? I have a total of 172.83 graded hours so it will be difficult to raise my GPA.
I have applied twice to Concordia and was denied and they said to not apply again. :/ in the years of 2015 and 2017. This year applied to three different schools making this the third time applying,but first time using OTCAS. Passed the fall semester with 12 credits and a 4.0. GPA. I re-took a few pre-reqs last fall and got GPA up to a 3.11