General Admissions & OTCAS How are my chances?

[collegestudent1216]

The College of New Jersey Public Health Major
Psychology Minor
GPA: 3.57
Prereqs 3.45~
A & P 1 : A
A & P 2 : B+
Ab Psych: B+
Gen Bio: B
Gen Psych: B
Soc 101: B+
Stat: A
Dev Psych : currently taking
Physics: Currently taking

VP of Medlife, Active Brother of Alpha Phi Omega for 4 semesters so far, Academic Tutor, Oral proficiency leader, Research Assistant in infant/child lab, CPR certified

75 hours in general OT clinic at hospital, 120 hours at pediatric sensory gym, 120 hours at hand therapy clinic, 50 hours at skilled nursing home.

Summer Job: Chaperone for a study abroad program. Lead 30 students from Japan around NYC and Boston.

Would retaking pre-reqs look bad?

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[corn17]

Honestly, my prereq GPA was about the same as yours and I got into 3/6 programs I applied to, including 2 of the highest ranked programs in the country. Not that I am an expert at all, but I would say based on your experiences, as long as you can write a good personal statement I would think you'd be fine. Are you planning on taking the GRE?

 

[MrTL]

Depends on what schools you want to apply to. Some schools are really into grades and it seems like they won't even look at your application unless you've got a 3.8 prereq GPA and a high overall GPA. BUT THEN it seems like once you reach some unspoken GPA threshold for schools that look at apps more holistically, they start to take into consideration volunteering, work experience, GRE, essays, and LOR's as the main components of your application.

I'd take what I say with a grain of salt though. I will be applying to get into a 2018 program and this is just based off my observations from these forums and talking to other aspiring OT's. If you take a look at the sticky on the front page for OT, there is a wide range of GPA, experiences, etc. It almost looks like those who ranged from 3.0-3.5 GPA prereq get accepted into schools just as much as those with 3.51-4.0 (or maybe favoring the 3.51+ side a little more). But again, more of a mental note as I scan thru the forums.

So, depending on the schools you're applying to, what you listed looks great. Retaking prereqs doesn't look bad at all. If you've got the time to do it before applications, go for it! I think it will strengthen your application. Just don't neglect the other portions and you'll be fine.

 

[collegestudent1216]

Honestly, my prereq GPA was about the same as yours and I got into 3/6 programs I applied to, including 2 of the highest ranked programs in the country. Not that I am an expert at all, but I would say based on your experiences, as long as you can write a good personal statement I would think you'd be fine. Are you planning on taking the GRE?

Thanks for your reply! i feel much better now. May i ask what experience you had that you think was the most helpful with your resume? I'm trying to get ideas of what more i should do since my pre-req GPA isn't stellar. And yes i am planning on taking the GRE either this summer or in the fall.

 

[collegestudent1216]

Depends on what schools you want to apply to. Some schools are really into grades and it seems like they won't even look at your application unless you've got a 3.8 prereq GPA and a high overall GPA. BUT THEN it seems like once you reach some unspoken GPA threshold for schools that look at apps more holistically, they start to take into consideration volunteering, work experience, GRE, essays, and LOR's as the main components of your application.

I'd take what I say with a grain of salt though. I will be applying to get into a 2018 program and this is just based off my observations from these forums and talking to other aspiring OT's. If you take a look at the sticky on the front page for OT, there is a wide range of GPA, experiences, etc. It almost looks like those who ranged from 3.0-3.5 GPA prereq get accepted into schools just as much as those with 3.51-4.0 (or maybe favoring the 3.51+ side a little more). But again, more of a mental note as I scan thru the forums.

So, depending on the schools you're applying to, what you listed looks great. Retaking prereqs doesn't look bad at all. If you've got the time to do it before applications, go for it! I think it will strengthen your application. Just don't neglect the other portions and you'll be fine.

Thank you for your response! Do you happen to know of any schools in Philly that look at Resumes more holistically? Or any that you know of at all?

 

[corn17]

Thanks for your reply! i feel much better now. May i ask what experience you had that you think was the most helpful with your resume? I'm trying to get ideas of what more i should do since my pre-req GPA isn't stellar. And yes i am planning on taking the GRE either this summer or in the fall.

I'm actually in APO at my school, and we have a large requirement for semester hours. So I definitely elaborated on what service projects in particular we did, including stuff like Special Olympics. I also volunteered for about 60 hours total with an adults with disabilities organization. I had a semester of psychology research. And I also had several summers of camp experience under my belt, both with the regular day camps, as well as one for students with special needs. My advice would be to focus on your stats, but not get too focused on them. Because at the end of the day, even if you had a 4.0, it takes a lot more than good grades to make a good OT. Just look for schools that either interview or look at your application holistically. Also you have way more observation than I did, so good job! I feel like with the experiences you already have you can definitely write a concrete personal statement

 

[MrTL]

Thank you for your response! Do you happen to know of any schools in Philly that look at Resumes more holistically? Or any that you know of at all?

I'm not familiar with the Philly school. But I heard you should look into schools that require interviews. Makes sense since they want to meet you and that matches up with looking for well-rounded students.