Is it too late to try for PT school?

[calli4591]

I am currently 30 years old. I graduated with my BS 2 years ago with a 2.1 overall gpa in nutrition science. I’ve been taking/retaking prereq courses but have been struggling to get all A’s. There’s still a few more courses I have yet to take and is planning to take this upcoming fall from a CC. I’ve just started studying for the GRE. I’ve volunteered and collected 100 observations hours from an outpatient clinic and worked at an outpatient PT clinic for 8 months.

I currently have one recommendation letter under my belt from a DPT supervisor I’ve worked with.

Due to financial reasons I’ve steered away from
PT and started working for the finance sector. And because I’m a better place financially now I could devote most of my time to collect more observation hours, focus on my prereq courses and get a job as a PT aide.

Considering my stats, can anybody give me some concrete advice or perspective as to how likely my chances will be to be accepted anywhere and is my course of action the best way to get to where I want to be?

Any help will be greatly appreciated!

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[Marcus51]

You need to meet the minimum GPA, GRE, and observation hours requirements to get in to school. Some schools have waived the GRE and observation hours requirement secondary to COVID so that might open some specific options for you.

As far as your chances, you need to make sure you offer value in your essays/interviews to the DPT program. Make a list of every project you've done, roles held, etc. and focus on a few that without you the outcome would not have been successful. PT programs need to know their students will find success and offer skill to the program.

 

[kdubz7w7]

I am currently 30 years old. I graduated with my BS 2 years ago with a 2.1 overall gpa in nutrition science. I’ve been taking/retaking prereq courses but have been struggling to get all A’s. There’s still a few more courses I have yet to take and is planning to take this upcoming fall from a CC. I’ve just started studying for the GRE. I’ve volunteered and collected 100 observations hours from an outpatient clinic and worked at an outpatient PT clinic for 8 months.

I currently have one recommendation letter under my belt from a DPT supervisor I’ve worked with.

Due to financial reasons I’ve steered away from
PT and started working for the finance sector. And because I’m a better place financially now I could devote most of my time to collect more observation hours, focus on my prereq courses and get a job as a PT aide.

Considering my stats, can anybody give me some concrete advice or perspective as to how likely my chances will be to be accepted anywhere and is my course of action the best way to get to where I want to be?

Any help will be greatly appreciated!

2.1 is low so I would concentrate your time on acing your pre-reqs and GREs, retaking courses where needed. Make that your priority, so don't spread yourself so thin with the aide job and observation hours that you can't study sufficiently.

I wouldn't go too wild on observation hours. Try to vary them if you can - I don't know if shadowing inpatient is an option yet because of covid, and schools know that shadow hours have been hard to come by the past 1.5 years. But 100 is typically plenty and no one cares if you have thousands of hours. The aide job would be nice because it brings you into the field and you'll learn a lot, and might be a nice talking point during an interview, but the GPA and GRE is what will get your foot in the door.

 

[ya1]

I am currently 30 years old. I graduated with my BS 2 years ago with a 2.1 overall gpa in nutrition science. I’ve been taking/retaking prereq courses but have been struggling to get all A’s. There’s still a few more courses I have yet to take and is planning to take this upcoming fall from a CC. I’ve just started studying for the GRE. I’ve volunteered and collected 100 observations hours from an outpatient clinic and worked at an outpatient PT clinic for 8 months.

I currently have one recommendation letter under my belt from a DPT supervisor I’ve worked with.

Due to financial reasons I’ve steered away from
PT and started working for the finance sector. And because I’m a better place financially now I could devote most of my time to collect more observation hours, focus on my prereq courses and get a job as a PT aide.

Considering my stats, can anybody give me some concrete advice or perspective as to how likely my chances will be to be accepted anywhere and is my course of action the best way to get to where I want to be?

Any help will be greatly appreciated!

Most schools require minimal GPA s 3.0. Calculate your cumulative and pre-requisite GPA s to determine if schools will consider your application. Apply to the least competitive schools. (state schools are likely out of your league since they are the cheapest, accepting the least number of students, and therefore most competitive). If your GPAs are below 3.0, consider applying to schools that look at the last <100 units only.