My Chances of getting accepted

[failureisnotfatal]

So here is my situation:
I am currently a junior in college (Psychology Major). My GPA currently is 3.18.
My grades for PT related courses are
Developmental Psych: A-
Abnormal Psych: B+
Chemistry 1: B- (I am very concerned about this)
Chemistry 2: Taking in Spring semester
Anatomy: Taking in Spring semester
Physiology: Taking in Fall 2014 semester
Physics 1: Taking in Spring semester
Physics 2: Taking in Fall 2014 semester
Biology 1: B
Statistics: B

All of my grades so far in college have been between A- and B-. I am expecting to do pretty well on the GRE.

Now here is the thing, my plan would be to apply to PT programs in the Fall 2014 semester, so that would mean that I would still have some prerequisites outstanding. I am planning to do my PT shadowing this summer, but will probably only be able to do between 100-200 hours of shadowing in a variety of settings. So basically what I'm asking is this:

With a GPA of 3.18-3.2, a few outstanding prerequisites, and only 100-200 hours of shadowing under my belt, do i stand a chance of getting accepted to a PT program? If it helps, I would like to mention that most of the programs that I would be considering would be in Texas and that my current school is Boston University. Is it worth it to bother continuing down the PT path with my current situation or should I not even bother. (Please don't answer with something such as, just go with your dreams. I am trying to be realistic here. I am not exactly married to PT. I would love to do it, but there are other things I would love to do too if PT is not feasible for me.)

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[sunnyskies26]

I definitely think it is feasible but I would consider taking a gap year between senior year and year 1 of PT school. That way, all your prerequisites will be done, you will have had more time to shadow/observe, and you won't have the stress of applying to schools while also starting your senior year. This way, too, if you do change your mind, you'll have an extra year to figure it all out. This is what I did and personally, I am so happy I decided to take some time off. It has allowed me to find a job I love and retake a course to earn a better grade. You also don't want to be too burnt out from school. To each his own though! But I definitely think it is feasible

 

[666666]

The major limiting factor in your circumstance is your GPA. Having between 100-200 observation hours is exactly where you want to be. It shows that you have experience in the field and know the profession. Some candidates will have thousands of hours but I have spoken to admissions comittees and it is rarely a large factor in the admissions decision. Some schools only look that you have the required hours and do not put any weight on going above and beyond in that aspect. GPA however, is a large factor in most admissions decision. Competitive applicants usually have ~ a 3.5. With your GPA you will need to expect to cast a wide net and get quite a few rejections. (Remember that applying is expensive. The more schools you apply to, the larger the amount of money you will need to apply. I applied to 10 schools and spent well over $1,000 when all was said and done.)

Take home message: You may get in somewhere but it is unlikely that you will get into your top choice and there is a good possibility you will not get accepted anywhere so go into the admission process knowing that your chances are not great

Best of Luck!

-K

 

[failureisnotfatal]

The major limiting factor in your circumstance is your GPA. Having between 100-200 observation hours is exactly where you want to be. It shows that you have experience in the field and know the profession. Some candidates will have thousands of hours but I have spoken to admissions comittees and it is rarely a large factor in the admissions decision. Some schools only look that you have the required hours and do not put any weight on going above and beyond in that aspect. GPA however, is a large factor in most admissions decision. Competitive applicants usually have ~ a 3.5. With your GPA you will need to expect to cast a wide net and get quite a few rejections. (Remember that applying is expensive. The more schools you apply to, the larger the amount of money you will need to apply. I applied to 10 schools and spent well over $1,000 when all was said and done.)

Take home message: You may get in somewhere but it is unlikely that you will get into your top choice and there is a good possibility you will not get accepted anywhere so go into the admission process knowing that your chances are not great

Best of Luck!

-K

Thank you so much for that reply. I just wanted to know where I stand before I bother taking the rest of the prerequisites for PT because, as I said, there are other careers that I am considering and I don't want to waste my time taking all of these classes only to not be accepted anywhere. I am also considering going for the OT master's degree(which has easier prerequisites that I can do better in) or an MPH degree or a psychology masters degree of some sort, so I will probably turn to one of those instead of PT now. Just don't want to waste my time and work harder for no results.

 

[666666]

Thank you so much for that reply. I just wanted to know where I stand before I bother taking the rest of the prerequisites for PT because, as I said, there are other careers that I am considering and I don't want to waste my time taking all of these classes only to not be accepted anywhere. I am also considering going for the OT master's degree(which has easier prerequisites that I can do better in) or an MPH degree or a psychology masters degree of some sort, so I will probably turn to one of those instead of PT now. Just don't want to waste my time and work harder for no results.

No Problem. I appreciate your realistic outlook, its refreshing. Before you rule PT out though, check out the sticky on the top of the forum (the one with everyone's stats). While your cumulative GPA is not great there are some other factors that may help you (pre-req GPA, LORs, ECs, GRE). If you can find other people with similar stats you might have a better idea of whether or not you are competitive as a whole. (I feel I may have been a little critical in my original post. Because I do not know all of the factors that could make you competitive besides GPA, I shouldn't have been so quick to say that you are unlikely to get in.) Your GPA will be a limiting factor, but when looking through the thread I previously mentioned, there are a number of individuals that were accepted with a cum GPA ~ 3.2 so if the rest of your application if strong you may have a better chance than I lead you to believe.

-K

 

[failureisnotfatal]

No Problem. I appreciate your realistic outlook, its refreshing. Before you rule PT out though, check out the sticky on the top of the forum (the one with everyone's stats). While your cumulative GPA is not great there are some other factors that may help you (pre-req GPA, LORs, ECs, GRE). If you can find other people with similar stats you might have a better idea of whether or not you are competitive as a whole. (I feel I may have been a little critical in my original post. Because I do not know all of the factors that could make you competitive besides GPA, I shouldn't have been so quick to say that you are unlikely to get in.) Your GPA will be a limiting factor, but when looking through the thread I previously mentioned, there are a number of individuals that were accepted with a cum GPA ~ 3.2 so if the rest of your application if strong you may have a better chance than I lead you to believe.

-K

I will check it out. I still haven't fully decided what to do, but in the next few weeks, I will definitely be making a decision about whether to complete the rest of the prerequisites or turn my attention elsewhere.

 

[pubicsymphysis]

I believe it is very possible for you to get in a program. Mentioning before, get A's in the rest of your classes and strategically applying to schools. Apply to couple schools that are bit out of your stats, and apply the rest to schools that you are competitive with. I see so many people not getting into schools with solid GPA because they applied to prestigious schools. At the end of the day, we all get our DPT.