Need pre-PT advice please!

[EllaKat]

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Hi everyone,
I just joined and was hoping to get some feedback on my chances of being accepted into a PT program and/or any advice on how to improve my chances....a little background:

I'm 33 and have been a Lic Massage Therapist for 8 years and currently work in an injury/rehab setting (chiropractic clinic treating patients who have had auto accidents)

I'm a junior majoring in Psychology taking PT pre-reqs. My overall GPA is 3.52 (not sure what my pre-req/science GPA is but probably close to that)

I have not taken the GRE and quite frankly it scares me but I plan to study a long time before I take it!

I have not done any observation hours and plan to get started on that soon.

I have a passion for helping people recover and improve their quality of life after injury and just find that being an LMT isn't enough. I want to be able to do more.
I'm single and must work FT to support myself so I have to go to school part time right now. but if I get accepted into a PT program, I realize I won't be able to work but I will cross the bridge when I get to it!

I guess what I'd like to know is, do my stats look good and will my background in a similar career field help me, in addition to the fact that I am older than most applicants and changing careers?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[Pinesfootball]

Keep up the good GPA, especially in prereqs...and i studied for the GRE with princeton review and IMO it helped A LOT! try to get around 20 hours in multiple PT settings in your spare time (outpatient, inpatient, peds, etc). If you have financial issues you can always apply for financial aid at your school, which helped me out a lot.

 

[okramango]

I have a similar background as you, and just started PT school last month. I found that the benefit of having a manual therapy background helped a lot in my application essay and interviews. It gives you a lot to talk about, since you already have experience interacting and communicating with people in a clinical environment, and a sense of the of flexibility, professionalism, and ethics that it requires. You can definitely use that to your advantage. Still, in terms of admissions and getting those interviews in the first place, the numbers seem to speak loudest for most programs. It looks like you're on the right track so far! Make sure to do well on the GRE and also observe PT in a variety of settings. Also, I highly suggest applying to the lowest cost programs that you can find, to keep your student loans down. Good luck!

 

[EllaKat]

Thanks so much for the replies! It's encouraging to know I'm on the right track and I appreciate the advice 🙂

 

[NewTestament]

Finish your pre-reqs and your school work, then work on your GRE, then get your observation hours.You'll need LOR's from two licensed PT's so if you get your observation hours now, they might forget about you in two years. Get at least one LOR from a professor. I think most schools stipulate that. The only difference between you and a full-time student is your busy schedule. It's going to take you longer to finish your application but you will eventually reach your goal if your stats are good. A 3.5 overall and a 3.5 pre-req GPA is competitive Keep coming here for advice.

Kevin

 

[EllaKat]

Finish your pre-reqs and your school work, then work on your GRE, then get your observation hours.You'll need LOR's from two licensed PT's so if you get your observation hours now, they might forget about you in two years. Get at least one LOR from a professor. I think most schools stipulate that. The only difference between you and a full-time student is your busy schedule. It's going to take you longer to finish your application but you will eventually reach your goal if your stats are good. A 3.5 overall and a 3.5 pre-req GPA is competitive Keep coming here for advice.

Kevin

Thank you, I think that's the best advice I've gotten. I am always in such a hurry, but I know if I try to take the GRE and do observation hours in the next year or so, it will not be smart for many reasons. (will bomb the GRE b/c I don't have time to study for it along w/my classes) and you're right about the observation hours, it will be at least 2 years before I apply to PT program so I should wait and do all of that when I have time and not try to kill myself doing it now! I will def keep coming here, this has been so helpful!