Post Bach Advice

[Lungebobsquarepants]

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Hi!

I am looking for advice on things I "can control" that will help me be a better applicant for DPT school. I have been feeling a bit out of sorts regarding the things I "can't control", like a lower cumulative GPA during my undergrad career from 2010-2014.

A little backstory, I graduated college with a cumulative GPA of 3.2 in Environmental Studies. After college, I spent 2014-2019 as a teacher, instructing outdoor and environmental education in both a private school setting and at programs similar to Outward Bound/NOLS . I was also an Americorp Volunteer for about 5 months. Needless to say, none of this has to do with physical therapy and I am working towards being a qualified applicant for DPT school in the fall of 2021.

I am starting from scratch and have two years to complete all of the prerequisites. I need just about every class but stats (which I might retake as I got a B). I know the best thing to do is crush these courses and gets A's or A- at my local community college while doing well on the GRE. Besides that I know that I need to get a lot of observation hours in diverse settings while obtaining quality letters of recommendations. I may also try to work as a PT aide for a year. These are all things I can control but I don't know how to deal with giving 100% and carrying this weight of only being able to bring my cumulative GPA to a 3.3.

The programs I am interested in are state schools that have cumulative GPA's that are 3.6+. I am wondering what advice you all have for other things I "can control" that I can work on over the next 2 years that may make up for a lower cumulative GPA? Are there any folks out there with advice or who were in similar shoes that may give me something else I can work on over the next two years?

Thanks in advance.

 

[ya1]

I was in a similar situation, but my GPA undergrad (more than 7 years before I applied to PT school) was something between 2.7-2.9.
I took all pre-reqs in a community college, Which ended up to be worth about 40-50 units (pre-reqs plus all classes I had to take to be able to take pre-reqs). My GPA in those 40-50 units was 3.7-3.8 which increased my overall GPA to 3.0 +. I did apply to a couple of state schools and did not get accepted or wait listed - they were out of my league since as you mentioned they did look at overall GPA and mine was far below their average accepted (although it did meet their minimal requirements). My GRE score also was at the very low end of their minimal requirements whereas their average GRE for accepted students was close to 160 for math and verbal parts.
So the following year I applied to 3 private schools: 2 did not require GRE at all, and 2 looked only at the last 60 units of GPA. I got accepted to all 3 schools.
Your GPA is better than mine and if you get As and a few Bs in your pre-reqs, you should end up with cumulative GPA 3.4 at least. If you get a good GRE score on top of that, you still may be competitive enough for state schools.
Regarding observation hours, you do not really need hundreds of them. Various settings are good, but there is no need to do more than 3-4 different settings, 50-70 h each.
Good luck! I am sure you will make it!

 

[DPT143]

I have a similar but different situation. I went to community college from 2006-2009 and did very poorly. In 2014, I decided I wanted to pursue PT. At that point I was 30 years old and had worked at a grocery store for 10 years. I went back to CC for a year and got my associates. I transferred to a university with 100 credits at 2.59 GPA. Over the next few years I worked really hard and got mostly A's with a few B's here and there. My university GPA (~150 credits) was at a 3.78 but my cGPA only raised to a 3.28. I only applied to my top choice and got in.

The things that I think helped me to get in were my essays, stellar letters of recommendation, my volunteering experiences and working as an aide for over a year.

In my essays, I talked a lot about working in grocery stores for 10 years and how it shaped me into the person I am and led me into pursuing PT. I also talked about my struggles of having a mother who was a drug addict and the challenges of being a first generation college student. Another big thing is I volunteered at a large hospital which led me into an aide position. I was able to get great letters of rec from two PT supervisors that I worked for. At my university, I made it a point to go to office hours for all my science professors, Even though I took a gap year between graduating and applying to PT school, my professors remembered who I was even though some time had passed.

Don't let your cGPA scare you into thinking you won't have a chance. I think most PT schools are looking for well rounded applicants. They are looking for something that makes your applications stick out among the crowd. Your experiences in teaching and environmental studies are going to make you stand out. Work hard and play to your strong suits and you have no trouble getting in.

Good luck! You got this!