Supplemental minors?

[iceblinkluck]

Hello! I am new to this site and thought it would be a good place to get advice from other Pre-PT/PT students. I am a freshman bio major about to complete my first semester with a 3.6 gpa (it would have been higher if I hadn't gotten two B's, both of them B+'s though) and have been working as a tech/aide in an outpatient clinic since my senior year of high school. I am currently looking for ways to expand my horizons and set myself apart in preparation for PT school applications and the GRE.
After reading responses on some other forums, the consensus was that the best way to do this is through minors and extracurriculars, as well as plenty of work experience. So far, some minors I've been considering are Dance, Emergency Health Services, Psychology, and Sociology. I'm open to any and all recommendations and suggestions!! 🙂 🙂

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Skyris]

In terms of making your application more competitive, the most powerful thing you can do is get that GPA up and get A's in your pre-reqs. If you believe a minor would make that more difficult, I'd avoid it. The majority of programs don't even care what you majored in, so I can't imagine a minor would be much benefit to you. Maybe minor in Spanish and learn the language? I feel like that'd be very desirable.

With regard to experience, one of the most powerful ways to set yourself apart is to get hours with many different settings and types of patients-- inpatient acute hospital, SNF/geriatrics, school PT, even something like hippotherapy or aquatics. Many applicants amass a ton of hours in outpatient orthopedic clinics and not much else, and many programs look for more diversity in settings. The importance of extracurriculars varies widely by school, but they're definitely beneficial, especially if they show leadership/initiative and give you great things to talk about in interviews and essays.

 

[dgt329]

I say wait another term to really think about it before you commit to a minor (or any committment you will make in college). I know it probably seems like you can take on the world after a successful first term, but things will get busier and more difficult. Biting off more than you can chew will stress you out and negatively affect your academic perfirmance. I suggest meeting with a counselor, drawing a tentative plan for your entire undergraduate career (classes you will take freshman through senior year), and seeing if/how the minor could fit in. If you have free time, can afford to take extra classes and think the minor will enhance your education, then give it a shot. Overall, just don't let it detract from the things that will heavily influence your application (GPA, getting a variety of observation hours, doing research, etc.).

 

[ScarletGray]

I feel that if you do decide to pursue a minor, make sure it is something that you really enjoy. I minored in Psychology and Music. I dont recommend double minoring though lol, GPA is super important. While the music minor was more for personal interests, I chose to do a minor in psych because a lot of the PT programs that I applied to required 3-4 psych classes. Since I would be taking these classes anyway, all i needed was one more to complete the minor. I would look more into what courses are required for any minor you choose and see if any overlap with prereqs, such as with Psychology. 🙂