Undergrad seeking PT advice

[Muscles00GT]

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After doing much research and debating where in the world I want to go once I graduate from undergrad school, I think I finally found out the direction I want to go and that's physical therapy. I'll be graduating in December of 2009 with a kinesiology degree (movement science option) from penn state. Within the first years of undergrad, I had intentions on going to medical school, so I took all the pre-med pre-reqs (bio, physics, gen chem, and organic chem). I also took on some other challenging courses that I didn't exactly fair so well in. With that said, here are a few questions I have

1. Will the fact that I took Ochem I, Ochem II and Ochem lab hurt me? I got a D in Ochem I, a C in Ochem II, and a B in Ochem lab. Although Ochem isn't required for PT, will the fact that I took these courses hurt me?

2. I want to stay around the Philadelphia area and ideally attend one of the PT schools in that area. Do most PT programs start in the Fall? I'm graduating in December of 2009 and am curious as to when I should start the application process?

3. I know programs vary from school to school, but generally speaking, what do PT schools look for in potential students? I know they look at GPA, references, extracurriculars, GRE's, and so forth, but from your experiences, what do they view as most/least important?

4. This question somewhat goes back to question 3. Upon graduation, my overall GPA will be approx. 2.8. My grades haven't been all that impressive due to personal reasons I'd rather not go into. Knowing that, I've done everything I could to get involved in as many activities as possible. Do I have a fighting chance in getting accepted? As an undergrad, my extracurriculars include...

- Help train and develop exercise programs for some of our D-1 collegiate athletic teams
- Volunteered as a research assistant in an autonomic neurophysiology lab
- Teach a physiology laboratory course here at my university
- Accepted into our "clinic volunteer" program in which I work at our health service clinic screening and treating patients prior to their visit with physicians.
- Involved in many philanthropic events
- Volunteering in a physical therapy clinic next semester


Sorry for the ramble. If anyone could provide any insight or assistance I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks 😎

 

[cmt2bePT]

It's great that you want to do PT! I have been in the process of applying to various pt schools for a few months now. The best tool I could give you is going to the APTA website. They have a whole page dedicated to information on all of the accredited programs in the U.S. The organize them by state so you can check out all of the ones in PA.
Once you go there and check out some schools each school lists a contact person. That person is the best person to ask about ochem and your gpa. If you email each specific school you will get all the answers you need. I did this numerous times with various schools, and I received a great deal of help and guidance from the contacts.

As for the start dates for programs, I think it is safe to say that most start in the fall semester however, there are several that begin in spring or summer as well. I am applying for next fall semester and began the application process in August. So if you are graduating next winter, you should begin the application process at the beginning of your last semester. The earlier the better! You will have to leave a lot of time to write entrance essays, take your GRE, get letters of rec and gather other materials.
You are right about each school seeking out varying students. I really think that it is hard to generalize what types of students they are looking for or what they consider more important, such as your GRE scores, or activities. It might be hit or miss with some programs. A lot of programs require an interview as part of the application process which I think is a great opportunity for them to meet you and for you to show what a great prospective student your may be rahter than leaving it to paper.

I sort of rambled too, sorry! I hope some of this helps! Good luck!

 

[callmecrazy]

1. Will the fact that I took Ochem I, Ochem II and Ochem lab hurt me? I got a D in Ochem I, a C in Ochem II, and a B in Ochem lab. Although Ochem isn't required for PT, will the fact that I took these courses hurt me?

The fact that you took it won't hurt you, but the grades you got will obviously reflect in your GPA. A 'D' would need to be retaken in any prereqs though. I finished O-Chem and Biochem with all C's, but it's yet to be told whether I'm accepted anywhere this year.

2. I want to stay around the Philadelphia area and ideally attend one of the PT schools in that area. Do most PT programs start in the Fall? I'm graduating in December of 2009 and am curious as to when I should start the application process?

Lucky for you, Philly has more PT programs than most states do! You'll want to start the application process as soon as the PTCAS application is available (August 1), and you may be able to start earlier in the summer for schools that don't use PTCAS.

3. I know programs vary from school to school, but generally speaking, what do PT schools look for in potential students? I know they look at GPA, references, extracurriculars, GRE's, and so forth, but from your experiences, what do they view as most/least important?

That's about as specific as you can get. Each school puts emphasis on different things, but I've gotten the impression from various schools that a lot of weight is put on your LORs, specifically from PTs.

4. This question somewhat goes back to question 3. Upon graduation, my overall GPA will be approx. 2.8. My grades haven't been all that impressive due to personal reasons I'd rather not go into. Knowing that, I've done everything I could to get involved in as many activities as possible. Do I have a fighting chance in getting accepted?

Just go in knowing that many schools list 3.0 as the minimum GPA cutoff, while others just "prefer" above a 3.0. I'd suggest really pushing yourself to that 3.0 mark, perhaps with some extra "easy" credits next summer? Also, keep in mind that your application is going to reflect your GPA at the time you apply, not your graduation GPA. You'll have a chance to update in January, but it may be a moot point by then. Making your application strong otherwise though is a great idea. If you're not already in PT clinics volunteering or shadowing though, that's one thing you should realy start ASAP and continue through the next year.

Good luck!