Words of Encouragement

[Therealsitic1]

Hey Guys,

I am new to this forum and I have been lurking for the past couple of weeks. I wanted to thank all you guys for posting your questions and opinions. They have all been very informative. I have been able to grasp some type concept of the occupational therapy field and the application process for all grad schools.

Being that I am at the very beginning stages of this extensive process. I am glad that this forum exists. It reminds me that there are many people who are experiencing a lot of the same anxiety that I am currently going through. I am little nervous, because I believe my list of choices are pretty competitive and I am scared I'll be rejected by all of them.

My stats:

College: University of Central Florida
Major: Psychology
Cum GPA; 3.06
Prereq:Not too sure Bio-A, Dev Psych-A, stats-C, I have not taken A&P 1,abnormal psych, or medical terminology ( I believe those classes are going to make or break my chances of being accepted)
GRE: have not taken

Can anyone offer any advice of the competitiveness or personal experiences with:

Brenau U
UNC Chapel Hill
Winston Salem
Univ of Wash
Puget Sound
SUNY Downstate

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[OTPanda]

Hi there,

I am in my first year at Puget Sound and was waitlisted at U of Wash and USC. Now that I am almost through my first semester at UPS, I can honestly say that it is truly the best fit for me!! The school is extremely small and the grad program is even smaller. I know that a major turn off for a lot of people is the cost but I can honestly say that for me, it is worth every penny.

The faculty is amazing and are extremely caring and approachable. I was utilizing office hours within the first week of classes and I didn't feel like a burden or a bother!! T

he fact that they require a separate entrance essay means that they really value personal experiences and want to know if you are a good match for the program. My best advice (which was given to me by the recruitment counselor when I visited the program the year before I applied) is to make sure you answer every question that they ask for specifically.

If you have a chance, I would retake stats. Our first semester Research Methods class almost feels more like a review and some of the people that struggled with stats or didn't come from a social/hard science background seem to struggle a little more. That being said, the professors understand that OT's come from a variety of backgrounds and know that not everyone is on the same level as far as previous experience. This hold true for anatomy as well.

One unique thing that UPS offers is an on-site clinic which gives us more hands on experience even before we head off to field work. During our last semester, we run the clinic and each OT students is assigned two patients that we work with over the course of the semester. It has proven to be an extremely valuable learning experience that makes UPS graduates more confident when starting our fieldwork.

UPS doesn't require medical terminology but I took it since other schools required it and it actually made life a little easier.

I was also a Psych major and honestly, I think my over GPA was actually under a 3.0 when I applied (I made some pretty bad mistakes early on!). I was able to demonstrate growth and development by showing an improvement in grades over the years and I also had a decent GRE score.

Sorry for rambling on, I just want to give you as much info as possible. All of the schools you are considering have amazing programs, I just wanted to let you know how much I love UPS! Feel free to ask me any questions that you might have!!

Best of luck to you!!

 

[Therealsitic1]

Hello OT Panda,

Thank you so much for replying, your insight is very much appreciated. I am also glad that you are enjoying your program. Your hard work paid off in the end I see! I really hope I am as fortunate as you!!!

I decieded that I was going to retake stats any since all of the A&P 1 classes are now filled for the spring semester ( GO FIGURE LOL) I figured I would make my time useful and sign up for stats (online, hopefully I won't struggle too much) and medical terminology.

Do you having GRE studying tips, because I suck at standarized testing? I have really bad testing anxiety

Best of luck, this semster!