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So long story short, I've experienced a rough transition from high school to undergraduate. My first year marks were not the best and my second year marks were average (biochem, genetics).  Needless to say, the bottom of my transcript is nothing to boast about.

 

Come third year, I get my life together and start popping out consistent 4.0s left, right, and center all the way through 4th year as well (human anatomy, human physiology, etc). So my issue is undoing my first two years. I am now graduated and have a lousy 3.0 overall GPA, with a 3.9-4.0 in my last two years. With this in mind, I realize there are masters programs out there which only look at the last two years. Obviously with my transcript, this is the difference between night and day.

 

Are there PA schools out there worth going to which perform admissions in a similar manner? If not, how can I right my wrongs?  I am currently in the phase of shadowing and receiving HCE hours before I apply, and have extensive volunteer, and leadership experience under my belt.Time and debt of going back to school for 2 more years would be overwhelming!

 

Thanks for the input! 

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My undergrad was similar, except my later years weren't as good as yours - just low 3.0s - and I graduated at 2.8. I took 50+ credits of all pre-reqs for PA schools (undergrad was 20 years ago for me) and got my GPA a shade above 3.0. I am 2-for-2 with interview invites so far. Like wutthechris said, focus on getting best possible HCE for your situation, immerse yourself in shadowing and find good LORs and craft a nice personal statement, and you should be as good as any other candidate. ....

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Thanks very much for the support, it has been an ongoing worry! I needed the reassurance! With this in mind I realize I more than likely will not be overly competitive for the top tier schools which take overall GPA into consideration, however I do not want to end up at an accredited yet unrecognized/unheard of PA school.

 

With 1000+ hrs of HCE

~GPA 3.0 (extreme upward trend in last two years)

Strong extra-curriculars (plenty of volunteering in various hospital sectors, student government positions, lots of research experience)

 

I realize Duke, Iowa, and probably even Cornell could be out of reach, however which schools have strong recognizable programs in which I have a realistic chance in landing an interview? I believe due to my personality and social skills I will have no issue in an interview, however selling my credentials to the right schools is my primary concern atm. 

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I am currently residing just outside of Toronto in Ontario. I will do my research on these schools tomorrow. Canada's PA system is so underdeveloped that graduates are only finding jobs in rural communities as assistants of family doctors. Very few specialize and even less find jobs in hospitals or health centers. 

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  • 3 weeks later...

If you had a hard time with any pre-requisites, you can also look at how the schools you intend to apply to deal with repeated courses. Repeating even a course or two might have a dramatic effect on your pre-req GPA, and will prove to schools that you will do whatever it takes. 

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I am going to share something that you may not wish to hear but I think it is the truth. I have a very, very similar background to yours, PrePACanadian. I ended up repeating most of the courses I did poorly in during my first 2 years of college. I simply wasn't mature enough and my head wasn't in the game. I had some medical problems which are now resolved and did very well in the past 60+ credits (3.72 GPA). I have 11 years of experience as an EMT, a medical journal publication, and some excellent medical volunteering in post-disaster zones. None of this, however, has allowed me to escape ancient history (my first 2 years of courses, dating from 2004-2006). AdCom after AdCom has rejected my application pre-interview and when queried they all reference my relatively low GPA. When I point out that I have nearly all As in the most recent 60+ credits (starting in 2011 which includes A&P 1 and 2, microbiology, biochemistry, cellular biology, and others) and retaken nearly all of the previous courses for an A yet they say "you need to continue retaking courses". I have retaken those courses, but grade replace is not something CASPA believes in and neither do the AdComs. I've received nearly 20 rejections all with the same "low GPA" reason.

 

Being in this position is very difficult. I am at the point where there literally are no more science courses available to take at the college I attend, so I am turning to online resources to take even higher level courses at great cost. None of this makes any sense as, with grace replacement, I have a 3.72 GPA, not a 2.9 sGPA or 3.3 cGPA as CASPA insists I do. PA AdComs are clearly biased against those of us who were once young and immature yet have clearly shown we possess the intellectual and emotional maturity and HCE to excel. Why are my 11 years as an EMT (4 as an EMT-Basic and 7 as an EMT-Intermediate) somehow worth less than the recent college grad who works as a "medical assistant" at a dermatology clinic? I've tended to people who were dying and scared beyond belief-sometimes saving their lives, sometimes being the last pair of kind eyes they ever see- but somehow this is not as valuable.

 

I realize that PA schools have their pick of the cream of the crop, but the entire purpose of the PA profession was to allow for a second career for those trained in emergency medicine (mostly as hospital corpsmen from the military). My entry into a second career is being hindered by AdComs that have lost sight of the true purpose of the PA profession.

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My undergrad GPA was a 2.80 with a bachelor of arts degree and minimal science credits. I spent a dozen years writing about sports for a living. Then I took 56-58 credits for PA school pre-reqs. The 3.97 GPA in those pre-reqs for the requirements of schools I was considering raised my cumulative only to a 3.1, and I've been in healthcare for 'only' 3 years, while shadowing lots of PAs and focusing on finding people who i thought could write a good LOR for me. One of the programs that interviewed me is a top-20 program under the parameters of one author's comprehensive ranking system. The other program that interviewed me got 550 applicants for 60 interview spots for 20 spots in its inaugural class. I will not hear from the third program until December. Granted, everyone's portfolio is unique, and MrEven and myself might be relying on confirmation bias here, but I strongly disagree with his belief that AdComs are biased and have 'lost sight of the true purpose of the PA profession.' AdComs seek out diversity in their classes, and that includes admitting second-career and even non-traditional-route PA students.

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PA AdComs are clearly biased against those of us who were once young and immature yet have clearly shown we possess the intellectual and emotional maturity and HCE to excel.

 

I realize that PA schools have their pick of the cream of the crop, but the entire purpose of the PA profession was to allow for a second career for those trained in emergency medicine (mostly as hospital corpsmen from the military). My entry into a second career is being hindered by AdComs that have lost sight of the true purpose of the PA profession.

 

You are not competing against a PA program, you are competing against other applicants. All things being equal, if none of the other applicants demonstrated a tendency toward being "young and immature" why should you have their seat? Applicants like to try to gloss over academic weaknesses by saying "I had trouble adjusting." When I hear that, I always to myself "you will probably have trouble adjusting to PA school, too."

 

As to the "entire purpose of the PA" the NCCPA and others are completely dismantling that by virtue of their CAQ specialty examinations.

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You are not competing against a PA program, you are competing against other applicants. All things being equal, if none of the other applicants demonstrated a tendency toward being "young and immature" why should you have their seat?

I am fully aware I am competing against other applicants, and it is clear that the AdComs are either losing sight or have lost sight of the purpose of the PA profession- to enable those trained in medicine to advance into a quasi-autonomous position, not to be a first profession or degree.

 

 

Applicants like to try to gloss over academic weaknesses by saying "I had trouble adjusting." When I hear that, I always to myself "you will probably have trouble adjusting to PA school, too."

I think you missed the part where the origional poster (and myself) clearly demonstrated superior preformance in the most recent 60+ credits, all of which included the prerequisites for PA school. How can you authoratively say that a we would have trouble in PA school when we have demonstrated high apptitude for the pre-PA cirriculum? Wouldn't you be more inclined to agree that the passage of time lead to maturation, thus making us competitive and excellent applicants?

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My undergrad GPA was a 2.80 with a bachelor of arts degree and minimal science credits. I spent a dozen years writing about sports for a living. Then I took 56-58 credits for PA school pre-reqs. The 3.97 GPA in those pre-reqs for the requirements of schools I was considering raised my cumulative only to a 3.1, and I've been in healthcare for 'only' 3 years, while shadowing lots of PAs and focusing on finding people who i thought could write a good LOR for me. One of the programs that interviewed me is a top-20 program under the parameters of one author's comprehensive ranking system. The other program that interviewed me got 550 applicants for 60 interview spots for 20 spots in its inaugural class. I will not hear from the third program until December. Granted, everyone's portfolio is unique, and MrEven and myself might be relying on confirmation bias here, but I strongly disagree with his belief that AdComs are biased and have 'lost sight of the true purpose of the PA profession.' AdComs seek out diversity in their classes, and that includes admitting second-career and even non-traditional-route PA students.

 

I am very glad that you have been successful in getting interviews. I sincerely hope that they lead to admissions. However I stand by my claim that AdComs should place more emphasis on the application of those second-carreer medical professionals versus the recently-graduated 22 year old who works as a "medical assistant" at a dermatology clinic.

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So long story short, I've experienced a rough transition

For school suggestion, I would try Rutgers, Stony Brook, or Pace University. No disrespect to PA-C, but admissions into PA programs these days seems to be more challenging then ever. Medical school applicants have a greater chance of being accepted than PA applicants and that's just the nature of the beast. It's all about how you market yourself (Eye-catching essays are KEY). I come from a similar issue (low GPA due to medical background), but my grades showed a significant improvement during my last few years of undergrad. This wasn't enough my first time applying and I was waitlisted at Rutgers and denied at 4 other programs. Increasing your HCE may NOT be enough anymore to increase your competitiveness (or you may need a few more YEARS of HCE). There are a number of medical professions applying to PA school and these are just some of the candidates you're competing with. I completed an accelerated Masters (1 year) in Physiology and received 7 interviews to my 1 interview 2 years ago. I was able to PICK the program I wanted to attend, which feels amazing instead of hoping someone (ANYONE) would let me in. My advice.... contact the schools that you're interested in or applied to and get some feedback (how can I increase my competitiveness??) It could be increasing HCE or take more classes, but at least this way you'll be working on recommendations the AdCom suggests.

 

 

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I completed an accelerated Masters (1 year) in Physiology and received 7 interviews to my 1 interview 2 years ago.

That is very well what people like the OP and I may have to do. It seems strange to obtain a MS in Physiology (or similar masters degree) in order to get into a program that is a Masters Degree, or something like this: Graduate Certificate in Medical Anatomy & Physiology.

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The application pool is extremely large and in my mind I needed to do something extreme to make myself stand out. Others may very well get calls for interviews without completing a Masters, but I wasn't willing to risk the time. It was worth the money. Now I'm going to an excellent program and I strongly believe my Masters played a part. So look into programs that challenge you and show academic growth and maturity.

 

 

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Um... In 1999-2001, I had a GPA of around 1.7. At the time I realized school was not the right thing for me at that point in my life. Spent the next 5 years in the military as a truck mechanic. When I got out in 2006, I went back to school and started from scratch. Got great grades (almost a straight A student) in a BSN nursing program and subsequent prerequisite courses. Worked closely with and (I think) impressed the people who wrote my letters of recommendations. Practiced 1500+ hours as an ER RN. Now I am a PA student. Granted, I may not be the norm, but realize there are exceptions out there. You never know if you might be one, too.

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A strong upward trend is soooo important. Whether you want to talk about medical school or Pa school, it doesn't matter. No one is perfect and the admission committee knows that. People make mistakes! Learning from them is what is key. When you are in an interview explain what you learned from these mistakes...DONT make excuses. You will get an admission if it is something you really want. Go in with confidence but not arrogance. Goodluck!

 

 

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