Possible Future/Routes

[kantner13]

There are a couple routes I could take to best prepare myself to become a PA and I'd like to know your opinions.

 

A little bit about myself:

 

1. Currently a senior and will be receiving a Bachelors in Biology/Pre PA Focus in Spring 2017.

2. Will be shadowing a Physician soon for the remainder of Fall and also for Spring 2017 semester.

3. I believe I have at least 3 strong letter of Recommendation when I apply.

4. Currently 3.1 GPA, 3.08 Science GPA (Still have 2 semesters left to affect GPA).

5. Took leadership positions in my Greek Fraternity as well as Community Service.

6. Personality: Likable, good work ethic, genuine, sharp, leader, follows guidelines/directions well.

 

Option 1:

Become certified as an EMT and work for 1-2 years to obtain Hands on patient care hours. Then apply.

 

Option 2:

My college offers a 1 year No Thesis Masters Program where I would receive a Masters in Science. I believe I can excel and generate a more impressive GPA than my undergraduate, and possibly obtain more LORs or stronger ones. During this 5th year I would also shadow the same Physician as before. 

 

What are your opinions? Where do I stand in terms of being competitive? I'm trying to gauge what is valued more when applying to PA school. If you have any suggestions or aspects to try, please comment those as well. Thank you! 

[britrae]

I would think about the following 1) try to shadow a PA ans get a LOR from them 2) you definitely need patient care experience, so I would 10/10 recommend either an EMT or CNA 3) to improve your GPA, either retake a couple classes you did poorly in while working or take a couple classes you haven't taken (pathophysiology, immunology, etc)

 

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[PACrankset]

Agreed, remember your graduate GPA is separated from your undergrad GPA and they use undergrad at CASPA. Health care experience is so important the more the better, this will open up a lot more schools. With you lower GPA the experience can make you eligible for schools with a more holistic review process (many of these schools have higher HCE)

[AliB]

Agreed, remember your graduate GPA is separated from your undergrad GPA and they use undergrad at CASPA. Health care experience is so important the more the better, this will open up a lot more schools. With you lower GPA the experience can make you eligible for schools with a more holistic review process (many of these schools have higher HCE)

 

Not true.  CASPA calculates a cumulative undergraduate GPA that includes initial bachelor degree and all subsequent post-bacc (but still undergraduate level work), but the bottom line CASPA cumulative overall GPA DOES include graduate level work (just a bit of history:  it used to exclude doctoral level course work, but now it appears to include both masters and doctoral level graded coursework).  

 

My knowledge of program requirements is from a couple of years ago, but most programs do look at the overall cumulative GPA (i.e., including both undergraduate and graduate level coursework); only a few specify their minimum requirements based on cumulative undergraduate alone (e.g., UTSW for one).  I know this both from reading the CASPA FAQ ... and my own personal experience.  Without my MS degree grades, my GPA wouldn't meet minimum requirements, and I would not be in my 2nd year of PA school.  

 

With respect to the OP's question about education choices, I don't think I can make a generalized, one-size-fits-all answer.  There are now 218 programs (https://www.aapa.org/twocolumn.aspx?id=6442451666), so it very much depends on whether they specifically limit their assessment to undergraduate level work (not the case for most programs year before last).  Personally, I leveraged my significantly higher GPA from MS program to demonstrate that I already have the ability to excel at graduate level coursework (and that my undergraduate GPA from my bachelors degree was not representative of my abilities).  It also didn't hurt that my last 60 hours of post-bacc work was a 3.94 GPA.  

 

Either way, it will take a lot of hours to bring up a lackluster GPA.  Regardless of which continuing education choice, I completely agree that HCE, and more specifically, PCE (the more the better) is going to make the OP a more rounded, appealing candidate (to most programs) -- 'additional coursework averages, additional HCE/PCE accumulates' (quote borrowed from others on this forum) and PA school admission is about far more than GPA.  

 

Best of luck!  

[PACrankset]

Not true. CASPA calculates a cumulative undergraduate GPA that includes initial bachelor degree and all subsequent post-bacc (but still undergraduate level work), but the bottom line CASPA cumulative overall GPA DOES include graduate level work (just a bit of history: it used to exclude doctoral level course work, but now it appears to include both masters and doctoral level graded coursework).

 

My knowledge of program requirements is from a couple of years ago, but most programs do look at the overall cumulative GPA (i.e., including both undergraduate and graduate level coursework); only a few specify their minimum requirements based on cumulative undergraduate alone (e.g., UTSW for one). I know this both from reading the CASPA FAQ ... and my own personal experience. Without my MS degree grades, my GPA wouldn't meet minimum requirements, and I would not be in my 2nd year of PA school.

 

With respect to the OP's question about education choices, I don't think I can make a generalized, one-size-fits-all answer. There are now 218 programs (https://www.aapa.org/twocolumn.aspx?id=6442451666), so it very much depends on whether they specifically limit their assessment to undergraduate level work (not the case for most programs year before last). Personally, I leveraged my significantly higher GPA from MS program to demonstrate that I already have the ability to excel at graduate level coursework (and that my undergraduate GPA from my bachelors degree was not representative of my abilities). It also didn't hurt that my last 60 hours of post-bacc work was a 3.94 GPA.

 

Either way, it will take a lot of hours to bring up a lackluster GPA. Regardless of which continuing education choice, I completely agree that HCE, and more specifically, PCE (the more the better) is going to make the OP a more rounded, appealing candidate (to most programs) -- 'additional coursework averages, additional HCE/PCE accumulates' (quote borrowed from others on this forum) and PA school admission is about far more than GPA.

 

Best of luck!

I am talking about the GPA programs use as their minimum, all programs I have looked st use undergrad GPA for their minimums. I realize CASPA does show both but it doesn't mean a program will necessarily look at it in their initial review.

[RuralER/Ortho]

Most programs use the CASPA GPA calculation.

[AliB]

I am talking about the GPA programs use as their minimum, all programs I have looked st use undergrad GPA for their minimums. I realize CASPA does show both but it doesn't mean a program will necessarily look at it in their initial review.

 

 

I think you are mistaken.  If that is the case in this year's cycle, then there's been a MASSIVE change in MANY MANY programs.  In the 2012, 2013, and 2014 application cycles, I only ran across a couple (one was UTSW, I can't recall the other) out of the 150-190 programs that used the undergraduate GPA.  All the rest used the cumulative, overall GPA.  I am familiar with the requirements for the Texas schools - only UTSW continues to have a minimum GPA based on undergraduate; all of the others screen based on overall cumulative, including graduate course work.  

 

As I said, if they had NOT, I wouldn't have had interviews or acceptances and would not be a PA student now.  My cumulative undergraduate GPA is definitely < 3.0; my cumulative overall GPA is >3.0; I had interviews and acceptances at multiple programs.