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Hello, 

 

I am a recent graduate from UCI with a B.S. in biological sciences (2.96 cumulative gpa). There have been ups and downs in my undergraduate years in the beginning but I was able to graduate with a science degree. I was so lost until a friend of mine recommended me to look into becoming a PA myself. I now have a new goal but my gpa is a major setback. I cannot afford the post bacc route but my grades from the last 1.5 years are at least 3.3 and up (taken only upper science courses). Plus I did research in Huntington disease for 1.5 years, soon to get a paper published. Also, I did volunteer work with underprivileged high school students as well.

 

Right now I am looking into becoming a scribe and volunteering at a local hospital. Also, rocking the GRE. Realistically getting into top 20 pa schools is improbable, but becoming a pa shouldn't be dependent on the ranking of the school right?

 

I really want some constructive advice on how I can improve my chances. 

 

1. Comments on my chances with my current set plans?

2. Should I just take community college courses on pre-reqs that are C's (all my pre-reqs are Cs or higher)

3. Can a high GRE score compensate/help my chances despite the low gpa?

4. Any success stories like mine recently?

 

 

 

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Hello, 

 

I am a recent graduate from UCI with a B.S. in biological sciences (2.96 cumulative gpa). 

 

 

Welcome to the PA Forums and congrats on deciding to be a PA. 

 

 

 

Realistically getting into top 20 pa schools is improbable, but becoming a pa shouldn't be dependent on the ranking of the school right?

 

PA Schools are not like med schools. Only 3% of applicants get accepted and ranking does not matter. You should focus on getting into any PA school first by figuring out what schools you'd meet the minimum standard for before you start to consider what others would consider top ranked schools (because honestly, there is no ranking). When looking at PA schools, you have to consider that the average accepted student to that program may have a 3.6+ GPA. This was the case at the program I graduated from and to which I was accepted to with a sub 3.0 GPA.

 

 

 

I really want some constructive advice on how I can improve my chances.

 

You can improve your chances by getting hands on patient care instead of trying to get a job as a scribe. This will open up the places you'll be able to apply to as many schools do not accept scribe hours as HCE (although there are programs in CA that do not require HCE, those schools will not look at you unless your GPA is above a 3.4 cGPA. Just keeping it real).

 

 

 

1. Comments on my chances with my current set plans?

Your plan should be to take science classes that raise your cGPA and sGPA above a 3.0. You should be shooting for at minimum a 3.3 GPA if possible to put you on the bottom range of competitive.

You should also focus on getting hands on paid direct patient contact healthcare experience. Popular fields include EMT, CNA, and RT.

You should also shadow a PA to understand what the role of a PA is and then shadow a physician, RN and NP to further understand the difference between roles.

I also recommend you increase your community service and volunteering hours as schools want to see a well rounded applicant and focus on giving back to the community.

 

 

 

 

2. Should I just take community college courses on pre-reqs that are C's (all my pre-reqs are Cs or higher)

GPA is GPA.. take classes where ever you can. All your prerequisites should be As and higher. Bs are acceptable but your GPA needs work so this is an area for you to improve on.

 

 

 

 

3. Can a high GRE score compensate/help my chances despite the low gpa?

Not really. There is no substitute for a poor GPA. GPA is GPA.. you have to correct this and pay for penance for your academic sins. It'll take time, but well worth it in the end.

 

 

 

4. Any success stories like mine recently?

Yes, these stories get posted quite regularly. The search feature on this site is your friend. I recommend you browse around a little bit and search "low GPA"

 

 

Best of luck!

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Hello,

 

so it looks like my grades for the prereqs are all above a B. What killed my grades are courses such as physics and other courses pertaining to pharmaceutical sciences (was an aspiring pharm student). 

Will schools only look at my prereqs or will my CASPA gpa still me hold me back?

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Depends on the program, however, most schools focus on CASPA GPA.

 

That being said, make sure you're calculation your caspa GPA correctly. You need to take every course you've taken college including repeats and make it a running total as caspa doesn't honor grade replacements.

 

You should also forecas how many units st s 4.0 it'll take for you to hit a 3.0 and a 3.3 to make sure you hit the min required GPA and work towards the bottom end of what's considered a competitive GPA since the avg accepted student has a 3.5 cGPA, 500 hours of community service, over 2000 hours of direct hands on patient care and 40 hours of PA shadowing.

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Fix the GPA. And get some good HCE. And score at least in the 50%ile on the GREs. And get some good references.

 

We get so many applications that GPAs below the cut-off don't get much attention.

 

You need some time to get some HCE anyway. This need not be a full-time job.

 

Good luck!

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Like others have said, you should get better HCE. CNA, phlebotomist, EMT-B, medical assistant, etc. are a step better than scribing. Not all schools accept scribing as HCE due to low patient contact. Those with low GPAs have to compensate by taking more classes and getting better HCE (better meaning more direct patient contact and length of time). 

 

Unlike med school, high test scores aren't extremely important. Having a high GRE will help, but will not compensate a low GPA. Research is also nice but not necessary. 

 

Right now, it does not matter which school you graduate from since there is so much demand for PAs. Like med school, just getting into a program will be difficult. 

 

With a low GPA and little HCE, plan on taking 1-2 years to build up your application by getting HCE, taking classes, shadowing, and taking the GRE. Yes, there are success stories like you, but it's a long journey. Apply early and broadly, get good recs, and write a great personal statement. Look into more holistic schools. 

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