GatorChomp Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Hey guys! I despise the "what are my chances?" threads just as much as the next person but I submitted my application to programs in June and my anxiety in this waiting phase has gotten the best of me. Below are my stats, let me know what you think. Cumulative Undergrad: 3.11 Cumulative Undergrad Science: 3.42 Post-Bacc: 3.35 Overall Science: 3.42 Other Science: 3.86 BCP (Biology, Chemistry, Physics): 3.34 Last 40 Credits: 3.62 GRE: 300 (Q-145 V-155, 4.0 Writing) Patient Care Experience: 3,264 hours Health Care Experience: 1,926 hours Total Experience: 5,190 hours My healthcare experience is primarily as a Rehabilitation Aide and Phlebotomist in a 382 bed hospital. I am also a Pharmacy Tech at a local CVS Pharmacy. I am also a Standardized Patient for medical students taking their Clinical Skills Step 2 exam. Other Work Experience: Student mentor at my university for freshmen/sophomores and student mentor at a local high school for students matriculating into college Volunteer: 500 hours (Make-A-Wish, Habitat for Humanity, Special Olympics, March of Dimes, Boys & Girls Club, local rehab clinics and hospice facility) PA Shadow: 1 Neuro PA & 1 Gastrointestinal PA for a total of 70 hours Certifications: Phlebotomy, CNA, CPR, BLS, Pharmacy Tech, First Aid/AED Letters of Recommendation: 2 PAs, 1 MD, 1 Clinical Supervisor, 1 Professor CASPA Submit/Verification Date: June 11th/June 22nd Personal Statement is about as good as can be and addresses low cumulative GPA due to lack of focus/immaturity in early college years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted August 21, 2015 Administrator Share Posted August 21, 2015 For that cGPA, you've got a reasonable chance: Good experience, and sGPA is higher than cGPA. If you can, knock 'em dead in the interviews. Seriously, assume you're going to get interviews and practice, practice, practice mock interviewing. If you only get 1-2 interviews, you don't want to screw them up--I really didn't hit my stride until my 3rd interview the year I got accepted, and you may not get that luxury. In the mean time, the best thing you can do is take more college classes and get A's in them to up your cGPA--that is, while you have a good chance of succeeding, I would advise you to position yourself for an even stronger application next year, JUST IN CASE. If there are good upper division relevant science courses that you can take, super, take them. If not, I would focus on psych, stats, other social sciences, and humanities classes that 1) have SOME relevance to PA studies, and 2) can boost your cGPA. Best wishes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 For that cGPA, you've got a reasonable chance: Good experience, and sGPA is higher than cGPA. If you can, knock 'em dead in the interviews. Seriously, assume you're going to get interviews and practice, practice, practice mock interviewing. If you only get 1-2 interviews, you don't want to screw them up--I really didn't hit my stride until my 3rd interview the year I got accepted, and you may not get that luxury. In the mean time, the best thing you can do is take more college classes and get A's in them to up your cGPA--that is, while you have a good chance of succeeding, I would advise you to position yourself for an even stronger application next year, JUST IN CASE. If there are good upper division relevant science courses that you can take, super, take them. If not, I would focus on psych, stats, other social sciences, and humanities classes that 1) have SOME relevance to PA studies, and 2) can boost your cGPA. Best wishes! Thank you for the response, Rev! You've alleviated some of my anxiety but I will take your advice and continue to improve upon my cGPA. I'll also be practicing for interviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson2018pac Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Those stats look pretty good to me, sounds very well rounded Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 Those stats look pretty good to me, sounds very well rounded Thanks Radio! Knowing that I don't have a 4.0 GPA, I made an intentional effort to make myself a well-rounded and versatile applicant. I can only hope that AdComs take notice of that as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorious_Ignoramus Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 It would behoove you to take this approach to applying: 1) Browse the PAEA directory for accredited schools that match your geographic requirements. 2) Browse through each school's admissions page and find those which have average accepted GPAs which closely match what you have. 3) Apply early and broadly. 4) In the meantime, do everything you can to keep raising that GPA. Quality HCE is obviously favorable but it absolutely will not make up for low scores. 5) It is not uncommon to see second cycle applicants - PA school is incredibly competitive - so have a plan B to get you through a year or two of re-applying. Best of luck to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 It would behoove you to take this approach to applying: 1) Browse the PAEA directory for accredited schools that match your geographic requirements. 2) Browse through each school's admissions page and find those which have average accepted GPAs which closely match what you have. 3) Apply early and broadly. 4) In the meantime, do everything you can to keep raising that GPA. Quality HCE is obviously favorable but it absolutely will not make up for low scores. 5) It is not uncommon to see second cycle applicants - PA school is incredibly competitive - so have a plan B to get you through a year or two of re-applying. Best of luck to you. Thank you for the sound advice and well wishes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Lafleur Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Hey, as someone who is currently going through the process with you, let me say that I definitely can empathize with your situation. The waiting is horrible. You wait for everything to go through in CASPA, for programs to acknowledge you, for interview invites, for interview dates, for admissions decisions, and then hopefully for the date that your school finally starts. All I can say is that my application is pretty similar to yours. I have a percentage point or two higher in my grades, but you have more total combined patient care. I've done a couple interviews and have a couple more coming. My bet is that you will too, but there are programs that you applied to that just haven't started inviting yet or are just getting going. I know at least two of the programs I applied to won't do anything with interview selections until October. Relax (as if that were possible) and enjoy the waiting (believe me, I'm not enjoying it!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 Hey, as someone who is currently going through the process with you, let me say that I definitely can empathize with your situation. The waiting is horrible. You wait for everything to go through in CASPA, for programs to acknowledge you, for interview invites, for interview dates, for admissions decisions, and then hopefully for the date that your school finally starts. All I can say is that my application is pretty similar to yours. I have a percentage point or two higher in my grades, but you have more total combined patient care. I've done a couple interviews and have a couple more coming. My bet is that you will too, but there are programs that you applied to that just haven't started inviting yet or are just getting going. I know at least two of the programs I applied to won't do anything with interview selections until October. Relax (as if that were possible) and enjoy the waiting (believe me, I'm not enjoying it!) Definitely nerve-wracking. Thank you for the encouragement and glad to hear you're getting your interviews! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 25, 2015 Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 Any further opinions out there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeyes Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Overall GPA seems a bit below average, HCE is solid, GRE average/below average(depending on schools), solid LORs, just depends to where you applied to. Overall, I would think you would land a few interviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Overall GPA seems a bit below average, HCE is solid, GRE average/below average(depending on schools), solid LORs, just depends to where you applied to. Overall, I would think you would land a few interviews. Thanks for the thoughts. While I haven't heard yes or no from schools yet, it's the end of August and the waiting is getting harder and harder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeyes Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Thanks for the thoughts. While I haven't heard yes or no from schools yet, it's the end of August and the waiting is getting harder and harder. Yes, I agree, the waiting is the worst lol. One school I just applied to emailed me yesterday saying that they have filled their seats/interview slots already. At least you applied at an early time(June) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disciple3 Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 I think you can get interviews, my cGPA is 3.05 and I've received three so far this cycle. It's my second time around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorChomp Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 I think you can get interviews, my cGPA is 3.05 and I've received three so far this cycle. It's my second time around. That's encouraging. My cGPA is clearly the sore thumb of my application so I'd hate for it to overshadow everything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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