kaciedurham Posted July 19, 2016 Hey there. I'm coming up on the horizon of starting to think about applying to PA school. My freshman year of college was in 2011 and I did very poorly (0.93 GPA). I left school and joined the Army as a Medic where I served on Active Duty for 3 years. Since then I've been attending Northeastern University and have a 3.6 GPA so far. I'm realizing that even if I keep my GPA up, my overall CASPA GPA will still be quite low. Any advice or anybody in a similar situation of having a rocky year many many moons ago? I'm feeling a little discouraged.
AliB Posted July 19, 2016 Yep, been there, done that, got the t-shirt. If it was only one year, you'll likely still be better off than I was when it all averaged. Do a search on low GPA and you'll find a few success stories (mine, Timon, others). Bottom line - as long as you meet the minimums, it's possible to be considered. For most programs (not all!), it's NOT all about the GPAs (especially if you have such an obvious upward trend and time has elapsed). If other parts of your application - PS, LORs, GRE, PCE, HCE, etc. stand out, a less than average GPA won't hold you back.
gcox87 Posted July 19, 2016 Yep, been there, done that, got the t-shirt. If it was only one year, you'll likely still be better off than I was when it all averaged. Do a search on low GPA and you'll find a few success stories (mine, Timon, others). Bottom line - as long as you meet the minimums, it's possible to be considered. For most programs (not all!), it's NOT all about the GPAs (especially if you have such an obvious upward trend and time has elapsed). If other parts of your application - PS, LORs, GRE, PCE, HCE, etc. stand out, a less than average GPA won't hold you back. Where do I get this shirt?
Strohmboli Posted July 20, 2016 I'm in the same boat, just fighting my way back to program minimum cGPA. A lot of schools actually do holistic reviews, too. My advice is just keep pounding away at classes and start doing research on schools, specifically those that have lower or no minimum GPA requirements. You'll be surprised- Duke, OHSU, Pacific, Utah, Missouri State etc
Glorious_Ignoramus Posted July 23, 2016 Comeback story of the year; you're on your way. Keep it up, doc. Something that might help you in the future - and this can be applied to many, many of the questions which are herein asked - is to take your question directly to the admissions offices of the schools to which you will apply. I had a somewhat less-usual circumstance when I applied and found adcoms to be very receptive, open, and forthright. They want a diverse applicant pool and storied applications like yours get noticed.
jlumsden Posted July 26, 2016 There is a LOT to be said for an upward trend in grades as well. Many programs put a lot of value in improvement over time.
dmdpac Posted July 26, 2016 I see a lot of potential in a good answer when they ask what happened. Something along the lines of, "Yeah. Frosh year wasn't great. However, look what I've done since then..." Then move on to outline/highlight how you've improved since then. It'll probably sound somewhat similar to the answer I gave when I was asked the same question under similar circumstances. (I didn't get a t-shirt, either.) Keep moving forward. Keep your objective in sight. Get it done.
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