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Thales,

 

I have only just begun the application process to UAB's PA program. I am presently waiting for the admissions committee to evaluate my application and hopefully invite me to the interview portion of the cycle.  With that being said, I am by no means an expert on what they are looking for or what might help your chances.  The little that I have learned is that anything that sets you apart from other applicants would certainly (in my eyes) be something that is considered. An individual who has not only completed their pre-requisites, but also took the time and effort to also complete additional higher level courses (biochemistry, organic, etc...) would certainly be setting themselves apart from other applicants.  I hope this helps.  Best of luck and God Speed!

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UAB has received well over 1000 applications for this cycle.  If every person that submitted an application sent Ms. Glascock one question (and honestly it is rarely just one question)  answering those questions would be her full time job.  Obviously if you already have a Graduate level degree or higher level sciences it looks better on the application (assuming you did well).  

If you can't handle one terse comment, PA school may not be the right fit for you.

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  • 3 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...

I eMailed AskCDS@uab.edu .  If it's too difficult to answer specific questions which are not addressed on their program's site perhaps they shouldn't list that as a method of contact.  Furthermore, it's rarely "obvious" what a program's policy is on a Graduate degree when they have no mention of it on their site.  Is it factored into the cGPA?  Does it replace UG cGPA?  Does a graduate level course in XXXXX replace an UG cause in XXXXX? etc.

 

I've handled my fair share of terse comments- and even rude comments which contribute nothing to a discussion (yours, for example)- but I'll be sure to take a long, hard look at my plans now.  Because my taking umbrage with being brushed off after asking "AskCDS" questions to assess my fitness as an applicant is somehow a red flag.

 

For the record, I understand people have a bad day, get irritated, or unintentionally brush people off.  The folks that came in here to actually answer my question (Which was "Anyone else have any experiences on how helpful UAB is?", you seem to have missed it) provided valuable insight and suggested that I might have caught someone on an off day.  But hey, thanks for coming into this thread to offer no insight, fail to answer my question, and for trying to point out the obvious (not obvious).

 

For what it's worth: I slacked off in undergrad and received mediocre grades in my science courses. Reality finally set in my senior year that I most likely would not get into any professional program with my mediocre GPA and thus I chose to take graduate level science courses for a Master's degree. During my interview, the faculty at UAB were not only impressed that I was enrolled in grad-level science courses, but also that I was making really good grades in doing so. Of course, I was asked about my less-than-stellar grades in Organic and Physics from undergrad, but I simply explained that I have done significantly better since. I think it's safe to say that recent accomplishments overshadow the blemishes of the past. I have been accepted into their program. I hope this helps!

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Any applicants/alumnia/interviewees with graduate coursework have insight into what role it plays in UAB's admission process?  How about advanced coursework (biochem, organic, etc.)?

 

I contacted UAB about this- and a few other specific questions- and got a very terse reply from Mrs. Glasscock that failed to answer any of my questions.  

 

I'm trying to narrow down potential programs and I've received great information and helpful responses from those I've contacted, unfortunately UAB hasn't been one of them.

 

I'm hoping the reply I received was a one-off experience and isn't indicative of how things run there.  Anyone else have any experiences on how helpful UAB is?

 

Thanks!

As far as "helpfulness" goes, I have always gotten great feedback from Mr. Bill Drace at UAB (granted, I haven't tried any other faculty members or staff). He was always quick to respond to my emails and open to meeting in his office to get insight on UAB's application process and what kind of applicant they are looking for. 

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  • 2 months later...

For what it's worth: I slacked off in undergrad and received mediocre grades in my science courses. Reality finally set in my senior year that I most likely would not get into any professional program with my mediocre GPA and thus I chose to take graduate level science courses for a Master's degree. During my interview, the faculty at UAB were not only impressed that I was enrolled in grad-level science courses, but also that I was making really good grades in doing so. Of course, I was asked about my less-than-stellar grades in Organic and Physics from undergrad, but I simply explained that I have done significantly better since. I think it's safe to say that recent accomplishments overshadow the blemishes of the past. I have been accepted into their program. I hope this helps!

Awesome!  Thanks for the feedback.  I've been doing some research on their program and your experience mirrors what I've seen so far.  I imagine I just got someone on an off day.

 

 

As far as "helpfulness" goes, I have always gotten great feedback from Mr. Bill Drace at UAB (granted, I haven't tried any other faculty members or staff). He was always quick to respond to my emails and open to meeting in his office to get insight on UAB's application process and what kind of applicant they are looking for. 

Thanks for the reply.  I'll try to reach out to the program again this cycle to try to assess my competitiveness for their program.  It's encouraging that I've read a good number of good reviews since originally posting this thread.

 

 

And just to be clear I posted this thread to solicit some feedback about the program not to badmouth or moan about a bad experience.  I've gotten a lot of good replies and I'm encouraged that I had a one-off experience.  Thanks!

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