annabug Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 I'm submitting in a few weeks after I'm sure of my summer school grades (all A's so far!). Here's what I'll look like: Overall GPA 3.6 Science GPA 3.14 (I screwed up my soph. year) HCE: 600 Hours working for a PA in a solo practice (I do the duties of a nurse although I have no certifications--Triage patients, BP, temp, occasional injections, ekg's, etc) 300 hours as a pharm tech. 20 volunteer hours with a surgeon 40 Pa shadow hours. various community service hours I'm hoping that my HCE will look good to adcoms since I'm working directly with a PA! So---what chance to you give me? Applying to MUSC, LMU, South Alabama, and a few others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMSArtist Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 Looks good to me :-) Did you get good LOR's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradtPA Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 Low on the HCE, but anything is possible.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewtonsApple Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 Stats are not bad, but it depends on the programs to be honest. How are you listing the 600 hours of non-credentialed work, just curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devildoc0311 Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 IMO those duties sound more like what a 'non-certified' medical assistant would do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
just_me Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 these are programs with no hce experience requirements right? if so then you should be competitive as long as your PS is good--if the school has a requirement nd youre below it I would think you would be less competitive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joanna.nola Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 I'm at South Alabama now and I can tell you they give A LOT of weight to GPA/GRE. They basically give interview slots to top GPAs, all other things equal (my GPA was 3.8 overall/4.0 science). They also like you to have the extra classes on the supplemental. Only a handful of us have health care experience (a few with a lot--a couple EMT/ paramedics). I didn't have much: about 1,000 hours as a CNA. I actually wish I were surrounded by people w/ more health care experience, but I do think that the program is very well organized and their pass rates for PANCE are high, so they are doing that right. We are finishing our first semester (this is distraction from studying for Gross Anatomy), and my entire class seems happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annabug Posted July 16, 2010 Author Share Posted July 16, 2010 Stats are not bad, but it depends on the programs to be honest. How are you listing the 600 hours of non-credentialed work, just curious. Haven't done that yet. Any advice? As far as my GRE = 1260 I know I'm not certified but I have been had "on the job training"-- lots of it! I have also done appointments, calling patients with results of tests, pharmacy calls, etc. JustMe, some of these schools recommend HCE. I think my work qualifies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewtonsApple Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 You probably need to list it as a medical assistant without certification. I would call the programs that you are interested in and ask the question to each one and see what their suggestion is. I am sure the PA you work with can help to give your work a title as well. GRE looks good, I assume one of your LOR is this PA you work for? where are the other two coming from? I do not know much about the programs you are applying to, but if you feel nervous about your chances, nothing wrong with applying to a few more programs that may suit you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annabug Posted July 16, 2010 Author Share Posted July 16, 2010 You probably need to list it as a medical assistant without certification. I would call the programs that you are interested in and ask the question to each one and see what their suggestion is. I am sure the PA you work with can help to give your work a title as well. GRE looks good, I assume one of your LOR is this PA you work for? where are the other two coming from? I do not know much about the programs you are applying to, but if you feel nervous about your chances, nothing wrong with applying to a few more programs that may suit you. Good idea. I'll give the programs a call. I was thinking a MA without certification Yes, my LOR's are from the PA I work for, a Dr. and a science prof. As far as the programs, I'm considering several others, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewtonsApple Posted July 16, 2010 Share Posted July 16, 2010 Aside from minimal HCE and having not read your PS, it appears as though you have a competitive application this cycle. Of course you would want that science GPA to be better, but I understand mistakes... I had a 3.11 overall GPA due to a 0.0 freshman semester. Even with my lower GPA I received over 12 interviews including my top 3 (I will be attending my top choice). The schools that are worth their salt will take the time to review you in detail, so there is no cookie cutter applicant. Good luck and have fun with the anxiety ridden waiting period before and after the interviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted July 17, 2010 Administrator Share Posted July 17, 2010 If there's a non-obvious weak spot in your application, it's going to be your Science GPA--0.5 lower than your undergrad GPA isn't particularly good. Still, you obviously will have a reasonable shot, as per the above comments. Your LORs and PS should make or break your interview chances, and your admission should depend on how well you interview. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annabug Posted July 17, 2010 Author Share Posted July 17, 2010 If there's a non-obvious weak spot in your application, it's going to be your Science GPA--0.5 lower than your undergrad GPA isn't particularly good. Still, you obviously will have a reasonable shot, as per the above comments. Your LORs and PS should make or break your interview chances, and your admission should depend on how well you interview. Good luck! Yes, You're correct about the science GPA. I made all B's and one C in sciences (I won't try and justify it but a lot of it had to do with the grading scale at my university where you had to have a 94 for an A). I've retaken several classes at a different school and made A's. I am also taking Pathophysiology and Nutrition this summer. My last 15 hrs of science have be A's. A little worried about the interviews (if I get any!) but think my LOR will be excellent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted July 17, 2010 Administrator Share Posted July 17, 2010 A little worried about the interviews (if I get any!) Think positive! Start practicing your interview responses, out loud, with real people questioning you, NOW. Don't stop until you get the acceptance letter you really want. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkles9708 Posted July 17, 2010 Share Posted July 17, 2010 Do start practicing interviews NOW!!. I got very close last year to gettng in and what threw me off was the interviews along with not having enough HCE. I cannot tell you how much I wonder if I only had moved my interview to one of the later dates that I may have gotten in last year instead of waitlisted. I was swamped with graduation, my capstone project, and a whole bunch of other things at the end of the semester when most of my interviews were scheduled. Practice your interview responses early and with multiple people. Most of the ad com members really just want to see your personality and what you know about the role of a PA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jespas Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 Y'all have me nervous with all the HCE numbers you're throwing out there. I've only got about 450 hours HCE. I'm banking on working on that through the fall though. Will they take that into consideration? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annabug Posted July 18, 2010 Author Share Posted July 18, 2010 I'm hoping they'll look at "upcoming HCE" too. I plan to continue at my job until I get in so by May I'll have about 1500 total. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annabug Posted April 21, 2012 Author Share Posted April 21, 2012 I'm just re-living my application days and found this post from last year! I am about to start my clinical rotations! Woot! For anyone reading this don't get discouraged! I ended up getting invited to 5 interview and was accepted to 4 schools! Don't give up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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