Is my healthcare experience the problem?

[boygirlmama]

I just applied to Albany Medical College for the second time and received my rejection letter two weeks ago. I was told the first time that I was missing one class that I had already taken, but needed a refresher course since it was years ago. I followed all of their guidelines and reapplied. I was fairly confident that I had an excellent chance of getting in only to get turned down for a second time. Obviously this left me feeling pretty down about my chances and I am trying to gauge whether to keep pressing forward with this or to go an alternative route for my career path.

I've been working as a Pharmacy Technician for 3 years. I have my BS in Biology. My application stats are below. The only thing I see as a potential weakness on my application is healthcare experience. Do I have a chance of getting in with my stats and the level of HCE I currently have or should I be trying to gain more HCE?

 

Undergrad GPA: 3.74

Science GPA: 3.77

GRE: 1210 (590V, 620Q, 4.0 analytical

HCE:

3 years full-time Pharmacy Technician (2500+ hours)

ER volunteer (20+ hours)

EMT certification and 8+ hours clinical

 

I have no problem seeking out opportunities for more HCE except for having 2 kids to support at the same time. Any advice on my chances and what I can do to improve them, suggestions of schools that may accept my current level of HCE, etc... are very helpful.

 

Thank you!

[boygirlmama]

I just applied to Albany Medical College for the second time and received my rejection letter two weeks ago. I was told the first time that I was missing one class that I had already taken, but needed a refresher course since it was years ago. I followed all of their guidelines and reapplied. I was fairly confident that I had an excellent chance of getting in only to get turned down for a second time. Obviously this left me feeling pretty down about my chances and I am trying to gauge whether to keep pressing forward with this or to go an alternative route for my career path.

I've been working as a Pharmacy Technician for 3 years. I have my BS in Biology. My application stats are below. The only thing I see as a potential weakness on my application is healthcare experience. Do I have a chance of getting in with my stats and the level of HCE I currently have or should I be trying to gain more HCE?

 

Undergrad GPA: 3.74

Science GPA: 3.77

GRE: 1210 (590V, 620Q, 4.0 analytical

HCE:

3 years full-time Pharmacy Technician (2500+ hours)

ER volunteer (20+ hours)

EMT certification and 8+ hours clinical

 

I have no problem seeking out opportunities for more HCE except for having 2 kids to support at the same time. Any advice on my chances and what I can do to improve them, suggestions of schools that may accept my current level of HCE, etc... are very helpful.

 

Thank you!

[paul2834]

I believe you can call the school and ask how you can improve your chances of being granted an interview in the future or what your application was lacking. From a quick glance, these are what come to my mind.

 

1) Does AMC consider Pharmacy Technician experience HCE? My understanding is HCE involves direct contact with the patient. If you're in the back all the time, this might be the problem. You can get in contact with the school to rule this out or confirm.

2) If AMC values volunteering and community service in their matriculants, then you're severely lacking. You can see if this is so by going through their website.

3) Are you getting strong letters of recommendation?

4) How did you feel about your personal statement? Why do you want to be a PA?

[paul2834]

I believe you can call the school and ask how you can improve your chances of being granted an interview in the future or what your application was lacking. From a quick glance, these are what come to my mind.

 

1) Does AMC consider Pharmacy Technician experience HCE? My understanding is HCE involves direct contact with the patient. If you're in the back all the time, this might be the problem. You can get in contact with the school to rule this out or confirm.

2) If AMC values volunteering and community service in their matriculants, then you're severely lacking. You can see if this is so by going through their website.

3) Are you getting strong letters of recommendation?

4) How did you feel about your personal statement? Why do you want to be a PA?

[Just Steve]

It is often believed that once a person gets an interview their pre reqs no longer carry that much weight. I tend to subscribe to this belief. Yes, I am sure there are times where things are down to a fine line between two applicants and there has to be a deciding factor somewhere (like HCE) but I struggle to believe it's a very common event after the interview. Typically, the interview is about getting to know you as a person. Getting to see how well you react under a little pressure, how quick you think on your feet. How you handle yourself in a professional setting. How well you can express yourself. Whether or not you display qualities that they (the Adcom) would want to work around day after day in a peer setting.

 

I realize what I am saying isn't very soft, kind, or fluffy. I apologize. Please don't take it personally, as I have never met you and have NO idea who you are. However, this is part of the drawback of asking strangers over the internet for their opinion on a situation that they know very limited information on. In addition to not knowing you, I also do not know the school you are applying to and where their preferences lie. Do they seek the high GPA student or the health care experienced student? Are they an AdCom that looks for students who cast a wide net to show their dedication and determination of getting into PA school by applying to many schools? Do they prefer local applicants or do they prefer to recruit from afar? What is their core demographic? How close to it are you?

 

Personally, I am a HUGE fan of people gathering direct health care experience so it would would be an easy answer for me to say "YES! Get more HCE!" but that is more reactionary than anything else.

 

If you can seek ways to tap into that EMT cert and put that to use, it may be beneficial. When I think of health care experience that could be of benefit as a PA, I think of experience that includes an investigative conversation then formulating care plans based on the information gathered during that conversation and supported by a physical exam. Basing medical decisions upon a History and Physical. The more times you can do that, the more direct health care experience you gain. When I think of pharmacy tech I think of someone preparing and dispensing medications based on the orders of a clinician. Am I misguided in my mental picture of what you do as a pharm tech?

[Just Steve]

It is often believed that once a person gets an interview their pre reqs no longer carry that much weight. I tend to subscribe to this belief. Yes, I am sure there are times where things are down to a fine line between two applicants and there has to be a deciding factor somewhere (like HCE) but I struggle to believe it's a very common event after the interview. Typically, the interview is about getting to know you as a person. Getting to see how well you react under a little pressure, how quick you think on your feet. How you handle yourself in a professional setting. How well you can express yourself. Whether or not you display qualities that they (the Adcom) would want to work around day after day in a peer setting.

 

I realize what I am saying isn't very soft, kind, or fluffy. I apologize. Please don't take it personally, as I have never met you and have NO idea who you are. However, this is part of the drawback of asking strangers over the internet for their opinion on a situation that they know very limited information on. In addition to not knowing you, I also do not know the school you are applying to and where their preferences lie. Do they seek the high GPA student or the health care experienced student? Are they an AdCom that looks for students who cast a wide net to show their dedication and determination of getting into PA school by applying to many schools? Do they prefer local applicants or do they prefer to recruit from afar? What is their core demographic? How close to it are you?

 

Personally, I am a HUGE fan of people gathering direct health care experience so it would would be an easy answer for me to say "YES! Get more HCE!" but that is more reactionary than anything else.

 

If you can seek ways to tap into that EMT cert and put that to use, it may be beneficial. When I think of health care experience that could be of benefit as a PA, I think of experience that includes an investigative conversation then formulating care plans based on the information gathered during that conversation and supported by a physical exam. Basing medical decisions upon a History and Physical. The more times you can do that, the more direct health care experience you gain. When I think of pharmacy tech I think of someone preparing and dispensing medications based on the orders of a clinician. Am I misguided in my mental picture of what you do as a pharm tech?

[boygirlmama]

Thank you for responding. I actually did get an interview and it was following the interview that I got the rejection letter. Albany Medical College did tell me both times I applied that my Pharmacy Technician experience was acceptable, although from checking many other school sites it is not generally preferred experience.

Okay, so community service is lacking and I need more direct patient care. I think my personal statement was good, but could improve of course. The reasons I stated for wanting to be a PA had to do with always having known that I wanted to work in medicine. I had a hard time articulating when I sat down to write the essay, but I have experienced watching family in underserved populations struggle as a result of lack of access to adequate healthcare and I feel like I need to mention that in my statement.

I really appreciate your feedback. I'm 34 years old and love helping people and I feel so discouraged right now because I just want to devote my life to doing so.

[boygirlmama]

Thank you for responding. I actually did get an interview and it was following the interview that I got the rejection letter. Albany Medical College did tell me both times I applied that my Pharmacy Technician experience was acceptable, although from checking many other school sites it is not generally preferred experience.

Okay, so community service is lacking and I need more direct patient care. I think my personal statement was good, but could improve of course. The reasons I stated for wanting to be a PA had to do with always having known that I wanted to work in medicine. I had a hard time articulating when I sat down to write the essay, but I have experienced watching family in underserved populations struggle as a result of lack of access to adequate healthcare and I feel like I need to mention that in my statement.

I really appreciate your feedback. I'm 34 years old and love helping people and I feel so discouraged right now because I just want to devote my life to doing so.

[paul2834]

I didn't realize you were interviewed. What are your thoughts and opinion on the interview with them? Obviously you were a strong enough applicant that they selected you for an interview. Like Just Steve said, the staff members are working very closely with you until graduation, so they're going to choose people they prefer being around and so the interview is going to weigh heavily into the overall impression you'll give off in the future.

[paul2834]

I didn't realize you were interviewed. What are your thoughts and opinion on the interview with them? Obviously you were a strong enough applicant that they selected you for an interview. Like Just Steve said, the staff members are working very closely with you until graduation, so they're going to choose people they prefer being around and so the interview is going to weigh heavily into the overall impression you'll give off in the future.

[Just Steve]

Thank you for responding. I actually did get an interview and it was following the interview that I got the rejection letter. Albany Medical College did tell me both times I applied that my Pharmacy Technician experience was acceptable, although from checking many other school sites it is not generally preferred experience.

Okay, so community service is lacking and I need more direct patient care. I think my personal statement was good, but could improve of course. The reasons I stated for wanting to be a PA had to do with always having known that I wanted to work in medicine. I had a hard time articulating when I sat down to write the essay, but I have experienced watching family in underserved populations struggle as a result of lack of access to adequate healthcare and I feel like I need to mention that in my statement.

I really appreciate your feedback. I'm 34 years old and love helping people and I feel so discouraged right now because I just want to devote my life to doing so.

 

What is your plan to critique and improve your interview technique?

[Just Steve]

Thank you for responding. I actually did get an interview and it was following the interview that I got the rejection letter. Albany Medical College did tell me both times I applied that my Pharmacy Technician experience was acceptable, although from checking many other school sites it is not generally preferred experience.

Okay, so community service is lacking and I need more direct patient care. I think my personal statement was good, but could improve of course. The reasons I stated for wanting to be a PA had to do with always having known that I wanted to work in medicine. I had a hard time articulating when I sat down to write the essay, but I have experienced watching family in underserved populations struggle as a result of lack of access to adequate healthcare and I feel like I need to mention that in my statement.

I really appreciate your feedback. I'm 34 years old and love helping people and I feel so discouraged right now because I just want to devote my life to doing so.

 

What is your plan to critique and improve your interview technique?

[cinntsp]

The real problem here is that you are only applying to one school.

 

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

[cinntsp]

The real problem here is that you are only applying to one school.

 

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

[paul2834]

With 2 kids under her care and no mention of a husband, I don't blame her. And she was good enough to get the interview, so she definitely has a shot with this school. She just needs to better align herself with what that school considers the ideal PA student, especially in her interviews.

[paul2834]

With 2 kids under her care and no mention of a husband, I don't blame her. And she was good enough to get the interview, so she definitely has a shot with this school. She just needs to better align herself with what that school considers the ideal PA student, especially in her interviews.

[boygirlmama]

I so appreciate all of the responses. I actually applied for an EMT position (although I don't care if it is volunteer and would just love to get some experience no matter what) a few days ago and will be following up on that. And yes, I only applied to Albany Medical College because of the kids and having family in the area. There is a husband as well who is definitely supportive and we are putting our heads together to figure out how best to approach this. For this next cycle, I plan to apply to at least 10 schools all over the country. I didn't really feel I had that opportunity last cycle because our daughter was brand-new.

The interview. I don't think it went as well as it could have. I wasn't asked anything at all pertaining to my medical knowledge or experience and was instead asked my opinion about an environmental issue close to home. In general, this threw me and I don't think I made as great of an impression as I wanted to. They stated they liked my stats and courted me from the time I first got turned down (with no interview that time) back in 2010. I did everything they asked and matched their candidate profile as well as I could tell from the information they provide. I've been analyzing everything since like crazy to determine my weak areas and because they did interview me, I at least met their academic and experience qualifications. So in this case, I am becoming more aware that I just was not a strong interviewee this time.

I think with this next cycle, I am going to find a PA to shadow, try to get in with EMS, and generally try to get more direct patient care experience. It's funny- there is a doctor's office right next door to my pharmacy and there are some PA's on staff. We've become friendly over time and they have all told me "I am set" when it comes to becoming a PA because of working at the pharmacy. I always found that a little surprising. To answer what I actually do, I have quite a bit of patient contact of course, but I feel like all I do is put pills in bottles. I am the senior tech/pharmacy manager and quite trusted by the pharmacists, but somehow I feel I want to do more than just work there, hence pursing PA because it is actually my dream to help people, not provide them with drugs that a lot of the time they just do not need. Venting aside, my job is more than than it appears to be, but I'd love to be able to get more valued HCE.

I am also going to try to find some community service opportunities. It's late in the game for this coming cycle, but I want to at least show the schools that I am trying to improve my application.

[boygirlmama]

I so appreciate all of the responses. I actually applied for an EMT position (although I don't care if it is volunteer and would just love to get some experience no matter what) a few days ago and will be following up on that. And yes, I only applied to Albany Medical College because of the kids and having family in the area. There is a husband as well who is definitely supportive and we are putting our heads together to figure out how best to approach this. For this next cycle, I plan to apply to at least 10 schools all over the country. I didn't really feel I had that opportunity last cycle because our daughter was brand-new.

The interview. I don't think it went as well as it could have. I wasn't asked anything at all pertaining to my medical knowledge or experience and was instead asked my opinion about an environmental issue close to home. In general, this threw me and I don't think I made as great of an impression as I wanted to. They stated they liked my stats and courted me from the time I first got turned down (with no interview that time) back in 2010. I did everything they asked and matched their candidate profile as well as I could tell from the information they provide. I've been analyzing everything since like crazy to determine my weak areas and because they did interview me, I at least met their academic and experience qualifications. So in this case, I am becoming more aware that I just was not a strong interviewee this time.

I think with this next cycle, I am going to find a PA to shadow, try to get in with EMS, and generally try to get more direct patient care experience. It's funny- there is a doctor's office right next door to my pharmacy and there are some PA's on staff. We've become friendly over time and they have all told me "I am set" when it comes to becoming a PA because of working at the pharmacy. I always found that a little surprising. To answer what I actually do, I have quite a bit of patient contact of course, but I feel like all I do is put pills in bottles. I am the senior tech/pharmacy manager and quite trusted by the pharmacists, but somehow I feel I want to do more than just work there, hence pursing PA because it is actually my dream to help people, not provide them with drugs that a lot of the time they just do not need. Venting aside, my job is more than than it appears to be, but I'd love to be able to get more valued HCE.

I am also going to try to find some community service opportunities. It's late in the game for this coming cycle, but I want to at least show the schools that I am trying to improve my application.

[boygirlmama]

Oh yes- and prepare for interviews better! I will enlist my husband for help with that.

[boygirlmama]

Oh yes- and prepare for interviews better! I will enlist my husband for help with that.

[IdahoPA]

Not to be a negative Nancy, but if it's volunteer EMT, it might not count as HCE. Some schools like the experience to be paid. (Though, I'm not sure why it matters.)

 

Do you do mock interviews with your husband? I bombed my first two interviews simply because I hadn't actually articulated my thoughts out loud prior to attending the interviews. I had thought plenty, but hadn't put those thoughts into coherent words.

 

Also, not sure if you're still close to your alma mater, but some schools offer alumni services where they'll viedotape your mock interviews and then go over them with you. I guess you could also do the same at home.

[IdahoPA]

Not to be a negative Nancy, but if it's volunteer EMT, it might not count as HCE. Some schools like the experience to be paid. (Though, I'm not sure why it matters.)

 

Do you do mock interviews with your husband? I bombed my first two interviews simply because I hadn't actually articulated my thoughts out loud prior to attending the interviews. I had thought plenty, but hadn't put those thoughts into coherent words.

 

Also, not sure if you're still close to your alma mater, but some schools offer alumni services where they'll viedotape your mock interviews and then go over them with you. I guess you could also do the same at home.

[Just Steve]

I am going to be a schmuck about this because you are dancing around the elephant in the room...

 

What are you doing to improve your interview?

 

You agree that you meet their academic and experience requirements. You have professionals in the field that support you. You agree that you did not interview well.

 

Sssssoooooo...what is the plan to fix it?

 

What you shared about your interview process supports my theory that the interview is designed to see how well you think on your feet, how well you work under a bit of pressure, how well you can interact on the fly with relative strangers. They know you have the intelligence and a relative amount of acceptable experience..what they don't know, and what they DO want to know is "are you a person who can perform at the job?"

 

1. You have time, find a local Toastmasters group in your area and sign up. It will GREATLY enhance your public speaking ability and it will challenge you to think quickly on your feet. My wife was not a strong public speaker until she attended that group and worked through book 1. Dramatic improvements in both her feeling of anxiety and in her delivery.

 

2. Set up mock interview. Scrounge around for a bunch of interview questions. It really doesn't matter if they are "PA school questions" as you have learned, they can be about anything. However, interviews typically follow a particular genre which can be garnered with a bit of internet research. Video, review, and have open critiques of how you are doing. Ask the PAs in that office next to you if you can buy them lunch one day in trade for an interview session or two.

 

3. Seek professional coaching. Yes, it's not cheap. But it's far cheaper than the lost wages of another year NOT working as a PA.

 

You have proven you have what the school wants...now you have to prove that you can bring those qualities to the moment of application.

 

That being said, it may serve you well to cast a wider net, as you plan to. The school may look back and say "three times is not the charm".

 

Good luck

[Just Steve]

I am going to be a schmuck about this because you are dancing around the elephant in the room...

 

What are you doing to improve your interview?

 

You agree that you meet their academic and experience requirements. You have professionals in the field that support you. You agree that you did not interview well.

 

Sssssoooooo...what is the plan to fix it?

 

What you shared about your interview process supports my theory that the interview is designed to see how well you think on your feet, how well you work under a bit of pressure, how well you can interact on the fly with relative strangers. They know you have the intelligence and a relative amount of acceptable experience..what they don't know, and what they DO want to know is "are you a person who can perform at the job?"

 

1. You have time, find a local Toastmasters group in your area and sign up. It will GREATLY enhance your public speaking ability and it will challenge you to think quickly on your feet. My wife was not a strong public speaker until she attended that group and worked through book 1. Dramatic improvements in both her feeling of anxiety and in her delivery.

 

2. Set up mock interview. Scrounge around for a bunch of interview questions. It really doesn't matter if they are "PA school questions" as you have learned, they can be about anything. However, interviews typically follow a particular genre which can be garnered with a bit of internet research. Video, review, and have open critiques of how you are doing. Ask the PAs in that office next to you if you can buy them lunch one day in trade for an interview session or two.

 

3. Seek professional coaching. Yes, it's not cheap. But it's far cheaper than the lost wages of another year NOT working as a PA.

 

You have proven you have what the school wants...now you have to prove that you can bring those qualities to the moment of application.

 

That being said, it may serve you well to cast a wider net, as you plan to. The school may look back and say "three times is not the charm".

 

Good luck

[bjl12]

boygirlmama-

 

After reading this post I feel I must address the most pressing issue: your HCE.  While it may be technically qualified, it's not as directly related as say an EMT or even a nurse aide.  You mentioned your plans to shadow a PA and volunteer with a local EMT station; that's a great idea.  That will place you higher on the ladder rung and give you real PA skill training (H&P).

 

As for the interview, I believe that will improve with confidence.  You will no doubt become more confident, and rightly so, following a stint of PA shadowing and work with local EMT's.  This hands-on experience as well as L.O.R./references from current PA(s) will propel you to the top of the ladder.  So, assuming you follow through with your plans, just relax at the interview and let your acquired skills speak for themselves.