What to do about *almost* having 2000 hrs PCE!

[peonies]

So I have everything ready to submit in CASPA with 1933 hours of PCE- SO CLOSE TO 2000 (a girl had to use some of her PTO, you need days off working inner city med-surg!). Should I wait 8 more working days to hit 2,000 hours, or should I just submit by the end of this week? I've heard the sooner you submit the better, and there's only 1-2 schools I'm potentially interested in that want a 2000 min. Alternatively, could I potentially add a new experience entry later to add more hours, and then add those schools? I'm switching from full time to per diem as of late may, so I could add a new experience entry in the summer with my additional hours obtained while per diem.

P.S.: I also have 2100 hours of HCE.

[ProSpectre]

First things first, don't submit your app to any schools that have a minimum hour requirement until you meet/exceed that requirement. Otherwise you risk getting auto-filtered out and having your app overlooked.  

Now that that's out of the way, waiting an extra week or two is not going to hurt anything, especially this early in the cycle. Applying early is definitely important, but I would consider anything in April or May to be early. I submitted my app in late June and still had an LOR pending in July, and I got plenty of interviews. Ensure your app is polished and complete before you submit it (including meeting all course prerequisites and PCE hour requirements, as well as a personal statement that has been proofread and critiqued through multiple drafts). 

[peonies]

3 minutes ago, ProSpectre said:

First things first, don't submit your app to any schools that have a minimum hour requirement until you meet/exceed that requirement. Otherwise you risk getting auto-filtered out and having your app overlooked.  

Now that that's out of the way, waiting an extra week or two is not going to hurt anything, especially this early in the cycle. Applying early is definitely important, but I would consider anything in April or May to be early. I submitted my app in late June and still had an LOR pending in July, and I got plenty of interviews. Ensure your app is polished and complete before you submit it (including meeting all course prerequisites and PCE hour requirements, as well as a personal statement that has been proofread and critiqued through multiple drafts). 

Oh yes I'm 100% not going to apply to the 2000 hour min schools with 1900, it'll end up being waste of money. All of the schools I'm going to definitely apply to have 1000 hours or less for their min requirements. So far I've had at least 11 people look at/make edits to my statement! Thanks for the advice! I'll think about waiting it out a week, maybe staying overtime.

[hmtpnw]

I think you are overthinking this. Applying a couple of weeks after CASPA opens will not play any significant role in the outcome of your cycle. You will still be applying very early.

[GreatChecko]

Just a thought, some (most?) schools project your hours assuming you continue working at the same rate until the time you begin their program. Thus, it might not even matter. However, waiting a couple weeks if you aren't sure isn't going to matter too much. 

[Bubbles]

On 4/24/2019 at 10:41 PM, hmtpnw said:

I think you are overthinking this. Applying a couple of weeks after CASPA opens will not play any significant role in the outcome of your cycle. You will still be applying very early.

I agree. I vote to submit at the 2000 mark. Your app will still be in early.