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2019-2020 application cycle


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Hey everyone! This is my first year applying to PA programs and OHSU is my top choice! I have pretty average stats since I was working part time during my undergrad but I’m still hopeful! 

 

My stats:

-Oregon resident

-CASPA verified 5/16

-overall GPA- 3.7

-science GPA- 3.5 

        -all my prerequisites are upper division     classes

~3,500 PCE hours as an ER tech/CNA2, Endoscopy tech, and secure residential treatment specialist

~2,000 HCE hours as hospital volunteer

~ 3,000 volunteer hours as a community youth counselor 

~60 hours shadowing PAs

-LOR from nurse manager in emergency department, PA I did shadowing/internship with, chair of science department at my college, and a nurse coworker. 

 

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I don't believe that admissions committees look at age as a major factor. That being said, I met with the director of a top program when I had just finished my undergraduate degree and he made a point to say that I was younger than the applicants they usually interview. I think programs want a well-rounded applicant, but that doesn't mean you can't be a well-rounded applicant at a young age!

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On 5/22/2019 at 2:13 PM, Chiyoko said:

Does anyone know if PA schools look at your age when reviewing your application? I’m really young (only 20 years old) and I’m concerned that because the average age is higher than my age, it may be a disadvantage. 

I think they will. I had a friend apply right out of undergrad at age 22. She didn't apply to OHSU but to about 8 other schools around the country. At all of the 5 school she interviewed at she was grilled about her age and maturity level. She knew they'd ask about that so she had solid answers. She ended up being accepted to two schools. She also had a very solid application, which I know helped outweigh her age. 

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  • 1 month later...

I was verified on CASPA in the middle of May and got an email from OHSU on June 6th. I’ve copied the email to this post in case anyone was curious what was said.

 

The email was as follows:

“Thank you for your application to the Oregon Health & Science University Physician Assistant Program.  Receipt of this email confirms that your CASPA application has been received.  During the coming weeks we will be matriculating a new cohort of students, so initial review of your application and supporting documents will not begin until the end of the month.  Therefore, please expect to see a notification around the first week of July with more information about what to expect next in the process.  

Please note - You can make changes to your contact information (address, phone, email address, etc.) and update grades via your CASPA portal after your application is submitted.  If you listed any planned or in-progress courses at the time of your CASPA submission, please enter the grade(s) in your CASPA application once the course is complete.  You do not need to send official updated transcripts to OHSU for these courses nor email the program with the information, just update the information in CASPA.  We realize these grades will be unverified, but the program will be able to review and consider the updated grades you post in your application.  If official transcripts are ultimately needed for recent or all courses, the program will contact you.  Otherwise, the unofficial grade entries will be sufficient.

On behalf of the OHSU PA Program faculty and staff, I congratulate you on your choice to pursue a career as a physician assistant.  We look forward to assisting you in the attainment of your goals.“

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Same

10 minutes ago, Mattie3287 said:

Just got my email about 30 minutes ago letting me know that they had begun reviewing applications, and it would be up to 10 weeks until they could give any more information. 

Same 🙂 🤞

Thank you for your patience as the OHSU Physician Assistant Program compiled your CASPA application with your supporting materials.  Your OHSU admissions application is complete and will be forwarded to the PA Admissions Committee for review.  During this very busy time for admissions, please allow up to 10 weeks for the committee to review your application.  Decisions may be made at any point during the aforementioned time frame and you will be notified of the decision via email once their review is complete.

Interviews are expected to begin in mid-September and continue through December.  All applicants with complete applications who meet our advertised deadline will receive consideration for an available interview date.  Interview slots will not be completely filled until all applications have been reviewed.  If you are selected for an interview, you will be notified at least four weeks in advance of a potential interview date and provided with at least 2-3 date options to select from.  Admissions decisions are expected to be communicated within 4 weeks of each interview date.  We will not completely fill the cohort until all invited candidates have had the opportunity to interview with the program.

As a reminder, you can make changes to your contact information (address, phone, email address, etc.) and update grades for courses in progress or planned courses on CASPA after your application is submitted.  You do not need to send official transcripts to OHSU at this point.  The committee can use the self-reported grade updates for their review.  If you have updates concerning any other aspect of your application, you may email the program at paprgm@ohsu.edu.

In the meantime, please feel free to contact the OHSU PA Program admissions office if you have any questions at 503-494-3633 or paprgm@ohsu.edu

Sincerely, 

OHSU PA Program Admissions
Oregon Health & Science University
Physician Assistant Program
2730 SW Moody Ave, CL5PA | Portland, OR 97201
503-494-3633 voice | 503-494-1409 fax
paprgm@ohsu.edu | http://www.ohsu.edu/pa

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4 minutes ago, ccallen5 said:

Not yet 😞 personally I'm not expecting to hear anything until mid-September. They said it can take 10 weeks to hear back and when I applied last year it was right about 10 weeks when I did hear back. 

They must be running behind because the email said they would start interviews mid September but they also said they’d give us 4 weeks notice before interviews! Did you get an interview last year? 

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4 minutes ago, Delanie said:

They must be running behind because the email said they would start interviews mid September but they also said they’d give us 4 weeks notice before interviews! Did you get an interview last year? 

I did not last year, fingers crossed for this year though! I know last year the first invite emails went out on 8/16, so I'm cautiously optimistic that you are right that they are running behind. Hopefully it's not too much longer!

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14 minutes ago, ccallen5 said:

I did not last year, fingers crossed for this year though! I know last year the first invite emails went out on 8/16, so I'm cautiously optimistic that you are right that they are running behind. Hopefully it's not too much longer!

I hope not! Good luck!

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Hi guys, I am the current first year PA student at OHSU. I was on you guys shoes last year, it’s definitely not an easy journey! I hope I can. Make your life a little bit easier or calm! PA school is super busy!! I might not be able to get back to you right away, but I will do that as soon as I am free. And OHSU has an excellent PA program, u guys definitely making a right decision coming here! Good luck everyone!! BTW, my name is An.

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6 minutes ago, anruan2008 said:

Hi guys, I am the current first year PA student at OHSU. I was on you guys shoes last year, it’s definitely not an easy journey! I hope I can. Make your life a little bit easier or calm! PA school is super busy!! I might not be able to get back to you right away, but I will do that as soon as I am free. And OHSU has an excellent PA program, u guys definitely making a right decision coming here! Good luck everyone!! BTW, my name is An.

Do you happen to have any insider information as to whether they've started sending out invites?

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4 minutes ago, anruan2008 said:

Sorry I don’t. But I know the first round of interview will not happen before 9/16. Our class have a master schedule, they haven’t updated our schedule after the week of 9/16. But I don’t see any interview section before that week

Good to know! Thank for the info!

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