Ask a PA Admissions Director

[paadmissions]

@evansja07 Thank you for your question. I do think you going back to retake the courses that you did not perform well in and the fact that you've taken graduate level courses and performed well, will work in your benefit. It doesn't hurt to briefly mention in your personal statement that your academic perspective has changed over the past few years and that you're aware that you have demonstrate the academic will power to be successful in PA school. I think you've demonstrated that thus far. It never hurts to reach out to the programs that interest you to see if they will do an unofficial evaluation of your transcripts to see if you would be competitive with the applicant pool. I hope this helps!

[paadmissions]

@newbeginning Congrats on your upcoming interview. In addition to knowing the profession and current events, be ready to talk about yourself. Consider preparing for topics like:

- Your strengths and weaknesses..what you've done to improve upon your weaknesses.

- How you handle stress (other than exercise, if you exercise)

- Any difficult situation you may have faced in undergrad...how did you handle it.

- What is your learning style.

- Any below average grades in undergrad...be ready to talk about them (don't get defensive)

 

These are topics I would recommend..although all programs may have different topics besides these. Sometimes some of the most difficult questions applicants ramble on about it when they talk about themselves. Hope this helps and best wishes!

[paadmissions]

@izzy2015 Thank you for your question. Our program does not count those type of hours. I would double check with the programs you're interested in to see if they agree. Hope this helps!

[newbeginning]

Thank you again for your help.

[plim]

I am re-posting this from the general discussion area because i would like the perspective from an admissions expert.

 

I was in a PA program over ten years ago but had to withdraw due to medical illness during the program. It was an extremely painful decision but at the time I felt it was the best decision I could make for my health. Now after many years I am considering re-applying.

 

 

How much of a negative impact do you think my withdrawal will have on my application? I know CASPA does ask if you have been enrolled before so I'm expecting for the subject to come up. Does it make me appear to be less motivated or unfit to complete a program? I'm sure some would complain that I took a spot away from someone else which makes a very bad impression.

 

 

When I withdrew I had an overall 3.2 GPA. I wasn't a stellar student (a few C's on my transcript) but I completed the entire first year.

 

 

Do you know of anyone who withdrew and then was later able to re-apply and gain admission a second time?

[skittles456]

Hi Paadmissions- I was hoping you could give me some advice and take a took at my stats. I have a BA in political science and religion and a masters in Public Administration. After grad school I realized I wanted to be in healthcare (dad died suddenly during surgery, realized I had a true interest in medicine). Got a job as a patient care tech for a little over a year (2200 hrs). Last spring I started taking pre-reqs. I had 14 total science hours, but had no prior bio/chem classes in undergrad. So far, I've completed AP1, Biol 1, Chem1, Micro, Medical term, biostats, and several Psych classes. I only have 29 science hours, 17 completed BCP. I still have Biochem, AP2, Bio 2, and Chem 2 that I am taking now. At most schools, I have about 2 outstanding pre-reqs... I've done some PA shadowing, probably total 250 hours in a variety of settings over the last few years and have about 3000 hours of volunteer work (educational non profits for underserved areas) since undergrad. I've always been a pretty average student... Lots of B's. Nothing ever lower than a C throughout undergrad or grad school...

 

CASPA calculated GPA as 3.16 overall, 3.21 science. I took the GRE, pretty average too 150 (V), 149(Q) 4.5 writing

 

I applied to 13 schools, I'm not too confident I will get any interviews this cycle, but I'm wondering how I can improve my application for next time if I have to apply again.

 

Thanks for the help, this board is great!

[paadmissions]

@plim Thank you for your question. When you check that you matriculated into a PA program on your CASPA application, there is a text box where you can explain the reasoning behind your withdrawal. If the case is that you withdrew from the program, make sure you're very clear in your explanation that you withdrew and were not dismissed for academic or disciplinary actions. Your withdrawal was due to a medical illness and not because of lack of academic performance, so I don't really see it as a negative that you're attempting to enroll in PA school again. You may want to discuss briefly in your personal statement why you waited over 10 years to seek out PA school again..that would be one of my questions when reviewing your application... Not that it's a bad thing, I would just be curious and the possibility that other members of the committee would ask that question is high. I would recommend considering going back to retake prerequisites that are required for the programs that interest you. It has been a while since you've been in school so you'll need to demonstrate your academic preparedness again. I know it's been a while since you were in PA school, but sometimes a letter from a full-time faculty member or program director at that time would help support your re-application. This is how I would advise someone in your situation applying to our program, so make sure you consider getting the opinion of the programs that you're interested in.

[paadmissions]

@rachel4517 Thanks for your questions. I think you're on the right track to improve your competitiveness by taking the courses that you've listed. Although you're probably meeting the minimum GPA and GRE scores for a lot of programs, you are just meeting them, not exceeding. So consider your performance especially in the prerequisites. If you were applying to our program I would encourage you to aim for at least a 3.4 in the prerequisites...that's more on par with the applicant pool we're interviewing and matriculating into the program. Evaluate some courses that you may want to retake and maybe even consider going above and beyond the general chemistries and general biologies (like Organic Chemistry, possibly Physics). Our program recommends a 297 verbal and quantitative combo on the GRE so you're above the recommended score for us. You've casted your net pretty wide this cycle so you may be competitive with some programs....if not, I think the above advice my help some.

[plim]

@Paadmissions: Thank you for the prompt reply. I've spent the past ten years working full-time at an acute care hospital as a diagnostic Ultrasonographer. The main reasons for delaying my reapplication were practical; I had significant student debt that I needed to address and the PA school would not release my transcripts until all of my loans were paid in full. So while I was able to gain significant experience and exposure to the real world setting of working in a hospital, I was also responsibly paying off my financial obligations. I also wanted to ensure that I was healthy enough to endure another grueling academic endeavor. Without going into too much detail, I had a major surgery which required an overhaul of my life. Now that a significant time of physical stability has passed I feel ready to pursue my previous goals. I do also question whether my past medical history would make me less desirable as an applicant.

 

 

 

 

Do you know of anyone who was able to eventually gain readmission after withdrawing previously?

Edited August 26, 2013 by plim
misspelling

[UIC815]

Hello, I have two questions for anybody willing to answer them.

1. Does CASPA flag re-applicants and if so, is this viewed any differently by PA admissions, such as showing motivation.

2. At what point does a low GPA (around 2.95 science, 3.15 overall) get brought up by above average GRE scores (306, 5.0) and well above average HCE hours (2500+ ER Tech and 1000+ EMT). Basically, I'm taking/retaking classes I didn't do so well while in undergrad at a community college while I apply now, should I still hold out hope I could get an interview somewhere? (top picks being MWU's or PCOM)

[uclakersfan]

Dear Sir or Madam,

 

I was disenrolled from medical school last year for doing poorly in some rotations during my third year. I was a military scholarship recpient, so currently I am serving Oversea right now as a medical service officer. I would like to get back into medicine after the payback. I also plan to get married and have a family. With a lot of changes in my life, I still want to practice medicine, help patients and apply my Scientific and Medical knowledge to patient care. I think being a PA would help me accomplish that. How should I spin my past medical school experience as a positive when applying to PA schools?

[darrensaysbaaa]

Does the admissions committee have access to how many schools you're applying to? I feel like I've been asked this question at every interview and I'm not sure how straight of an answer I should be giving them. For Law schools this is a posted statistic: the acceptance to application ratio, as in they want to give out the least acceptances and receive the most yes's. But I'm afraid they have access to this information so I've been giving them the exact number of schools. What do you think?

[Martin Thomas]

Hi PAAdmissions: Thanks for all of the advice you have offered in this discussion. I'm hoping you can give your opinion of how competitive an applicant I would be as a 41 year old, looking at healthcare as a second career. I have a BS and MS in Physics. 3.7 undergrad GPA. I work at a labor union and have worked on advocating for policies like paid sick days, but essentially have no real HC experience. I'm taking an EMT-B this Fall and if things go well, I'd quit my job to get work experience as an EMT and to take some Bio and Chem, Anatomy and Physiology pre-reqs.

 

Would my age and a pretty radical change of career be big negative factors in making me a competitive applicant? I don't want to go too far down the road if those would be roadbloacks.

 

Your advice is much appreciated.

[BestUserEver]

hi.

[jennifer smith]

just out of curiousity, what PA program are you from?

[paadmissions]

@plim I do know of applicants who have withdrawn from medical school or other health care programs who have gained admissions into PA school. I think your reasons are valid and hopefully will not hurt your application, especially since you did not demonstrate an academic struggle while in PA school.

[paadmissions]

@UIC815 Thank you for your questions. There is a question on your CASPA application that asks if you are a re-applicant. I would encourage anyone to be honest with this answer. I would bet that every program has a database where duplicate name searches are done, and I've caught some applicants who mark "No" on their application and they have applied before. Be honest.

2. I don't think GRE scores overshadow low GPAs so it's important to make sure there's a good balance of GPAs and GRE scores. I advise applicants who are planning to reapply to make sure there is proven improvement from one application to another. Some re-applicants who submit an application with no improvements don't improve their chances much from the previous year. Hope this helps!

[paadmissions]

@uclakersfan Thank you for your question. Before you spend the time and resources applying, be sure to contact the programs that you're interested in to make sure you are eligible for admission since you were dismissed from medical school. For example, our program does not accept applicants who have been dismissed from medical school or another PA program. If you do find a program that you're eligible for I would be honest in your explanation about why you were dismissed. Don't attempt to "spin" the story....state the facts. I hope this helps!

[paadmissions]

@darrensaysbaaa Thank you for your questions. No, we don't have access to the number of schools applicants apply to. I do ask that question a lot, purely out of curiosity, and definitely not to hold it against the applicant. Other programs may have other intentions behind asking why, but I don't think they're bad intentions. A lot of times we ask the question to also kinda get a feel of the applicant...for example, some applicants say our program is the only program they applied to in the state of NC...I always like to know what the draw was to our program versus the more well-known programs in our state. I'm honest Abe and think it's best to be honest about the number of schools if you feel comfortable sharing that information. Hope this helps!

[paprospect24]

Edited.......

[paadmissions]

@Martin Thomas Thank you for your question. No, I don't think your age will hurt your application and/or your chances to be accepted. We have several old students in our program and they have done very well and have been an asset to their cohorts. I think as long as you're meeting selection factors and demonstrate your readiness for PA school during your interview, you have as much as a shot at being accepted as any younger student would. I hope this helps!

[paadmissions]

@bestuserever Thank you for your questions. I would assume, based on the fact that you have been invited to interview, that you have met their selection factors-so your lack of HCE may not have been as big of an issue as you may think. Keep in mind, programs don't interview everyone who applies and we tend to be very selective in who we select for interviews. If it does come up in the interview be prepared to answer it honestly and succinctly. Don't make excuses about why you haven't worked in the healthcare field, but maybe elaborate about your time shadowing hours--how you came to the realization to be a PA and what you gained from that experience. I think you should also be able to talk about the profession in an insightful and analytical way, which, in my opinion, demonstrates the preparedness of the applicant. I've mentioned this before in some of my previous posts, but phrases like "I want to help people," "PAs spend more time with their patients," etc. can be perceived as immature and that the applicant hasn't really prepared him or herself to be a serious provider. I hope this helps and best wishes on your interview!

[paadmissions]

@jennifer smith I'm with the Methodist University PA Program in Fayetteville, NC

[RegnumAnimalia]

I was curious how you would look at an applicant doing a huge charity event such as cycling across the country over the whole summer instead of getting a ton of HCE hours?

[UIC815]

Thank you for the reply. My GPA is a little better this time then it was last year when I applied. Next years will be a little better as well if I don't get in this time. I don't give up very easily haha!