Should I walk away from becoming a PA?

[Kalebmi20]

Hello PA forum.

After doing some soul searching, I decided on maybe going for PA school. I am only a 2nd semester freshman. However, due to many circumstances, such as adjusting to online school, and a 1 star professor, my first semester of college was a 2.5. I also was not planning on anything after undergrad so I wasn't totally motivated on acing everything. I am doing my best this semester to make up for that, and getting a 3.75 or 4 this semester is realistic at the moment since Ive bee working extra hard. I am very worried however that all of the hard work that will come in the next years will be for naught if my 2.5 first semester will weigh me down. I know I am capable of getting mostly As and Bs from here on out, but will my first semester be the bane of my PA school application? Will schools take into account covid college and and very bad professors who hardly knew how to operate education software? Will schools see the upward trend as a good thing? I also understand that my application will be looked at as a package rather than just GPA, so I have some hope, but this worry still lingers.

Edited April 6, 2021 by Kalebmi20
added tags

[UGoLong]

19 hours ago, Kalebmi20 said:

Hello PA forum.

After doing some soul searching, I decided on maybe going for PA school. I am only a 2nd semester freshman. However, due to many circumstances, such as adjusting to online school, and a 1 star professor, my first semester of college was a 2.5. I also was not planning on anything after undergrad so I wasn't totally motivated on acing everything. I am doing my best this semester to make up for that, and getting a 3.75 or 4 this semester is realistic at the moment since Ive bee working extra hard. I am very worried however that all of the hard work that will come in the next years will be for naught if my 2.5 first semester will weigh me down. I know I am capable of getting mostly As and Bs from here on out, but will my first semester be the bane of my PA school application? Will schools take into account covid college and and very bad professors who hardly knew how to operate education software? Will schools see the upward trend as a good thing? I also understand that my application will be looked at as a package rather than just GPA, so I have some hope, but this worry still lingers.

First of all, I wouldn't be blaming "one star" professors or COVID for your performance last semester. (I wonder how many stars that professor would give you?) My advice: just own it and move on. 

It is not unusual for students to stumble for one reason or another. Your life is not like a new car that suddenly gets a dent and now is ruined. Part of growing up is learning to learn from your mistakes. Just do well from now on and you should be competitive.

Good luck!

[Kalebmi20]

I acknowledge that ultimately it was my own habits that led to that gpa, and have been working extra this semester to outperform that. The reason I wrote this post was to get re-assurance that my chances for PA were not doomed, or to be given a reality-check that I screwed myself over. I know im capable of doing great every semester from here on out, I just dont want this first semester to be my demise.

[HS817]

49 minutes ago, Kalebmi20 said:

I acknowledge that ultimately it was my own habits that led to that gpa, and have been working extra this semester to outperform that. The reason I wrote this post was to get re-assurance that my chances for PA were not doomed, or to be given a reality-check that I screwed myself over. I know im capable of doing great every semester from here on out, I just dont want this first semester to be my demise.
 

Those that don’t get in are those that give up! It’s not your demise unless you allow it to be. I had a below a 2.0 my first semester. I failed courses. I retook them, grew from my experiences, and didn’t take no for an answer.
 

I’m now in my second quarter of PA school. Understand that your application (and your worth) is so much more than a few bad grades from freshman year! You’ve got this! 

[TheFatMan]

Plenty of examples of people who overcame similar starts. Many programs look at GPA trends and that can hold a lot of weight.

Like stated above, you may be asked about your first semester in interviews. It wouldn't be wise to blame it on 'very bad professors' as we have all had them. The first semester of college is an adjustment period as is dealing with covid - your experience isn't uncommon.

[buttercakes]

On 4/7/2021 at 8:57 PM, Kalebmi20 said:

I acknowledge that ultimately it was my own habits that led to that gpa, and have been working extra this semester to outperform that. The reason I wrote this post was to get re-assurance that my chances for PA were not doomed, or to be given a reality-check that I screwed myself over. I know im capable of doing great every semester from here on out, I just dont want this first semester to be my demise.

I bombed my first few YEARS of college, not just one semester. If you have passion for medicine, passion for the PA field, and feel you can get a solid GPA/great patient care experience then you absolutely still have a chance. Dont beat yourself up! You got this! BTW I interviewed at a few schools this past application cycle and got on the waitlist for each school I interviewed at. Of course its not an acceptance, but its one step away and I am getting ready to freaking make it this year! All hope is absolutely not lost. You got PLENTY of time.