Has anyone heard back from SJSU that applied for Pattern II MOT? Does anyone know how many people typically apply/ how many people they accept each year?
Thanks!
Thanks!
I'd turn it in ASAP. They do rolling admissions and I just heard back last week.
I heard back yesterday...got accepted!
Congrats OTlove4life! When did you apply? Did you find out through email or letter?
Message FutureOT2013 above. He is in the program and would probably be able to answer any of your questions. I know so few students come back to these message boards after they are admitted but he seems to check in. Congrats!Hey guys,
I was recently admitted to SJSU Pattern II, but since there is no interview day I'm feeling like I need more information about the program before I decide if it's right for me (other than cost!). It seems to me that they are short on resources, which is understandable given the budget cuts, but I'm worried about how this may affect incoming students.
Are there any current students out there who could tell me why they are glad they are attenging SJSU? Strengths and weaknesses of the program? Any newly admitted students who have had the opportunity to visit and speak with current students and staff?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Has SJSU sent out all their acceptance letters? I haven't heard anything back yet which I don't think is a good sign
Good point, and actually Samuel Merrit's pass rate for it's last year's cohort was 91% I believe (re-read their page when you first click on OT program on their website, I believe 79% is the average over 3 years or something...)I've seen the question of research/theory based vs. "hands-on" curriculum a lot on this forum, and with all due respect, I just have to ask: shouldn't NBCOT pass rates be the best indication of an OT school's ability to prepare its students?
Here is some data I pulled up about first-time NBCOT pass rates for Bay Area schools, 2009-2011 (this stat is on most sites, and is more reliable than the 2011-only data.)
Dominican: 70% (http://www.dominican.edu/academics/hns/ot/about-the-department)
Samuel Merritt: 79% (http://www.samuelmerritt.edu/occupational_therapy)
San Jose State: 78%(http://www.sjsu.edu/occupationaltherapy/docs/SJSU_OT_Certification_Examination_Results_09_to_11.pdf)
The overall pass rate for Bay Area schools seems pretty low, but my point is this: there doesn't seem to be a significant difference between research/theory based and the "hands-on" schools. Also: Dominican is a three year program that requires you to complete work during both summers, San Jose State is a two year program that gives you summers off. Also: San Jose State's tuition is a small fraction of the other two. But does it really make a difference?
At the end of the day, you still seem to have a 70-80% shot of passing the NBCOT if you're going to school in the Bay Area. Would I be more confident going to Boston U., where the first-time pass rate is something like 98%? Probably. But my life is here in California and I'm not planning on moving to the East Coast.
Whichever school I end up attending, I'm going to study like crazy and be super focused because I really want to be an OT in the Bay and I don't think any of the three schools is going to make that certification test a cakewalk.
I completely agree I've seen in in practice too under the OT's I've worked with...going to a more hands on school allows you to be a much better therapist...health I'm not worried about passing the test as much as I am being prepared to work in the field. OT's I've shadowed have said that you basically make things up as you go when you're starting out, so I would think the extra hands on experience would be really helpful. We're sort of on our own unless we have someone whose willing to mentor us. Another therapist I shadowed said that he'd have students from a certain theoretically based school come in to do their fieldwork and really had no idea what they were doing...
In 2011, I know a current student who was admitted to the program in Oct 27. In 2012, students in another forum were admitted in the first few days of Nov. Also worth noticing is that based on past years, the "Complete" and "Referred to Grad Dept" has no bearing on when you will receive the letter since also last year there were people that still had a "Complete" admissions status and received the letter in the mail.@alansda: Are people really hearing from SJSU as early as Oct? I'm surprised they would tell so early! The grad coordinator said that they normally begin informing by December, but that does seem quite late to me given that they're on rolling admissions. hmmm...
OK So here's the lowdown everyone:
This year they are taking 80 students, I'm in touch with the faculty regularly and am also eagerly waiting and frankly pretty nervous as I applied in October..
For the above person who got in here's the schpeal: it is a pretty LOW BUDGET program. You're not going to get the attention and care that you would at private
-> I have a family member that's in the program and there is A LOT of GROUP PROJECTS which can really hurt you as well..I'm sure you know how group work goes.
My family member told me office hours are scant and it's really hard to get in touch with staff. ALSO they lost a page of her work which effected her score (faculty work other jobs there too)
The experience you'll get there is more RESEARCH based or academic based, it's NOT going to be as hands on as USC or Sam. Merritt for example.
Also if you want to be good at getting re-imbursed I'm not sure how well they show you how to do your charting when you come out, an important skill as a therapist.
That's my inside scoop from having a family member in the program
Has anyone heard back yet? Does the grad coordinator usually email you personally to let you know SJSU received your application and that they will begin notifying in December about admissions? I received an email today but not sure if it's common to do so.
Did you receive the self-addresed letter in the mail *in addition* to the e-mail you just received?
In 2011, I know a current student who was admitted to the program in Oct 27. In 2012, students in another forum were admitted in the first few days of Nov. Also worth noticing is that based on past years, the "Complete" and "Referred to Grad Dept" has no bearing on when you will receive the letter since also last year there were people that still had a "Complete" admissions status and received the letter in the mail.
Sadly, there were also people that applied first thing in October and only heard back until April
Yes, me . The status changed to "Denied" about a week after receiving the letter last year.Has anyone ever been rejected from sjsu with the "referred to grad dept" status?
Hmmmm... Thanks for the insight! Hopefully we all hear sooner, rather than later. The grad assistant told me we would hear in December. Even though it's a month away, it's still nervewracking. It looks like they are taking more time reviewing applications this year than in years prior.Yes, me . The status changed to "Denied" about a week after receiving the letter last year.
Yes, me . The status changed to "Denied" about a week after receiving the letter last year.
Hmmmm... Thanks for the insight! Hopefully we all hear sooner, rather than later. The grad assistant told me we would hear in December. Even though it's a month away, it's still nervewracking. It looks like they are taking more time reviewing applications this year than in years prior.
Indeed, that's the pattern SJSU admissions has followed for the previous years. That makes this year so special since it's already mid-Nov and not even competitive applicants have gotten a notification so far--we're told not to expect them until DecemberIt is rolling admissions, they review applications between October and April and admit throughout that period also. I think the way it works is they have an idea of what a competitive applicant looks like and an applicant who clearly stands out (that is an applicant who might have a high GPA, high GRE, great letters of rec, and a good personal statement) will get offered admission relatively quickly until the class fills. Middle of the pack applicants might be set aside until Spring and remaining seats will be offered at that time. My classmates and I all got admitted in different months, some in October a week after their application was submitted and some in late March. I was a late applicant, I submitted my application in late January and got admitted by February 10th. My situation makes me believe that they do hold out for good and complete applications until the end of the application cycle, I was surprised the class hadn't filled up by the time I submitted.
If you don't mind me asking, what were your stats when you applied?It is rolling admissions, they review applications between October and April and admit throughout that period also. I think the way it works is they have an idea of what a competitive applicant looks like and an applicant who clearly stands out (that is an applicant who might have a high GPA, high GRE, great letters of rec, and a good personal statement) will get offered admission relatively quickly until the class fills. Middle of the pack applicants might be set aside until Spring and remaining seats will be offered at that time. My classmates and I all got admitted in different months, some in October a week after their application was submitted and some in late March. I was a late applicant, I submitted my application in late January and got admitted by February 10th. My situation makes me believe that they do hold out for good and complete applications until the end of the application cycle, I was surprised the class hadn't filled up by the time I submitted.
If you don't mind me asking, what were your stats when you applied?
Congratulations @alansda!! Were you able to speak with her directly? I had a missed call from the grad assistant today around 11:54am, but no voicemail. I'm hoping that's good news!Anyone else received a phone call today? I got in!