Please help~~

[choco2371]

PLEASE HELP!! Any advise will be greatly appreciated!!
Intro about myself (will try to make it short)
I graduated from UCLA 2009 with a BA in Asian American Studies with overall GPA of 3.445 (will it round up to 3.5?). My original plan was to go to law school but after working in the law industry for 3 years, reality struck and working full time and trying to study for LSATs were much harder than I thought (I was living on my own too). So, I decided to take a year off and go abroad to teach English.
Currently, I am making (after taxes) a little over $3000 a month. The good part is that my work also pays for my housing (since I am a foreigner) which is a HUGE help. So my plan was to save up money here and go back and study for LSATs. It’s been 6 months since I’ve been here and I was able to save up a lot more than I expected.
However, the past couple of weeks, I was getting home sick and was seriously thinking of my options. Although I make decent money here, I am not sure if there is a “vision” in this industry. I do not want to stay here for couple of years and go back to the states, because then I would really have nothing to do there. So, I began to look at my other options back at home.
I was introduced to Physical Therapy by my brother, who is in a similar field. I did my research for couple of weeks and became interested so I am now weighing both sides.
Since I signed a 1 year contract and the earliest time I can go back home will be around Sept or Nov of this year. If I go back then, I am thinking that it will take me about 2 years(?) to finish my pre-req, prep for my GRE, and do my volunteer hours.

One more thing, if i go back, i would probably need to live with my mom since i won't be able to work to pay for rent. I haven't lived with her since I graduated high school. Do you think it can be a problem??

What do you guys think?? Do you think it is really worth it?? HELP ME PLEASE!!!
Some of the things that I am considering:
1. With more experience teaching, I have potential of making more than $3,000(after taxes and housing) here. Will I be making sustainably a lot more as a PT?
2. If I go back in Sept or Nov of this year, will I be starting grad school in 2014?
3. Is it possible to go to school full-time for pre-req, study for the GREs AND do volunteer work at the same time??

Any advise will help….sorry it was so long!! >.<

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[nodakgirl]

I'm pretty new to the whole pre-PT thing, so hopefully someone else will have some better answers for you.

1. $3,000 a month means $36,000 a year, and PTs do make more than that. However, you need to make sure that it's something you WANT to do. There are plenty of jobs that can earn you a decent living, so go into PT because you're interested in learning about it and working in the field.

2. If you start your classes, etc., this fall and expect to take two years for them, that would put you at applying in fall 2013. So, yes, you would be starting in 2014 if you were accepted.

3. This totally depends on you. It depends on how many courses you need to take and how many you plan to take at a time. If you give yourself two years, though, you can spread your volunteering out pretty well. I'd recommend studying for the GRE now before you start your classes so you can give it your full attention and not worry about it later when you're busier. I plan to continue working full time while taking classes because I have to continue paying rent and other expenses, but it depends on what you think you can handle.

 

[choco2371]

thanks for the reply...

is it possible to work full time while going to school for your pre-req? from what i know...the labs are usually during the day. i give you major props for that!!

starting 2014..i will be 28, which means i will be 31 when i graduate!! -___-

Hope everything works out with you too and the best of luck to you!!

 

[Eforma]

I'm pretty new to the whole pre-PT thing, so hopefully someone else will have some better answers for you.

1. $3,000 a month means $36,000 a year, and PTs do make more than that. However, you need to make sure that it's something you WANT to do. There are plenty of jobs that can earn you a decent living, so go into PT because you're interested in learning about it and working in the field.

2. If you start your classes, etc., this fall and expect to take two years for them, that would put you at applying in fall 2013. So, yes, you would be starting in 2014 if you were accepted.

3. This totally depends on you. It depends on how many courses you need to take and how many you plan to take at a time. If you give yourself two years, though, you can spread your volunteering out pretty well. I'd recommend studying for the GRE now before you start your classes so you can give it your full attention and not worry about it later when you're busier. I plan to continue working full time while taking classes because I have to continue paying rent and other expenses, but it depends on what you think you can handle.

1. She actually said "$3000 after taxes and housing" so that means she's making what, more like $55K? $60K? pretax. However, yes PTs can make more than this and will simply likely start at a higher salary than this. However, it should be noted that depending on the debt you incur for schooling, your actual usuable salary may mimic what you are making now for several years after graduation. Now I can't say how much you will pay in housing, but that is entirely up to you and where and how you decide to live.

2. 2014 is the approximate start date, since you wouldn't be able to take courses in the fall, unless you find a quarter-system junior college (which can be a more complicated approach. I would recommend expediting the process, and if you feel you are up for it, see if you can't take a handful of classes online for this fall (ie: medical terminology, statistics, intro to psychology to name a few).

3. You can accomplish all these things -- full-time school, GRE, volunteering -- at the same time, but it will take time management (a great thing you'll be able to mention at your interviews!!) What I would recommend, is try to get some volunteering/observing immediately when you return. This will serve two purposes -- first, you'll have the most time in these months, so you could essentially be volunteering "full time" for a few months while you prepare to take your pre-reqs. Second, this will give you the opportunity to decide if you even want to continue with this path. Furthermore, you can even work on the side to make money (again, if you are willing to.) I had one month where I was finishing up an online course, TA-ing a class, studying for the GRE, volunteering 15+ hours/week and working 20-30 hours a week -- it was exhausting, but I was able to get all my inpatient hours that month alone.

When you take your pre-reqs, try and schedule them so that they are either night courses (community colleges, and places like UC Extension are pretty good about having at least one opportunity for a night course) or that they are scheduled so that you have a least one full day during the week that you can dedicate to volunteering (easy way to get about 5-8 hours/week).

Now, to address living with your mother -- again, entirely a decision you have to figure out if it is right for you. I know I could easily go back to living w/ my folks if need be, because they understand that I am an independent adult and they no longer "control" my life the way they did when I was a child. But that's not always the case with everyone, so you need to consider your relationship w/ her, and if you feel it would hinder your ability to focus and accomplish your goals, then consider finding a cheap room to rent somewhere else. Also, does your mother live in an area where it will be easy for you to take your pre-reqs? Are there substantial hospitals/SNFs/outpatient clinics for you to look to volunteer at?

Okay, my response is getting too long, lol. I hope it gives you some food for thought. And welcome to the forum!

 

[choco2371]

Thanks for the reply!!
gave me a great idea on taking online classes..Since I will be here for another 6 months or so..i am planning on stuyding for my GREs and hopefully take one or two online classes.

regarding volunteer hours, i guess i have to wait until I go back to start. I am from LA area so I'm sure there will be places I can find to volunteer.

I do have a great relationship with my mom..just can't imagine living under someone's roof after living alone for 6 years. Guess i have to just endure that if I want to go to school and not pay rent!!

Thanks for your advice~~

 

[Kyra4dpt]

Agree with previous posters. The only thing I would add is this; if you can do it over there or when you fist come back to the states, I recommend spending time volunteering in a PT clinic (outpatient or inpatient) first. The hours probably could be counted towards your required hours for application. You might love it or find out that it is not for you. It's better to experience it before spending money on classes.

If you are concerned about $, investigate programs and keep note of how much money it will cost to take the GRE, apply to programs, cost for post-bac, and cost for grad school. Consider how much you'll need for student loans and include an approx interest rate when calculating. This will let you know cost versus income. Note that if cost is high, but you really want to go into PT, I've heard that it is very feasible to work FT and do a side job at another PT clinic to help pay off your loans quicker. Somethings to contemplate before making your decision...

If you have time, start studying for the GRE's now and take them when you come back to get them out of the way. Then enroll in classes for Winter/Spring. Some programs accept online courses if it's not a science class, so I suggest starting to research programs via APTA's website prior to returning to the states. This way, you'll have narrowed down the programs you are interested in, know what you need to take and have a plan of attack before you even enroll in your first class. Oh, when in doubt about prereq requirements, email the program after reviewing everything on their website. If you expedite it, you might be able to start in Fall 2013, but by 2014 for sure. It all depends on what you need to take, course prereqs and if you can fit the classes in your schedule.

I worked full-time (9am-5pm) during my post-bac studies, but I could only do about 7-9 credits a semester due to scheduling issues with classes and trying to volunteer at the same time. It would have been easier if I had a flexible work schedule... While that was frustrating as I wanted to take more classes, I was able to walk away with a very solid GPA. It took me 2 years to complete everything and to start PT school.

Good luck!!

 

[nodakgirl]

thanks for the reply...

is it possible to work full time while going to school for your pre-req? from what i know...the labs are usually during the day. i give you major props for that!!

starting 2014..i will be 28, which means i will be 31 when i graduate!! -___-

Hope everything works out with you too and the best of luck to you!!

I work kind of a weird schedule in the afternoons and evenings. It's usually really frustrating trying to plan things, but the benefit is that I'm available to take classes in the morning. I'll be about the same age as you -- actually, my goal is to finish when I'm 30, but we'll see if that happens. Good luck to you also!

 

[pumpkinpatch]

Hi! Congrats on your interest in PT!

Here's my advice for you:

1. Don't get too hung up about studying for the GRE. In my experience, unless you devote a very large amount of time to studying, it probably won't make a big difference on your score (if any). I studied for what felt like forever memorizing vocab words and I think I saw maybe one of the words on the test. It's also not a huge factor in your application; do a few practice test to get an understanding of how the test works, but devote your time elsewhere.

2. When you return, maybe hold off on working while you are taking your prereqs if that is at all possible, or only work a few hours a week. You are at a huge advantage here, in that you don't have a bad GPA to try to bring up yet! GPA is one of the main things that schools look at (especially prereq GPA) so focusing on this is important.

3. On that same note, don't sweat trying to get 100's of hours of observation/volunteer in. Double check with the programs you are looking at, but it seems to me that they usually don't care how many hours you have as long as you meet whatever minimum requirement they have. What they do care about is the variety of settings you have observed, and the quality of your experiences (be involved, ask questions, remember interesting patients that you can mention at your interview).

4. You should try to get some observation/volunteer experiences in PT while you are still abroad! Obviously I have no idea where you are, so maybe this isn't possible where you are at, but if you can find a way to do it, your interviewers will be impressed. I just happened to be placed with a physical therapist when I did a volunteer program in Costa Rica, which is what actually sparked my desire to pursue PT... perhaps this could also give you some idea of whether you want to pursue it yourself. This may or may not "count" as observation hours, again depending on which program you look into, but either way it'll be a good experience for you.

5. Do look into the cost of the programs you might be interested in, if finances are part of the reason you're considering the field (although, as others have mentioned, you should do what you love!) since some programs have pretty astronomical tuition rates. It's been pretty established by many on this forum that as long as the NPTE pass rates are good and the program is accredited, it does not matter what school you go to, so don't be too infatuated with school rankings or reputations. Here's a website with NPTE pass rate information for all accredited schools, so you can compare:

https://www.fsbpt.org/ForCandidatesAndLicensees/NPTE/PassRates/index.asp



Good luck!

 

[choco2371]

Hi! Congrats on your interest in PT!

Here's my advice for you:

1. Don't get too hung up about studying for the GRE. In my experience, unless you devote a very large amount of time to studying, it probably won't make a big difference on your score (if any). I studied for what felt like forever memorizing vocab words and I think I saw maybe one of the words on the test. It's also not a huge factor in your application; do a few practice test to get an understanding of how the test works, but devote your time elsewhere.

2. When you return, maybe hold off on working while you are taking your prereqs if that is at all possible, or only work a few hours a week. You are at a huge advantage here, in that you don't have a bad GPA to try to bring up yet! GPA is one of the main things that schools look at (especially prereq GPA) so focusing on this is important.

3. On that same note, don't sweat trying to get 100's of hours of observation/volunteer in. Double check with the programs you are looking at, but it seems to me that they usually don't care how many hours you have as long as you meet whatever minimum requirement they have. What they do care about is the variety of settings you have observed, and the quality of your experiences (be involved, ask questions, remember interesting patients that you can mention at your interview).

4. You should try to get some observation/volunteer experiences in PT while you are still abroad! Obviously I have no idea where you are, so maybe this isn't possible where you are at, but if you can find a way to do it, your interviewers will be impressed. I just happened to be placed with a physical therapist when I did a volunteer program in Costa Rica, which is what actually sparked my desire to pursue PT... perhaps this could also give you some idea of whether you want to pursue it yourself. This may or may not "count" as observation hours, again depending on which program you look into, but either way it'll be a good experience for you.

5. Do look into the cost of the programs you might be interested in, if finances are part of the reason you're considering the field (although, as others have mentioned, you should do what you love!) since some programs have pretty astronomical tuition rates. It's been pretty established by many on this forum that as long as the NPTE pass rates are good and the program is accredited, it does not matter what school you go to, so don't be too infatuated with school rankings or reputations. Here's a website with NPTE pass rate information for all accredited schools, so you can compare:

https://www.fsbpt.org/ForCandidatesAndLicensees/NPTE/PassRates/index.asp



Good luck!

wow thanks for the advise..great motivation!!
like they say..."beginning is half done"
guess i need to be more confident in myself and take that step forward~