Undergrad just switched

[xSouped]

So I am a first-year at a CSU. This is my second semester here. I went through my first two semesters as a biology major and I realized that I don't want to continue on with it and do pre-pharm as I had originally thought. It just wasn't what I was looking for in the end and so I decided I wanted to give kinesiology a try. The problem is, is that I totally don't know how to go about any of this in the sense that I had my 4-year plan already figured out for pharmacology and had already picked out what pharmacology schools I'd like to go to and apply, etc. But now, all of that is gone and I'm doing something different. With kinesiology, I wanted to go into exercise science and become a physical therapist.

I tried meeting with my advisor, in the biology department, about switching and he sort of just gave me the cold shoulder.

I didn't have the greatest GPA that I could've gotten my first semester. I passed my chemistry class with a C, however, my math class brought my GPA down a lot since it was a 4 unit class. My fall semester I ended with a 2.4 GPA. This semester has only gotten harder as the science classes I'm taking are for biology major so just more grueling chemistry. Is there still a chance to make it into PT school?

Currently, I participate in the marching band and a music service sorority here at my school. Would this help with admissions when trying to get into PT schools?

Sorry if these questions are silly, etc. I'm just so lost right now in what I'm doing for my future and my career. The only thing I know of is that I don't see myself doing pharmacology like I used to.

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[DesertPT]

First of all, unless you were considering doing a PhD and going into research, I believe you mean pharmacy school, not pharmacology school.

Secondly, your GPA will be fine if you get more or less straight A's from here on out. If you're grades aren't solid in the rest of your core PT pre-reqs you may have to retake that chemistry class. If the rest of your pre-reqs are A's you can usually get away with one C. As for your major, doesn't matter one bit as far as getting into PT school. Bio, kinesiology and ex phys are the top three pre-PT majors and nobody will give a hoot which one you have.

Kinesiology may be a tad easier than bio to get good grades, but the difference is not huge and the pre-reqs for PT school are the same for everybody. Honestly if you can't hack it as a bio major you will get wrecked by PT school. Perhaps it's just that it was your first year of college and you haven't quite learned how to get good grades yet.

Your marching band and sorority are probably neither here nor there when it comes to odds of admissions, but having a couple of extracurriculars certainly never hurts.

Not sure how far into your degree you are, but if I was you I would NOT recommend switching majors. Science classes are all just variations on a theme so your life won't be that super different in a kinesiology or ex phys program, and switching will probably just mean that you now have a bunch of wasted credits you don't need. I am usually in favor of staying on track and graduating ASAP rather than wasting a lot more time and money trying to find out if the grass is greener on the other side of some fence.

If you haven't shadowed a PT yet, try to find an observation experience in both an inpatient and outpatient setting ASAP to see if being a PT is actually what you think it is. PT and pharmacy are about as similar as cooking and computer programming. Lots of threads on getting observation hours on this forum so use the search feature. Best of luck.

 

[preptkittty123]

http://www.ptcas.org/uploadedFiles/PTCASorg/About_PTCAS/PTCASApplicantDataRpt.pdf << This is where the person above found that those 3 majors are the top 3 people apply with.

I was initially pre-pharmacy my first year of college and wanted to major in psychology. I ended up majoring in biology (classes were harder, I didn't do as well, but I liked them) and wanting to apply to PT schools. Your major doesn't really matter as long as you do well in the prereqs. Try to improve your GPA, you have 3 more years though so your low GPA is not very worrying. If you pick an easy major you will probably have a higher GPA and will be more likely to get into schools. But what is easy for you really depends on what you are good at.

 

[DesertPT]

If you pick an easy major you will probably have a higher GPA and will be more likely to get into schools.

It is indeed sad but true that a 3.9 as a communications major is accepted over a 3.3 in physics. However if changing majors was going to cause you to have wasted credits and take longer to graduate, I'd say don't do it.

My personal opinion is that biology, especially molecular/cellular bio and physiology type classes, is a bit better preparation for PT school than kinesiology, but that is a highly questionable statement and a debate for another day, no doubt.

 

[pegasuscvc]

Your major isn't really relevant for PT school so long as you have all your prereqs done and a good GPA. I graduated in Psychology, then changed my mind, went back and took a few missing prereqs, and applied successfully to PT school. That being said, you'll feel better prepared for the program if you have a degree that relates to PT. As for your GPA, if you can't manage to get at least a B in undergrad level bio/physics classes, you're going to have a hard time passing your PT program classes. Hit the books hard, learn what study habits work for you, and OWN your prereq classes, no matter what major you choose. Being comfortable with the prereq material (not just memorize/regurgitate for a test but actually understanding it) will make you more likely to succeed when you get to PT school. Also, as the previous poster said, get some PT observation hours in. You need them for your application anyway, and you may even find out it's not for you.