3 Key Strategies for PT School Acceptance in 2023

Summary

Dr. Justin Lee, a PT school admission expert, provides practical advice for prospective students aiming to apply for physical therapy programs in the upcoming summer of 2023. He emphasizes researching top schools, understanding deadlines and prerequisites, taking the GRE early, and gaining leadership and people skills through jobs or volunteering. Dr. Lee stresses the importance of early application submission and highlights the benefits of preparing essays and GRE scores well in advance to avoid last-minute stress.

Takeaways

• 📚 Start researching your top PT schools now by using the PTCAS program directory to find schools that match your preferences and are in your state for cost-effectiveness.
• 🗓 Organize your list of schools by their application deadlines and prerequisites to ensure you meet all requirements before applying.
• 📘 Don't wait until the last minute to submit your application; apply early to secure your spot in the admission process, as many PT schools have a rolling admission system.
• 📝 Plan to take the GRE well in advance of the application period to avoid additional stress during the application process, and aim to get the best possible score.
• 📖 Prepare your essays early, as they require significant time and mental energy to craft, and consider working with a mentor or expert to refine them.
• 🚫 Avoid the common mistake of waiting until the application window is open to start working on your essays and GRE, as this can lead to suboptimal performance.
• 💼 Gain relevant job or volunteer experience that demonstrates leadership and people skills, which are valuable for your application and future career.
• 💡 Reflect on your leadership experiences and document them, as these reflections will be useful when writing essays and preparing for interviews.
• 🔄 Remember that most programs will consider your best GRE score, so retaking the test is an option if you believe you can improve.
• 🤝 Engage in leadership roles, even if they involve leading just one person, as these experiences can showcase your ability to influence and guide others.
• 👍 If you find the video insightful, share it with friends who are applying to PT school or who plan to apply in the future to give them a competitive edge.

Q & A

What is the primary focus of Dr. Justin Lee's video?

The primary focus of Dr. Justin Lee's video is to provide insights and practical steps for students preparing for the physical therapy (PT) school application cycle that opens in summer 2023.

Why is it important to start researching top PT schools early?

Starting early allows students to understand the requirements, deadlines, and costs associated with different PT programs, enabling them to make informed decisions and prepare accordingly.

What website does Dr. Justin Lee recommend for researching PT school programs?

Dr. Justin Lee recommends using ptcas.com and navigating to the program directory to find information about PT schools participating in PTCAS.

Why should students consider in-state programs first when researching PT schools?

In-state programs are generally more affordable, making them a practical choice for students who want to minimize the financial burden of their education.

What is the significance of organizing PT school applications by their deadlines?

Organizing applications by deadlines helps students manage their time effectively, ensuring they can complete all necessary steps before the submission cutoff.

Why is it recommended to complete prerequisite classes before applying to PT schools?

Completing prerequisite classes before applying shows readiness and commitment to the program, and it can also be a requirement for some PT schools.

What is the enrollment process like for most PT programs according to Dr. Justin Lee?

Most PT programs have an enrolling admission process, which is a first-come, first-serve basis, meaning early application can increase the chances of acceptance.

Why does Dr. Justin Lee emphasize the importance of not waiting until the deadline to submit applications?

Waiting until the deadline can lead to a higher chance of being waitlisted or not accepted due to limited spots being filled by earlier applicants.

What advice does Dr. Justin Lee give regarding taking the GRE for PT school applications?

Dr. Justin Lee advises taking the GRE early, as it can be stressful to prepare for the GRE while also dealing with the pressures of completing applications and essays.

What type of job or volunteer experience should students consider to enhance their PT school applications?

Students should consider jobs or volunteer experiences that allow them to demonstrate leadership skills and people skills, such as coaching, tutoring, or personal training.

Why is it beneficial to document leadership experiences and skills for PT school applications?

Documenting leadership experiences can provide material for essays and interviews, showcasing a student's ability to lead and influence others, which is valuable in the field of physical therapy.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Preparing for PT School Admissions in 2023

Dr. Justin Lee, a physical therapist and PT school admission expert, advises students on how to prepare for the application cycle opening in summer 2023. He suggests starting early by researching top PT schools, using resources like ptcas.com to find programs and understand their deadlines and prerequisites. He emphasizes the importance of completing necessary classes before the application period and not waiting until the last minute to apply. Dr. Lee also stresses the significance of applying early due to the rolling admission process, which favors those who submit their applications sooner.

05:01

📝 Taking the GRE and Building Leadership Experience

In this paragraph, Dr. Lee discusses the importance of taking the GRE well in advance of the application period to avoid additional stress during the application process. He warns against postponing the GRE until the application cycle is open, as this can lead to decreased performance due to the compounded stress of prerequisites, application completion, and essay writing. He also encourages students to gain job or volunteer experience that demonstrates leadership and people skills, advising them to reflect on how these experiences can be highlighted in their essays and interviews.

10:03

🤝 Sharing Knowledge and Seeking Support

Dr. Lee concludes the video script by encouraging viewers to share the insights gained from the video with friends who are applying to PT school or planning to apply in the future. He positions himself as a resource for those needing help with PT school admissions and invites students to contact him for assistance. He expresses his commitment to supporting students throughout the application season and wishes them the best of luck, reminding them that the process will come upon them more quickly than they expect.

Keywords

💡Application cycle

The 'application cycle' refers to the specific period during which students can submit their applications for admission to various programs, such as PT school. In the video, Dr. Justin Lee emphasizes the importance of preparing early for the application cycle that opens in summer 2023, to increase the chances of admission.

💡PT school

PT school stands for Physical Therapy school, which is an educational institution that offers degrees in physical therapy. The video's theme revolves around helping students get accepted into PT schools, and Dr. Justin Lee provides insights and steps to prepare for the application process.

💡PTCAS

PTCAS, or Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service, is a centralized application service for physical therapy education programs. The script mentions visiting ptcas.com to research top PT school programs, indicating its importance for students to find and apply to schools that suit their preferences.

💡Deadlines

Deadlines are critical dates by which applications must be submitted. Dr. Justin Lee stresses the importance of being aware of application deadlines and not waiting until the last minute to apply, as this could result in missing out on available spots due to the rolling admission process.

💡Prerequisites

Prerequisites are the courses or qualifications that must be completed before applying to a program. The video mentions that students should ensure they have completed all prerequisites for their desired PT programs, and if not, they should plan to take any missing classes before the application period.

💡GRE

The GRE, or Graduate Record Examinations, is a standardized test that is often required for admission to graduate programs. Dr. Justin Lee advises students to take the GRE well in advance of the application period to avoid added stress and to ensure they have the best possible score when applying.

💡Leadership skills

Leadership skills are the abilities to guide, influence, and inspire others towards achieving goals. The video encourages students to gain job or volunteer experience where they can demonstrate leadership, which can be highlighted in their application essays and interviews.

💡People skills

People skills refer to the ability to communicate, understand, and interact effectively with others. The script suggests that students should seek experiences that help develop these skills, as they are valuable in the healthcare field and can be showcased in their PT school applications.

💡Early application

Applying early refers to submitting an application before the deadline, often as soon as the application period opens. Dr. Justin Lee recommends applying early to PT schools to take advantage of the rolling admission process, which may offer a higher chance of acceptance.

💡Essays

Essays are a critical component of the application process, where students can express their experiences, motivations, and qualifications. The video emphasizes the time and effort required to write compelling essays, advising students to start this process well before the application deadlines.

💡Supplemental essays

Supplemental essays are additional written components required by some schools in addition to the main application essay. The script mentions the importance of preparing for these, as they can vary in number depending on the schools to which a student is applying.

Highlights

Dr. Justin Lee, a PT school admission expert, provides insights for the 2023 application cycle opening in summer 2023.

The importance of researching top PT schools early and using ptcas.com to find participating schools.

Advising to shop around by state first for cheaper in-state PT school programs.

Organizing potential PT schools by their deadlines and prerequisites.

Recommendation to complete any missing prerequisites before the application cycle opens.

Warning against waiting until the deadline to submit applications due to rolling admissions.

The suggestion to take the GRE early to avoid added stress during the application period.

Advice on applying early to PT school applications, ideally by August or September.

The potential for programs to accept prerequisite classes even after application submission.

Highlighting the stress of preparing essays and the GRE simultaneously during the application period.

Encouragement to gain leadership experience through jobs or volunteering to bolster application profiles.

The significance of reflecting on leadership experiences for essay and interview preparation.

Recommendation to document leadership experiences to avoid forgetting them by application time.

Offering assistance for those applying to PT school through Dr. Justin Lee's email.

The video's aim to provide valuable insight for PT school applicants to stay ahead of the curve.

Invitation to share the video with friends applying to PT school or planning to apply in the future.

Dr. Justin Lee's commitment to support applicants throughout the application season.

Transcripts

so hear me out what you can do right now

in early 2023 for the application cycle

that's going to open up in summer 2023

as your PT school admission expert I

have some insight knowledge on what

should you do right now we're going to

talk all about that here in this video

what's up everyone my name is Dr Justin

Lee physical therapist I'm a PT school

admission expert and I help students get

accepted into physical therapy school

the first time I help countless of

students this past application cycle man

they got into so many great schools and

I'm super excited for the 2023

application year because there's just so

many more students that I can impact and

help them get into PT school chances are

if you're watching this video I can help

you too okay so it's January February

right now maybe if you're watching this

a little bit later hopefully you got

this video a little bit earlier than

then but what can you do right now to

help boost your chances so I'm gonna to

go through several practical steps in

this video so make sure you're taking

notes okay let's just jump right in

number one make sure at this point you

need to start researching your top

schools now some of this information is

going to be super boring and super like

Oh I thought there's going to be a

secret

honestly if you're just doing the

rudimentary fundamentals and the basics

you're going to get into PT school and

I'm going to teach you all that in this

video so make sure you're getting that

stuff done stop scrolling on Tick Tock

unless you're watching my videos little

Shameless plug then uh you can stop

there for just a couple minutes but then

let's get back to work all right so

right now you need to look up top 10 PT

school programs what you should do is go

on to the ptcast

ptcas.com Google that and put program

directory it's going to put you to a

website where it's going to show you all

the PT schools that are participating in

ptcast which is most of them and what I

would do is I would shop around by your

state first right most programs that are

in state are cheaper so start with that

if you're in California there are so

many programs if you're in Texas even

more programs so start with that first

make a list figure out what you're you

like what you don't like what you like

about that school it's going to take

some research it's going to take about

an hour to two hours start your list

now once you start your list I want you

to organize them as to when their

deadlines are because if their deadlines

were something last year it's going to

be the same this year I guarantee that

deadlines are and then what the

requirements are now from now to the

time the applications open let me tell

you why those two informations are

important deadline and the prerequisites

from now till when applications open you

still have several months that means

that if you are still lacking maybe one

or two classes that you can kind of just

squeeze in this last semester do it it's

worth it like if you found the program

that you really like and you can't do it

because you just didn't take that extra

psychology class

ah that is such a bummer

go ahead and get that filled out so then

you are prepared to start applying now

just a little side note most programs

will still allow you to take

prerequisite classes even after you

apply but usually it's about one to two

programs as long as one to two semesters

as long as you finish that class before

the start of the cohort all right so

that's really important to understand

number two I talked about the deadlines

now deadlines

ma if I can shake this camera and shake

you

wake the freak up do not wait till the

deadline to submit your application

this infuriates me when students find

the program that they want to get into

and they're like oh the deadline is in

December I'm gonna wait till December to

apply what the heck what are you

freaking doing the program that you're

applying to is very likely an enrolling

admission process is that's how they do

their application process meaning it's

first come first serve meaning if you're

waiting until December and another

student applies right when ptcast opens

they're gonna have the priority to get

in and if all the spots fill up

your SOL at that point

please apply early all the students that

I work with I tell them to apply early

Pizza cast usually opens around July

they're pretty much done in August or

September

just saying so if you apply if you're a

reapplicant you applied by the deadline

that's probably why my friend

all right so please I don't know how

many times I have to say it anyway let's

move on okay number two something else

that you can be working on right now is

taking the GRE I work with students I'm

just trying to help you out because I

work with students when it's application

time and when they're getting ready to

apply and go through all that

information and I ask them hey

you take the GRE my friend and they're

like

no no like

what the heck are you

[Applause]

I'm right now don't wait till you're

applying to take the GRE you think

you're stressed right now because you're

like I just want to finish school man I

just want to graduate and then when I

get into the application I'm going to do

my own thing I'm gonna just focus on

that

I'll tell you right now when the

application time is open you're gonna be

just as stressed maybe if not even more

because all that stress is compact into

a couple months I just want you to think

about

ha

the letters of wreck that you have to

get all the prerequisites filling out

the application itself that takes a lot

of time and then lastly and the most

importantly are going to be your essays

oh man you know how long it takes to

make a really good sustainable essay I

work with students one-on-ones or

several sessions that means several

weeks and this is a accelerated process

to get an essay that is super super good

and Polished now if you're doing this on

your own and you think you could get it

done in a week man you better reevaluate

yourself my friend

the essays not only the ptcast essay but

also the supplemental how many

supplemental essays are there going to

be and how many schools you're applying

to that's a lot of stress and that's a

lot of things to work about that's a lot

of mental energy that goes into writing

those essays and on top of that when

you're burnt out and your creativity is

done now you got to force yourself to be

a robot and study for the GRE

G no

those students that I work with let me

just fast forward and give you a little

case several case studies

students I work with during the

application process and we're going

through all their essays and their

application getting all that done and

they're really stressed and then I asked

them hey did you take the GRE no okay

well sign up for that GRE they sign up

we're still working together they take

the GRE hey how's it going how did it go

they always tell me I did not perform as

well as I did now ask them why why do

you think that is a is a thing they said

I just was so stressed I didn't have

time I was doing so much on my essays

super stressed

just do it now you can always retake it

a lot of times most programs will take

the best score if not the better score

of all the different components

this is super basic y'all but those of

you who listen to me you'll thank me

later on those of you who don't you're

going to be stressed you're going to

reach out to me my waitlist and

everything is going to be super full and

I said sorry man sorry girl I can't take

you

so

let me save you the heartache please

take the GRE now all right the last one

of this video what we're going to be

talking about as far as what you can do

now is to get a job or volunteer

experience that you can emphasize and uh

that you can emphasize leadership skills

with

and number two skills that help with

people skills okay so what I want you to

do is get involved with something

get involved with the job or volunteer

experience where you can lead now

leading means just at least one person

you're influencing one person to make

some actions or think a certain way and

you're helping them move in a certain

direction that's a leader all right you

don't have to be involved with hundreds

and 50 thousands of people to be a

leader it's just one person so things

like a coach a tutor a personal trainer

all those are leadership positions but

now it's to think about okay if I'm in

the leadership perspective

what I want you to do is to think about

what can I write about in my essays or

in my interviews coming up that

exemplify leadership so I want you to

start thinking about that leadership

mindset and the memories and experiences

that you're going to gain in this job or

volunteer opportunity and I really

really encourage you to write this down

because if you're like me you're gonna

forget and then when it's time to apply

several months later you'll be like oh

yeah I remember that I remember how I

was feeling I remember what we did I

remember what was good and bad about it

as some struggles that I've gone through

and you're gonna write about that and

talk about that in your interview

oh man oh man this video has so many

nuggets if you like this video and

really learn from this I appreciate a

thumbs up give this a subscription share

this with a friend who's applying to PT

school or better yet someone who's gonna

apply next year this is super great

insight for them because they can be

ahead of the curve I bet if you're

watching this at this point you're like

man I wish I knew this last year so send

this to a friend I'm sure you're

involved in a pre-pt club send this to

your president and let them share this

with all of their classmates whoa hey

I'm a PC School admission expert and I

help students get accepted into PT

school if you need some help getting

into PT school make sure you email me

down and I'll put my email down below so

we can get in contact and I can help you

out all right y'all good luck this year

application season it's going to come up

sooner and faster than you know it I'm

here and here to support you every step

of the way have a great one you guys