BecomingAnOT Posted March 16, 2018 Report Share Posted March 16, 2018 Hey everyone, I have a low subgpa and cgpa of 3.63 and 3.56 respectively, but I have a lot of experiences including 7 years working with kids with autism, research experience, working with kids in a rehab setting, OT shadowing, recreational therapist assistant, part of the executive team for a club at school and completed my thesis. I was wondering what my chances would be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BecomingAnOT Posted March 16, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2018 I also applied to Uoft, Queens and Alberta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OTdokie Posted March 16, 2018 Report Share Posted March 16, 2018 Well, if it makes you feel any better, your chances are better than mine! I have a 3.28 CGPA and a 3.53 SGPA. I applied to UofT and Queen's as well. To answer your question, Queen's had a 3.3 cut-off last year, while UofT states on their website they don't necessarily have a "cut-off." That being said, UofT requires a 3.0 as a minimum to apply and says that it would be very difficult to receive an admissions offer with anything less than a 3.5-3.7. I'm not sure about UofA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rehab4Life Posted March 17, 2018 Report Share Posted March 17, 2018 Your experiences sound solid if your application gets reviewed! When applying to PT/OT, GPA cut-offs are the first step. They won’t look at your application if you don’t meet the cut-off. That being said, I’m not familiar with OT cut-offs. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OThopeful18 Posted March 17, 2018 Report Share Posted March 17, 2018 The reality is, GPA is used as the primary screening method. These GPA cut offs are rising every year and it makes it difficult for many applicants to have the chance to be considered for admission despite having great experiences. I am on the same boat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWUQ Posted March 17, 2018 Report Share Posted March 17, 2018 The cutoff for Queens to have your application reviewed was a cGPA of 3.3 last year so you should be solid. UofT did say on their website all applicants who have a sGPA of a B (3.0) will have their application reviewed. I have no idea about Alberta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saskOT2019 Posted March 17, 2018 Report Share Posted March 17, 2018 The first time I applied to OT, I was waitlisted and then ultimately rejected. I believe my gpa for u of a at that time was 3.5 (I didn’t apply to ORPAS). I went back to school and took five classes that I thought would allow me to bump up my average, which really helped. At the time, I felt like my whole life was on hold but in the end going back for an extra semester really helped prepare me for OT school and I’m glad I did it. GPA is an important factor for getting your application looked at, but once you’ve gotten it looked at you want it to stand out. The reality is that most applications have applicants with good gpas and lots of good experiences. What I think made the difference for me in the second year of applying was that I was able to demonstrate that I had done research about OT and that I could think like an OT. I went onto the CAOT website and looked at their core values and beliefs and used that to frame how I answered questions. For my interview at McMaster, I didn’t think it went too well right after it was over, but I ended up getting in. Now that I’m in OT school and I have thought back to my interview I realize that some of my answers were strong because I was thinking like an OT- being holistic and client centred. I have seen a huge focus on gpa and experiences on these forums, but I think it’s really important to consider how OTs think. OT is a unique profession and I’ve heard many of my professors say that OTs see the world differently than other people (once you get in I think you’ll recognize that the way you think about things changes too!). I hope that helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OTees Posted March 17, 2018 Report Share Posted March 17, 2018 2 hours ago, saskOT2019 said: The first time I applied to OT, I was waitlisted and then ultimately rejected. I believe my gpa for u of a at that time was 3.5 (I didn’t apply to ORPAS). I went back to school and took five classes that I thought would allow me to bump up my average, which really helped. At the time, I felt like my whole life was on hold but in the end going back for an extra semester really helped prepare me for OT school and I’m glad I did it. GPA is an important factor for getting your application looked at, but once you’ve gotten it looked at you want it to stand out. The reality is that most applications have applicants with good gpas and lots of good experiences. What I think made the difference for me in the second year of applying was that I was able to demonstrate that I had done research about OT and that I could think like an OT. I went onto the CAOT website and looked at their core values and beliefs and used that to frame how I answered questions. For my interview at McMaster, I didn’t think it went too well right after it was over, but I ended up getting in. Now that I’m in OT school and I have thought back to my interview I realize that some of my answers were strong because I was thinking like an OT- being holistic and client centred. I have seen a huge focus on gpa and experiences on these forums, but I think it’s really important to consider how OTs think. OT is a unique profession and I’ve heard many of my professors say that OTs see the world differently than other people (once you get in I think you’ll recognize that the way you think about things changes too!). I hope that helps! Very happy to hear that your perseverance and dedication ultimately paid off! If you don't mind answering, what would you say is the best and worst thing about UofA's OT program? In addition, do you feel like the program is adequately preparing you for practice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saskOT2019 Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 Hmmm... There are a lot of best things: The professors seem to genuinely care about us and want us to become great OTs- they often emphasize that all we don't need to compete with each other and that we just need to focus on learning. Grades are really not important anymore so long as we're passing and they don't want us to fail. They offer a lot of professional development opportunities- there are often part time job offers being sent to us by email, the professional development committee hosts its own conference, and an OTA on staff gives hour long sessions on different topics throughout the year so that you can learn extra things about wheelchairs, sewing, ABI/doppler, paraffin wax baths, etc. Nearly all of the classes are taken in one building and it makes it feel quite homey for us. The professors are always wanting to improve the program so they are constantly looking for feedback and they will definitely consider students' perspectives and advice. Worst thing: technical difficulties - Calgary conferences in to a lot of our lectures, though not all of them. There are often little tech issues like feedback coming through the mic or the ppt slides not showing up in Calgary. Sometimes that will take up 5-10 minutes of class time (though thats not always a bad thing- sometimes its nice to have a few extra minutes to go to the bathroom or chat with other people). I think that the biggest thing that the OT program teaches you is how to figure things out. Its not like undergrad- they won't always give you a lot of direction, but it does help you develop reasoning skills that will be really useful in practice. I honestly don't know how ready I'll feel for practice- I still have a year and a half to go before I get to practice on my own. However, I have heard from almost every OT that I've met (regardless of where they went to school) that they didn't feel prepared for practice when they started. I think the first few years of practice will be a lot of learning. When deciding on a school, keep in mind where you feel you would eventually like to practice. Its not always possible to go to school where you want to work, but if you can its a good option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OTees Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 1 hour ago, saskOT2019 said: Hmmm... There are a lot of best things: The professors seem to genuinely care about us and want us to become great OTs- they often emphasize that all we don't need to compete with each other and that we just need to focus on learning. Grades are really not important anymore so long as we're passing and they don't want us to fail. They offer a lot of professional development opportunities- there are often part time job offers being sent to us by email, the professional development committee hosts its own conference, and an OTA on staff gives hour long sessions on different topics throughout the year so that you can learn extra things about wheelchairs, sewing, ABI/doppler, paraffin wax baths, etc. Nearly all of the classes are taken in one building and it makes it feel quite homey for us. The professors are always wanting to improve the program so they are constantly looking for feedback and they will definitely consider students' perspectives and advice. Worst thing: technical difficulties - Calgary conferences in to a lot of our lectures, though not all of them. There are often little tech issues like feedback coming through the mic or the ppt slides not showing up in Calgary. Sometimes that will take up 5-10 minutes of class time (though thats not always a bad thing- sometimes its nice to have a few extra minutes to go to the bathroom or chat with other people). I think that the biggest thing that the OT program teaches you is how to figure things out. Its not like undergrad- they won't always give you a lot of direction, but it does help you develop reasoning skills that will be really useful in practice. I honestly don't know how ready I'll feel for practice- I still have a year and a half to go before I get to practice on my own. However, I have heard from almost every OT that I've met (regardless of where they went to school) that they didn't feel prepared for practice when they started. I think the first few years of practice will be a lot of learning. When deciding on a school, keep in mind where you feel you would eventually like to practice. Its not always possible to go to school where you want to work, but if you can its a good option. Thank you so much for sharing your experience! Much appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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