{"103741":{"#nid":"103741","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Health Professional Schools - Apply Now for Fall 2012","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJennifer Kimble\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nDirector, Office of Pre-Health Advising\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDuring times of economic distress in America, students often migrate to health professions. Not only does attending professional school afford students more time before entering the job market, but the health industry is typically more stable than other industries. A larger applicant pool means it has become even more competitive to gain acceptance into a health professional school. The good news is the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.prehealth.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EOffice of Pre-Health Advising\u003C\/a\u003E(OPHA) at Georgia Tech can help students gain the competitive edge they need. Students with an interest in pursuing a health-related profession are strongly encouraged to visit our office as early as possible.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDid you know that there are more than 1,300 pre-health students at Georgia Tech? These are students interested in becoming doctors, dentists, pharmacists, or physician assistants, among others. On average, 200 Tech students apply to medical school every year. Georgia Tech boasts a 53 percent acceptance rate to medical school; the overall national acceptance rate is about 42 percent. For Tech students who coordinate their efforts with the Office of Pre-Health Advising, the acceptance rate can climb to 90 percent! \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOne of the most notable differences between health professional school applications and other graduate programs is rolling admissions. Students interested in attending health professional school in the fall of 2012 need to begin the application process this spring - a full year and a half before the start date. When students submit their application materials early, they stand a greater chance of being offered an interview spot which may lead to a possible acceptance. To demonstrate, Emory School of Medicine has more than 6,000 applications for about 700 interview spots and 130 admission openings. Students who submit their materials early have a better chance of getting an interview offer. If your student is planning on attending medical school in fall 2012, we strongly advise your student to start the application process now.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe following tips and timeline will help ensure a successful application process for students who want to start professional school in the fall of 2012.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Attend the Letter of Evaluation Workshop (February).\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Prepare the Personal Statement (March).\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Attend Application Workshops (April).\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Make sure their Letter of Evaluation file is complete in the Office of Pre-Health Advising by the end of the spring 2011 semester.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Take the admissions test (MCAT, DAT, PCAT, etc.) in late spring\/early summer of 2011.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Be patient and focused - the rolling admissions process means that the summer of 2011 will be spent applying for professional school.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Apply to the appropriate schools. Most state schools can only accept residents of the state.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Attend an interview workshop (fall 2011) and sign up for a mock interview - it really helps!\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Have a \u00e2\u0080\u009cPlan B\u00e2\u0080\u009d in the event that the initial application process does not yield the desired results.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHowever, not all students are ready to embark upon this process just yet. For those students, we encourage them to:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/lists.gatech.edu\/sympa\u0022\u003EClick here\u003C\/a\u003E to register for the Office of Pre-Health Advising listserv \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:pre-health@lists.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Epre-health@lists.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E to keep up with the latest pre-health issues and required workshops. In addition, the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/t-square.gatech.edu\/portal\u0022\u003EOffice of Pre-Health T-Square website\u003C\/a\u003E is full of tips on how to be competitive for a health profession school.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Get to know their professors! Students will need strong letters of evaluation when they apply to a health profession school.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Ensure a strong academic history. It is important to take a healthy combination of courses each semester and major in a subject that is truly interesting. It is also important that a student\u00e2\u0080\u0099s academic record does not reflect a lot of \u00e2\u0080\u009cW\u00e2\u0080\u009d grades or grade substitutions. Professional schools cannot accept grades below \u00e2\u0080\u009cC\u00e2\u0080\u009d in the pre-requisite courses for professional school. In addition, some schools cannot accept AP credit for the pre-requisites. Students are encouraged to contact me directly at \u003Ca href=\u0022Mailto:jennifer.kimble@carnegie.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejennifer.kimble@carnegie.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E to discuss their situation.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Remember that professional schools do not place emphasis on high school activities. Students need to demonstrate healthcare experience, long-term volunteer work, in-depth leadership skills, research experiences, and \u00e2\u0080\u009cuniqueness factors\u00e2\u0080\u009d while at Tech.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Attend all pre-health events (school visits, etc.) and become a member of the appropriate pre-professional club.  We have \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cyberbuzz.gatech.edu\/amsa\/\u0022\u003EAMSA\u003C\/a\u003E for pre-med and other health professions, a \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/jacketpages.gatech.edu\/organization\/predentalsociety \u0022\u003EPre-Dental Society\u003C\/a\u003E, and a \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/cyberbuzz.gatech.edu\/ppsa\/\u0022\u003EPre-Pharmacy Student Association\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Do some career exploration. Students need to develop a strong and differentiated rationale for attending that specific health profession school.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n* Recognize that getting accepted to a professional school is highly challenging and competitive.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFor more information on planning for health professional school, visit the OPHA website \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.prehealth.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ewww.prehealth.gatech\u003C\/a\u003E.edu located in 101 A. French Building to seek help on the application process. Parents and students are also encouraged to contact me directly with questions and concerns at \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jennifer.kimble@carnegie.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejennifer.kimble@carnegie.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E or 404.385.2475. We also invite parents who work in a health profession or closely related industry, to contact the OPHA for information on joining the Georgia Tech Health Professions Affinity Group. This Georgia Tech Alumni Association is open to Tech graduates and friends of Tech.\n\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"During times of economic distress in America, students often migrate to health professions. Not only does attending professional school afford students more time before entering the job market, but the health industry is typically more stable than other industries. A larger applicant pool means it has become even more competitive to gain acceptance into a health professional school. The good news is the Office of Pre-Health Advising (OPHA) at Georgia Tech can help students gain the competitive edge they need. Students with an interest in pursuing a health-related profession are strongly encouraged to visit our office as early as possible.","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Now is the time to start planning for professional schools."}],"uid":"27164","created_gmt":"2011-02-01 01:00:00","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:11:21","author":"Rachael Pocklington","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2011-02-01T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2011-02-01T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1298","name":"Parent and Family Programs"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"2408","name":"campus safety"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cstrong\u003ERachael Pocklington\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EParents Program\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/contact\/index.html?id=rpocklington3\u0022\u003EContact Rachael Pocklington\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E404-385-3920\u003C\/strong\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["rachael.pocklington@vpss.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}