It's All Happening
As this is my first blog for
ADVANCE, I figure it would be a good idea to give my background story and catch you up on the events that led me to choose a career in physical therapy. The decision and application process was less than smooth, so it's relieving to finally have everything settled. I unfortunately didn't have the foresight to make a seamless transition from college to PT school. I graduated from Penn State University in 2009 with a degree in biobehavioral health. Looking back, I had no plan to use the degree.
I told myself that I would do research, but when faced with a cubicle and data-entry, I quickly realized it wasn't for me. I decided to move to Philadelphia after graduation, where I luckily landed a job at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital and realized that physical therapy was something I could definitely be interested in. It was active, didn't require me to punch numbers into a computer program and I could interact with people. A year later, I started the application process.
I spent weeks on the APTA website looking at programs everywhere in the country, but I had absolutely no idea what to look for. Program size? Location? Clinical structure? At first, location was most important, but I eventually switched gears after getting some advice from coworkers who told me to also consider clinical structure and curriculum style.
In the end, I think finances ended up being the most important factor. I had to decide between Pitt, USC and Maryland. As much as I would have loved to go to California, I couldn't justify putting myself in that much debt. I ultimately decided to go to Pitt. The program is great and it's my hometown, so I'm hoping my cost of living will be next to nothing. With my deposit submitted, it's official!
I will be registering for classes this week. I don't know if I'm excited or terrified to see the schedule, but it's nice to know that it's finally happening.