This year, I’ve noticed a trend consisting of PTCAS personal statements that never or barely mention physical therapy. When I ask about it, the applicant usually tells me they are simply following prompt. However, I strongly believe that failing to mention physical therapy is a serious misunderstanding of the prompt that often leans to low quality essays. I’ve known people who were rejected after applying for the first time, and part of their feedback was that their essays failed to correctly address the prompt, so unfortunately, this type of mistake can have serious consequences.
Let’s take a look at the PTCAS prompt. For the 2021-2022 cycle, it is: “Every person has a story that has led them to a career. Since there are a variety of health professions that “help” others, please go beyond your initial interaction or experience with physical therapy, and share the deeper story that has confirmed your decision to specifically pursue physical therapy as your career.”
The prompt instructs applicants to “go beyond your initial interaction with PT.” This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t mention PT, it means you must go beyond your initial interaction with it. For many people, this means going beyond your time as a patient or your time accompanying a loved one to PT, and sharing “the deeper story that has confirmed PT for you.” As I wrote last week, being on the customer side of PT doesn’t tell you enough about the profession – this is why most schools require observation hours!
For most people, what has confirmed PT for you will involve detailing your time spent gaining PT experience either as a shadow or as an aide. I don’t really see a way to properly answer this question without devoting most of your essay to PT. And, as I wrote last year, you still should briefly mention what got you interested in PT, just don’t make this the focus of your essay!