There are several things that need to be done for a student to apply to medical school. If you are interested in what you need to do before you apply, this blog will tell you everything! The main thing you need to focus on is getting your prerequisite courses completed that are required for the medical school you are applying to. For Texas Tech’s medical school, the prerequisite courses can be found at this website; http://www.depts.ttu.edu/pphc/areas/Medicine.php. These courses should be completed with a “C” or better. Most medical schools require a minimum of 90 semester hours before you can apply to the program, but you might want to consider completing an undergraduate degree first. Medical school is very competitive, and completing a degree before you apply to the program will make you a more competitive applicant. There are several application criteria that medical schools will take into consideration when making a decision on your acceptance. They will look at your overall GPA and your GPA in science courses. Make sure you do really well in your courses, especially your science courses. Another major thing they will look at is your Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) score. You will need to prepare for this test well in advance. There are several test prep companies that offer courses and practice exams to prepare you for these kinds of tests. Take advantage of these resources as you are able to, because you want to earn that highest score you can the first time you take the test. You will need to send in letters of evaluation with your application, and usually one need to come from a science instructor. When you start your college career, start making and maintaining connections with your professors, so later on when you need those letters you can go back to those professors and ask for those letters of recommendation. There are a couple of optional things you can do to make you a more competitive applicant. The first thing is volunteering within the medical field. The Covenant Hospital here in Lubbock will take volunteers. By doing this, you are showing the medical school that you know what it’s like to be in the medical field, and you know what you are getting yourself into. Also, it shows them that you are serious about wanting to be a doctor. You can also join our campus organizations here at Texas Tech. For pre-medicine, you can join organizations like the Pre-Med Society or Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA). If you do everything that we have talked about in the blog, you will help make yourself a more competitive applicant for medical programs.  At the end of June, look out for our next blog, which will be about all the different specialties you can go into as a doctor.

Previously, we talked about how to get into dental school and become an actual dentist. Here, we’re focusing on all the responsibilities a dentist will have. When going to the dentist, the dental hygienist comes in first to clean your teeth and take x-rays. After he or she finishes with that is when the dentist comes in. The dentist has many responsibilities with a    patient which includes:

• Diagnosing oral disease
• Promoting good oral health and prevention of diseases
• Interpreting the x-rays of your teeth
• Monitoring teeth and jaw growth and development
• Performing procedures on teeth like filling cavities, extractions, teeth implants and root canals.
• Ensuring safe administration of anesthetics during surgeries.
• Managing oral trauma and emergency situations.

There are many benefits of being a dentist. One benefit of being a dentist is the pay. The median pay of a dentist is $146,920 per year, which is around $70.00 an hour. Another great benefit of being a dentist with your own practice is that you can pick your own schedule. You will have to flexibility of making your schedule and working when best fits you. In June, we will be posting blogs over medical school. Keep a look out for our posts!

Discovery! is designed to help students find their direction into an amazing university experience, an on-time graduation, and a future career field that will be fulfilling and rewarding. Discovery! consists of several components that, in aggregate, describe the process the academic advisors of University Advising use to help guide students to make informed decisions about their future.

Students should go online to learn more and connect with an academic advisor: http://discovery.ttu.edu.

Notes from the Advisor Orientation Session are located here:  Printable Notes on Intro to Discovery Workshop Session (PDF)

A list of relevant scholarly references is also available online:  http://barronfam.com/?page_id=1408

The next health career we are going to talk about is Dentistry. Do you ever wonder about the academic requirements to become a dentist? Well, I am about to tell you!

To become a dentist you must complete 90 hours of college credit before you can apply to the program. Some of those hours will come from the prerequisite courses that you must take to apply. For each dental school, the prerequisite courses can be different. If you check online, most dental programs will have the courses listed.

There are several things that dental schools will look at. They look at your overall GPA, but they also will look to see what your science GPA is. It is very important to do well in your classes, especially the science courses. Another thing that they look at is the letters of evaluation that you send in. One of those letters usually has to come from a science instructor. When you go to your classes make sure to talk with your professors and introduce yourself, that way you build a relationship with them and can ask them for a letter of evaluation. Some programs, like Baylor College of Dentistry, require you to send in a letter from a practicing dentist.

One important requirement for dental programs is sending in your Dental Admissions Test (DAT) scores. Make sure to prepare for this test well in advance, and if there are any prep courses and practice exams, you can take definitely take advantage of that! The DAT is offered several times a year, and it is recommended that the student take the exam the calendar year before they plan to enter dental school.

One great thing you can do to boost your application that is not required, is volunteering within the dental field. If you can volunteer in a dentist office or shadow a dentist, this will look great on your application. Another great advantage of volunteering for a Dentist is that you can ask for a letter of evaluation from them. After you complete all of this, you can apply to a dental school. Once you have been admitted into a school, you will be in the program for four years. Look out for our next blog, which will be about the responsibilities that a dentist has.

So you’ve finished your Graduate Physical Therapy program… now what?

Since your new found profession deals primarily with the evaluation and treatment of various diagnoses that limit physical functioning, you will most likely want to begin working in a clinical setting to begin your experience as a Licensed Physical Therapist. As a working Physical Therapist, you will begin evaluating components of people’s movement including: strength, range of motion, flexibility, balance, posture, body mechanics, coordination, endurance, and mobility in general.

Once you have evaluated and diagnosed each individual person, it is your responsibility to develop a plan of treatment unique to that individual’s problem. These patients are counting on your education and experience to diagnose the cause of the problem, instruct improvement exercises, and maintain success through compliance and checkups.

With time and experience, hopefully you will begin to develop a reputation for your work and involvement with patients. This reputation can lead you to open up your own practice, or work in a variety of settings! As a Physical Therapist, you make work in a large variety of settings: a clinic treating sports and orthopedic injuries, a clinic that specializes in workplace injuries, a hospital treating patients who have had surgeries, illnesses, strokes or other neurological events that limit function, a school working with children who have neurological or orthopedic disabilities, a facility that helps people return home after illness or injury, an inpatient rehabilitation facility that provides intensive therapy to individuals who need improved function before they return home after a serious illness or injury, in a patient’s home, working with many of the conditions listed above with people who cannot travel outside of their homes.

As you can see, completion of the Physical Therapy program is an exciting starting ground for a newly acquired profession! There are unlimited options for Licensed Physical Therapist regarding their job and setting.

Written by: Justin Washburn

They’re coming!

In zombie-like fashion, a slow, determined, relentless creep — Finals are upon us.  And if you’re unprepared, it could feel like you’re out of time and you’re gonna get eaten … Zombie Apocalypse/Final Exams — they’re relatively the same right?

Wrong. If we’re playing by movie rules, then there’s still time for you to become your own superhero and save your world as you know it. This year Final Exams begin May 9th — 14 days from now. Two weeks. A fortnight. You’ve got two weeks to kick it into high gear and prepare yourself. I mean, come on, Finals are preceded by a day denoted as “Dead Day” for crying out loud — we’ve got to be prepared!

“But Maggie, I have two finals in one day.”    Tough.  That happens to all of us at some point in our collegiate careers. You have enough time to prepare for both, you’ve just got to make a plan and stay on track. A zombie apocalypse doesn’t mean just one Zombie is after you for the whole movie — it’s multiples, just like final exams. You can get through this — here’s the plan:

Get tutoring through the Learning Center.

Like we’ve been saying all semester, the Learning Center is one of the most beneficial resources on campus, and you’ve paid for it through student tuition and fees, so you should use it.  The Learning Center will fill up with students who need help studying for finals, so make your appointment or stop by ASAP.  The Center has tutors for Math, Chemistry, Psychology, Accounting, Engineering, Physics … lots of stuff! Make an appointment with a tutor — try and meet twice before your final.  The Learning Center can also help you with test anxiety and study strategies.

Make an Outline.

You’ve got two weeks. Set aside time each day to review materials from your classes. If you’re taking a Math class, re-do some of the homework and take a practice exam, which should be on sale in the Math department as we get closer to finals.  If you’re taking something like History, review the material you’re not as familiar with and start thinking in terms of themes. (As a former History TA, I can tell you that history professors are less interested in regurgitation of facts, and more interested in how issues/occurrences are important in the grand scheme of things — gender, social and cultural structures, etc.) Read and review your notes, attend your last discussion and ask questions.  Make time to study every day from now until you turn in your last final.

Cook.

During finals students eat out a lot and it’s a complete waste of time (and money). If you’ll cook some easy dishes like spaghetti, or a casserole before hand, you’ll have leftovers that you can heat up while you continue to study.Cooking is going to be easier on your wallet then driving somewhere (hello, gas money) and eating out (so much more expensive than cooking).  Not to mention, it will be much less distracting.

Are you a Freshman living in the dorms? Almost every dorm is equipped with a full community kitchen for your use. Get together with some friends and do some cooking, and then separate leftovers for everyone.  It’ll be a fun time together, and you’ll have food to last you through finals.  Don’t have any recipes? Ever heard of the internet? (Yes, there are sites other than Facebook). Visit the University Advising Pinterest Page and find Recipes and Snacks for College Students. Make sure you have a few snacks (Granola bars, apples, whatever) to take with you to the Library if you study there. I caution you not to do all of your studying at the Library or in groups — it should be an equal balance of studying with groups at the library, and studying individually at home.

Limit your TV/Internet Time 

I know, I know … you’re from the generation that couldn’t survive without Facebook and Netflix, and I get it … but truly, in the event of a Zombie Apocalypse you wouldn’t have time to stop and check Facebook while you were trying to outrun global annihilation. Make Facebook and Netflix (or whatever site you’re surfing ) a reward. Get through a chapter of studying and take an hour break to watch an episode of Mad Men online or mindlessly surf Facebook for an hour … but then, back to the grind.  Use your smart phone to set a timer (yes, there’s an app for that, it’s under clock) and when that timer goes off close the internet tabs, turn off the TV and get back to studying. You can do it for two weeks, I promise. Study. Reward. Rinse. Wash. Repeat.

The plan is to get some help from the tutoring center, make an outline to study (live) by for two weeks, cook so that you don’t have to waste money and time while you study for finals, and limit your tv/internet time for two weeks.  You got this. World War Z comes out on June 21st. Make Brad Pitt proud. You won’t be one of those helpless civilians that didn’t prepare — you’re gonna go all Resident Evil on these Final Exams. You’re gonna be like “28 days, what?!” (Actually, for you it’s 14 days, which is even more impressive).

Keep Calm and Kill Zombies (Finals).

1. So what do we know about our students?
   1. What do they expect? http://youtu.be/dGCJ46vyR9o
   2. What world are they in?  http://youtu.be/I4FJMJtt8dk
   3. What do they need?
   4. What is the result of a gap?
      1. What they need and expect…
      2. What they need and receive…
   5. What do we expect of them? http://www.depts.ttu.edu/officialpublications/catalog/_AcademicSupport.php
2. What is excellent Academic Advising?
   1. Advising Defined – http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/The-definition-of-academic-advising.aspx
   2. Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education – http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/Using-CAS-Standards-for-self-assessment.aspx
   3. How does this work mesh with coaching, mentoring, counseling, etc.?
3. Where does this fit in the responsibilities of university faculty?
   1. Research – What is the research question?
   2. Teaching (Learning) – http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/portals/0/Clearinghouse/AdvisingIssues/documents/14-2-Crookston-pp5-9.pdf, http://j.mp/dufour-4questions
      1. Domains of learning
         1. Cognitive
         2. Psychomotor
         3. Affective
      2. Desired learning outcomes
      3. Defined learning opportunities
      4. Assessment (Pre/Post/Other) http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/Assessment-of-academic-advising.aspx
      5. Feedback (Personally Driven/Institutionally Driven)
      6. Student Responsibility – http://www.depts.ttu.edu/advising/documents/syllabus.pdfService

       

4. Understanding of university policies, procedures, systems, and resource
   1. http://j.mp/ttucatalog
   2. http://advising.ttu.edu/guide
   3. http://advising.ttu.edu/resources
5. Investment in continuous improvement — http://advising.ttu.edu/advisors, http://www.uofladvisingpractice.org/test1/index.html
   1. Individual growth
   2. Clinical supervision
   3. Professional development
   4. Portfolio for Tenure – http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/Advisor-Portfolios-Document-Effectiveness.aspx

6. Legal Issues — http://offices.nsuok.edu/advising/AcademicAdvising/LegalandEthicalIssues.aspx
   1. Relationship between Institution and Student
   2. Privileged vs. Privacy vs. Confidentiality (and what about Licensure?)
   3. Academic Due Process
7. Practical Issues
   1. Documentation – http://my.advising.ttu.edu
   2. Scheduling – http://www.advising.ttu.edu/appointment
   3. Communication –
      1. http://www.facebook.com/ttuadvising
      2. http://blog.advising.ttu.edu
8. Strategically pursuing the mission
   1. Mission of Texas Tech University – http://www.ttu.edu/about/mission.php
   2. TTU Committee on Academic Advising & Retention (CAAR) — http://www.depts.ttu.edu/provost/acadaffairs/advising.php
   3. Mission of University Advising – http://advising.ttu.edu
9. Additional References/Resources
   1. Literature list via JRB blog – http://barronfam.com/?page_id=1408
   2. NACADA – http://nacada.ksu.edu/
      1. Publications
      2. Conferences
   3. TTU Advisor SharePoint – http://sharepoint.ttu.edu/advising
   4. Levity — https://twitter.com/AdvisorSnark

If you have ever been interested in a medical field dealing primarily with helping others strengthen and redevelop their motor skills or train physically active individuals, Physical Therapy might be the career choice for you! Physical Therapy is one of the most difficult and enduring medical programs offered by University’s across The United States, however the success rate and personal satisfaction is chart topping.

The path to becoming a Physical Therapist can be easily described in three straightforward steps. One must first obtain an Undergraduate Bachelor’s Degree from a 4-year University, most likely in a Science or Sports Science field. These 4 years in the Undergraduate career will also include completing other required task and accomplishments to apply to a Physical Therapy Program later on. Volunteer work, shadowing, organization participation, and acquiring strong letters of recommendation from many people, will also be a main concern and priority for these Undergraduate (Pre-Physical Therapy) Students.

Once a student has completed the comprehensive course load and foundations for the Physical Therapy Program itself, it will be time to submit an application to a Graduate Physical Therapy Degree Program. Upon acceptance, the second step will initiate an intensive commitment to the Physical Therapy program full of fundamental classes and hands on clinical work or observation. Depending on the institution, the amount of time spent in this program could vary, although the fundamental classes and latter advanced classes will remain even across all programs.

Upon completion and graduation of a Graduate Physical Therapy program, graduates will be allowed to take a National Physical Therapy Exam (NPTE) prior to being allowed to work as an accredited Physical Therapist in the United States. Although the NPTE is administered on a Federal and National level, some states require licensure within their own state in order to actively practice their newly acquired profession. With the passing and completion of all examinations, this lengthy vocational program will have taken you through a well prepared and extensive program to make you the best Licensed Physical Therapist possible.

Written by: Justin Washburn

Early in the 2013 fiscal year, I was encouraged to apply for another position by the hiring manager for that area.  (Needless to say, I didn’t end up securing the position, but that’s not really the point here.)  Anyhow, in the process of imagining myself there, I began to rethink how I would go about the general administrative responsibility if given a new position in any new administrative environment.

Mindmapping is something that helps me sleep better at night, and the attached PDF file is a quick view of what I think is most important in a new administrative role.  I’d be curious to hear from others what they think of this approach, especially ways to improve it.

View/download the PDF file here: Plan of Action.