H EALTH P ROFESSIONS AND P RELAW C ENTER
Indiana Unive rsity B loomington ■ University D ivision ■ M axwell Hall 010 ■ Bloomington IN 47405
812-855-1873 ■ Fax 812-856-2770 ■ hpplc@indiana.edu ■ www .hpplc.ind iana.edu
INTRODUCTORY INFORMATION FOR
PRE-OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY,
PRE-PHYSICAL THERAPY,
AND PRE-PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT
STUDENTS
Services, tips, and guidelines for new IUB pre-OT, PT, and PA students
The Health Professions and Prelaw Center (HPPLC) provides services to all IU Bloomington students
interested in pursuing a career in law, medicine, or another health profession. Our services include
individualized academic advising and career advising, targeted group meetings, and extremely in-depth online
resources. The HPPLC staff guides students through the complex process of choosing a related career path,
researching programs, managing the preprofessional process, and completing applications.

OT, PT, and PA programs: IU Bloomington is home to hundreds of pre-OT, PT, and PA students. The Indiana
University programs are housed on the Indianapolis campus. It is standard practice (and strongly
recommended) for preprofessional students to apply to a minimum of 6 programs in their chosen field.

Get timely pre-OT, PT, and PA information: During New Student Orientation, tell your Orientation advisor
which preprofessional areas interest you (law, medicine, or other health professions), so that you will be put on
the related HPPLC email list(s). By doing so, you will receive announcements about important upcoming events,
tips related to the preprofessional process, including the application, and more. You can also join HPPLC email
lists by following the instructions on our homepage, hpplc.indiana.edu.

Scheduling appointments with HPPLC: While individual appointments with the HPPLC pre-OT/ PT / PA
advisor are not available to prospective or Orientation students (our schedules are full as we work with current
students undertaking their preprofessional and application processes), we strongly encourage you to attend the
Fall HPPLC information sessions pertaining to these preprofessional paths. Announcements for these meetings
will be made via the HPPLC email lists, as indicated above. It is more important for preprofessional students to
meet with HPPLC advisors during Sophomore and Junior year, and throughout the subsequent application
process.

Selecting a degree / major: You may choose either a bachelor of arts (BA) or bachelor of science (BS) degree
- it doesn't matter which - and work in the prerequisite courses (in addition to other admission requirements, but
don't concern yourself with these just yet). It's important that you choose a major which truly interests you, and
in which you believe you can excel - one you would choose even if you weren't preprofessional. Almost any
major can accommodate the prerequisite courses, and admission representatives from OT, PT, and PA
programs consistently tell us they have no preference for a given degree or major! Each year, applicants from
15 or 20 different majors are admitted to a given professional program.

Choosing freshman year courses: One simple piece of advice: follow the directions posted on the University
Division First Steps website (ud.indiana.edu/), as well as within the First Steps Health Professions and Prelaw
Center section for your specific area, whether it be OT, PT, PA, or another field. That's all you need to do! UD
and HPPLC have written these directions specifically for new students. You will likely enroll in one or two
prerequisite courses for your professional area of interest, with the rest of your Fall (and, eventually, Spring)
schedule comprised of important general education courses and/or major requirements. Your Orientation
academic advisor will help you with final selections.

Clinical experience: Clinical observation (often called "job shadowing") is the best way for you to determine
whether a given career is something you wish to pursue. In addition, most health professions programs require
some job shadowing, and these experiences can help build your credibility with program admission committees
by showing them that you have thoroughly researched the profession. We urge you to garner some observation
experience during the Summer of Orientation, prior to arriving on campus for Fall classes. For information about
locating such opportunities, how to log your hours, and how to take observation notes, visit
hpplc.indiana.edu/ohp/clinicalobservation.shtml.

How to become as competitive as possible for admission to professional programs: Admission to
professional programs can be very competitive. While there is more to the admission process than grades, GPA
is almost always the most significant factor (especially in admission prerequisite courses, which most programs
count twice). Statistics show that students who invest 30 hours per week outside of class on academics (e.g.,
studying, reading, getting extra help) for every 15 hours spent in class are more successful than students who
invest less time. This translates into a 45 hour academic week. The simple truth is that college is a full time job,
and you must hold yourself to a higher standard than those not seeking admission to competitive programs. For
instance, any time you earn less than an A- on a significant assignment or exam, you ought to talk with
instructor, and get help to improve as much as possible. If you earn a B in a class, that's okay, so long as you
truly did your best, and did everything you could (within the bounds of ethics, of course!) to best grasp the
course material and develop related skills. If you choose not to follow this advice, be aware that you are likely
making a decision to be less competitive for admission to programs than you might otherwise be!

Other admission requirements: We recommend that college freshmen simply not spend time thinking about
letters of recommendation, preparing for admissions tests (e.g., the Graduate Record Exam), and so on. You
will learn about these admission components eventually, and hopefully discuss them with a HPPLC advisor. For
now, though, your attention should be focused squarely on your personal and academic transition from your
high school experience to the very different college experience.

Health Professions and Prelaw Center web resources: You are welcome to look over the HPPLC resources
for pre-OT, PT, and PA students. The webpages are extensively detailed, so do not let the volume of information
overwhelm you! Remember: new preprofessional students should focus on their academic and personal
transition to college, and, for now, should not become too immersed in the details of the admission process.
Pre-Occupational Therapy  hpplc.indiana.edu/ohp/ohp-ot.shtml
Pre-Physical Therapy  hpplc.indiana.edu/ohp/ohp-pt.shtml
Pre-Physician Assistant  hpplc.indiana.edu/ohp/ohp-pa.shtml
This information was prepared for Indiana University Bloomington students by the Health Professions and Prelaw Center. Please note that specific requirements and policies
can change at any time without notice. Students are responsible for obtaining the most current information directly from application and testing services, and the schools and
programs in which they have an interest. Refer to each program's web pages, bulletins, and other publications for the most current information. Students are responsible for
understanding degree course requirements, as well as other requirements, policies, and procedures related to the degree(s) they are pursuing; for enrolling in appropriate
courses; for understanding IU policies/procedures; and for following through properly with regard to all of the preceding.
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