Difficult to be accepted into Physical Therapy. Personal Essay 2018-2019 PTCAS

Topic: Describe a meaningful experience in your life. Reflect on how that experience influenced your personal growth, such as your attitudes or perceptions.

The passion and motivation

I am not definitely the best writer and I don't have a solid idea, so please bear with me. I was going to write an essay about working at my first physical therapy clinic. I met someone who would soon become my best friend and was also interested in pursuing a Physical Therapy career. I was working as a tech and he was there volunteering, completing hours for school.

We spent over a year together at this clinic, we observed patients, we spoke about why we both loved physical therapy and wanted to become physical therapist. We discussed how difficult it is getting into a Physical Therapy program (both of our GPA's weren't the best) and we both shared the feelings of fear and anxiety if we were not to get accepted. Although we both loved physical therapy with a passion, we discussed giving up and potentially exploring different careers.

I went to work one day, expecting to see my best friend and my coworker informs me that my best friend passed away last night on the basketball court.

I was going to speak on how his passing motivated me to pursue Physical Therapy even more. His untimely death made me realize that life can be taken away from you at any moment. You should stay determined, go for what you want and never give up. The idea of giving up should never come across your mind. His death undoubtedly changed my attitude on life.

I'll continue the essay speaking on how his death changed me and how his death even motivated me to work harder in school.

So, does all this seem to all correlate? Would my essay be all over the place? Does it/would it make sense that his passing changed my perception on life. Most importantly, do you see how this all relates to physical therapy? Is there anything I could improve on? Is there anything I should stay away from when I'm writing this essay?

Samuel, it seems to me like the line of presentation your essay would follow creates an unnecessary focus on your friend rather than your own meaningful experience in life. The essay is not about how you were inspired to become a physical therapist. The topic wants you to discuss how you entered into a mature phase in your life. What was the pivotal event that led you to take charge, either through personal growth, attitude, or perceptions? You have to show several points in this type of essay:

1. Who you were before the event
2. What the event was about and how it occurred.
3. What aspects of this experience forced a change in you.
4. How you changed because of the event. (attitude, perception, conviction, drive, etc.)
5. Who you are today having progressed from that point in time.

Based on the discussion focus point, I do not believe that the inclusion of the friend will be good for the discussion. It would force the essay to center on someone other than yourself. It would make that person the central character of the essay, which will detract from the development of your character. Unless you can keep your best friend as a minor character and not allow the friendship and subsequent death take over the essay, I do not suggest that you follow this line of presentation. Consider the discussion requirements first and then develop the story you want to tell around those requirements.

Thank you so much.