Sooooooo I may or may not have dropped the ball with monthly Q&As, but I’m out here doing the best I can (the past few months have been SO busy for me, especially with beginning my final clinical rotation of PT school)! This Q&A will be a combination of questions from January and February, hope you don’t mind 😉
Physical Therapy
Tips for balancing PT school with life (how do you know when to stop studying etc.)?
These two b log posts should be helpful:
9 Time Management Tips for the Busy Student
5 Productivity Hacks to Actually Get Things Done
Best gross anatomy study tip? Please help I’m not having fun!
I have an entire blog post all about my anatomy experience! My biggest tip is to get in the cadaver lab as MUCH as you can, use flashcards, and draw things out! Check out these posts below for more tips:
Note-taking, Study Tips, + How to Stay Motivated in PT School
How did you format your resume? I’m unsure how to make mine stand out.
This is currently how my resume is formatted (this is just a snippet of it, and it still needs some updating!):
The sections/headers I chose to prioritize include:
- Education
- Clinical Experience
- Service
- Work Experience
- Award & Honors
- Leadership & Membership
- Skills & Interests
What are your go-to organizational tools/things you used to stay organized?
My planner was the BIGGEST life-saver (I write out EVERYTHING)! Also, I loved using my iCalendar/Google Calendar.
What are your plans after PT school? Do you plan to remain in NC?
I am planning to stay in NC (specifically the Raleigh-Durham area) after graduation! My family is here, and thankfully Jon got a job here this year! Right now, I can see myself working in either inpatient pediatrics or outpatient pelvic floor/women’s health.
What job could I get without a PT license to prepare me for applying to PT school?
Common jobs that pre-PT students have:
- PT aide/tech
- CNA
- Personal trainer
- Receptionist at a medical office
- Medical scribe
At the end of the day, any job is better than no job—showing that you can balance your coursework, extracurricular activities, AND maintain a job will definitely help you stand out!
How did you prepare for your first clinical? Did you feel prepared going into it? I’m nervous and I feel like I don’t know what I’m doing.
My first clinical rotation was in an outpatient orthopedic setting specializing in pelvic floor PT, so I prepared by looking over notes from my women’s health elective, and the other courses we had covering pelvic/women’s health. I didn’t feel 100% prepared, but my program definitely set me up well. And honestly, I don’t think anyone ever feels 100% prepared. Clinical rotations are a learning experience—this is your chance to make mistakes and grow!
How hard is it to get an acute care pediatric clinical rotation?
In my program, it was pretty difficult! Pediatrics is a very popular setting, so each student is limited to only ONE rotation. During Match Day, there were only two pediatric acute care rotations, so I got really lucky!
I want to become a PT for a sports team, do you have any tips for finding an internship?
I would suggest you try to become a PT tech/aide in an outpatient clinic that works with athletes! I’ve found that the sports world is all about networking and connections, so you definitely will have to put yourself out there.
Have you ever doubted being a PT? I’m still in undergrad but sometimes I just get nervous.
I doubted myself A LOT throughout my pre-PT process, I think it’s normal and part of the journey! Just try to keep the end-goal in mind, and know that all of your hard work WILL pay off.
As a student in your 3rd year, are you still taking classes, or are you only doing clinical rotations?
So in addition to clinical rotations, we are also in a course titled “Professional Development” where we have monthly assignments and activities to complete. This course is essentially preparing us for “the real world” after we graduate!
Blogging and Content Creation
Do you ever reach out to brands that you want to work with? Or do they only reach out?
Brands typically reach out to me for collaborations, but I actually started “pitching” brands this year! So far, I have worked with 3-4 brands that I reached out to on my own!
Here are a few tips for when you reach out to brands regarding a potential collaboration:
- Introduce yourself and include a small bio (this shouldn’t be more than a FEW sentences—keep it concise)
- Compliment the brand, and let them know WHY you love their product or company
- Make sure you are offering them value…how can YOU help THEM? Remember that partnerships are not one-sided—they should be mutually beneficial!
- Make sure you spell the contact’s name correctly and thank them for their time
- Include your media kit (with your statistics, audience demographics, and relevant + current photos, previous partnerships, etc.)
Where do you get your ideas and inspiration for blogs and posts?
Something I have been trying to remember lately is that posting doesn’t have to be rocket science. When thinking of topics to write about, I try to answer simple questions, instead of overthinking things! Your audience is typically who you were 2-3 years ago, so building content around things that would have helped me “back then” has been a good strategy to brainstorm ideas. I also think about what’s currently going on in my life, what types of questions my audience is asking me, and what other content creators I admire are doing. I try to keep a running list of ideas in the notes app on my phone so that I never run out of ideas, but this is easier said than done haha. Sometimes I’ll randomly get inspiration for a post (like while I’m trying to fall asleep or in the shower), so I make sure to jot that idea down, and elaborate on it later when I have more time!
I have been trying to create a good email list for my website, do you suggest Mailchimp?
I used MailChimp for a while, and I think it is a great (FREE) website to use when you are just starting out! Once your email list grows though, MailChimp can get pretty expensive. I switched over to Flodesk ($19/month) at the end of last year and I am loving it! It is a bit tricky to get used to at first, but I am able to create simple yet beautiful emails, and also automate “workflows” to keep my audience engaged! Click here for 50% off your Flodesk subscription!
See ya next month for another Q&A!
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