The experience of receiving my acceptance letter could be made into a movie. It would have an extremely niche market and would not break any box office records, but it was a ridiculous time in my life nonetheless. I was backpacking in Europe with my girlfriend. A few days prior to acceptance letters being sent out, we boarded an overnight bus from Paris, France to Barcelona, Spain. We were about to live out our Cheetah Girl dream. Unfortunately, the universe had other plans. Within one hour of taking a step off the bus in Barcelona we were robbed. Wallet, purse, phone, passport all gone.

I had been anxiously waiting for the day that acceptance letters would be sent out. The anxiety and excitement increased ten fold about two weeks before May 19th 2017 – the day I would know if I was accepted to PT school or not. It is safe to say that all anxiety, excitement and worry went out the window when we were robbed. At least towards the potential for receiving an acceptance letter. My next 24-48 hours after being robbed, and coincidentally leading up to knowing my fate of being a physio student was filled with adrenaline, frantically running around the city, and trying to figure out how to make a transfer through Western Union so we had some money to pay for a hostel. 

Long story short, we ended up being okay. We grounded ourselves, got a hostel, and had a bunk bed in a small room with 8 other individuals as our roommates. That is where I found out that I had been accepted to physiotherapy school. Acceptance letters were sent out at midnight EST in Canada. In Barcelona, I was 6 hours ahead. I will never forget waking up on the top bunk with my seven new roommates and checking my email. It was 6 am, pitch black, and very quiet. When I saw that I had multiple offers it took some willpower to not celebrate out loud. I waited until breakfast to let my girlfriend know. The next 24-48 hours were much better than the previous. 

You’ll be there one day. Hopefully not in the same circumstances I was under, but one day you’ll have the opportunity to open that letter from universities that will decide the fate of the next 2-3 years and many more beyond that. My advice? Keep an open mind and always consider the potential that you do not get accepted. I had the backup plan of becoming a research assistant for a year if I did not receive a letter of acceptance. Although I felt strongly that I was a good candidate to be accepted, it was comforting to know that it was not the end of anything if I was not accepted. I encourage you to be optimistic but also realistic at the same time. I also encourage you to avoid being robbed two days before the acceptance letters are sent out. 

For those that receive your letters of acceptance, congratulations. It was one of the most exciting times of my life when I realized that I was going to be a physiotherapist. I hope these feelings resonate with you as well. For those whose fates are not as fortunate, know that when one door closes, another one opens. The physiotherapy door will open again in a year. And you will be that much more prepared for it. If you are looking to take that extra step you believe your application needs, be sure to check out our PT Application Booster course. This course is designed for people in your situation – looking to get the competitive edge. It will assist you in organizing your experiences, writing in ways to appeal to physiotherapy schools, and provide suggestions on how to strengthen your application. Reach out to us if you have any questions, we’re always happy to answer them.