Video summary
The speaker addresses the common dilemma of pursuing a second master's degree, such as in Health Science or Medical Sciences, specifically to overcome a low undergraduate GPA before applying to Physician Assistant (PA) programs. Drawing from personal experience where they faced rejection multiple times and considered this path after receiving a scholarship offer in Connecticut, the narrator explains that while there are legitimate advantages like gaining healthcare work experience or attending schools with pipeline agreements between master's and PA programs, these benefits must be weighed against individual circumstances. The core argument presented is that obtaining an additional degree should not be done merely as a financial burden to boost statistics if it does not align with one's long-term career goals; for the speaker personally, since their sole objective was always to become a PA, spending extra money and time on a non-PA specific master's felt like an unnecessary detour rather than a strategic move.
However, the video clarifies that this approach is highly situational and depends heavily on available funds and family logistics. For individuals who have disposable income and can manage the lifestyle changes required by relocating or taking additional years off for study, earning strong grades in a second master's program could indeed be an effective strategy to reset their academic record. Admissions committees often look at post-baccalaureate performance, particularly within the last 60 credits of graduate work, so excelling in such a rigorous environment can demonstrate current capability and potentially override past GPA issues. The speaker acknowledges that for some viewers with different financial resources or career aspirations involving broader medical science roles before PA school, this route might be highly beneficial, but it is not universally recommended as the only solution to low grades.
Ultimately, the narrator advocates for a more cost-effective and strategic alternative: retaking specific prerequisite courses where poor grades were earned rather than enrolling in an entire new degree program. By focusing on re-taking just two or three science classes at a local community college that previously resulted in C's or lower scores, applicants can significantly boost their cumulative GPA without the substantial expense of tuition for a full master's degree and relocation costs. This method allows candidates to address the specific weaknesses tanking their application while maintaining financial stability and avoiding major life disruptions like moving families with young children. The speaker emphasizes that this targeted approach was chosen because it provided a direct path to improving academic metrics efficiently, proving that one can overcome GPA hurdles without necessarily committing to another full degree if the primary goal remains strictly becoming a Physician Assistant.
In conclusion, the decision between pursuing a second master's or retaking prerequisites boils down to what works best for an individual's unique financial situation and family life. The speaker advises viewers to have honest conversations with themselves and their families about whether they can afford the extra cost and time of another degree versus investing in specific course corrections that yield similar GPA improvements at a fraction of the price. While there are many resources available on overcoming low GPAs, including previous videos by the creator, the most important step is evaluating which path offers the best return on investment for one's future lifestyle and career trajectory without compromising financial security or personal well-being before making such a significant commitment to higher education again.
Read the full video transcript
all right what's up you guys so I had a
comment um asking specifically like
should they do a master's like another
Masters um before getting into PA school
because they want to overcome their low
GPA so that's what this is going to be
about because I have been there um and
we'll get into just exactly how I've
been there in just a few minutes so if
you're in the boat of trying to overcome
AOW GPA this video is for you so let's
get into the video right now
what's up you guys this isna welcome
back to my channel okay so I wanted to
talk about this comment um slash
question that I got um I've answered
this question kind of sort of similarly
like in some other videos so you might
just be able to search up some of the
key words like low GPA and things like
that to see like what I said previously
but I'm pretty sure my answer still
hasn't changed and it all again boils
down to you and your situation and your
life so for me um I had the opportunity
to get a M's in like Health Science
where I would be able to get a master's
degree and from that like there were
different paths that you can take four
different paths where you could be like
in the lab like working in the
hematology lab and things like that so
um I was like oh this sounds cool this
sounds interesting I did Summer research
before I worked in the lab so I think
like it would be cool like to use the
PIP pets and all those various different
things so um I think this might be an
option for me me because at the time I
had recently like the year prior not
gotten into PA school and this was like
my I don't know second time trying to
get into PA school or third time I I
don't remember which time it was but it
was literally the last time trying to
get into PA school because this was the
moment where I was like all right so if
I don't get in on this cycle maybe I'll
do this master's program so that I'm
able to boost my GPA boost my
post-graduate GPA and um you know have
that be the thing that like helps
determine like what I should be doing
and and how good of a student I am and
that I can actually carry or do well in
a master's program and that was like my
logic um the school that I had gotten
into was in Connecticut and they had
given me like a really good scholarship
which was another option CU I was like
okay like I don't know if I'll have the
money but the scholarship pretty much
took care of everything and it was like
a pipeline they said like oh okay you
know we do have a PA program and many of
the teachers that teach in the Masters
of Health Science degree program will
also teach in the PA program so you'll
be able to like kind of get in with them
and hopefully be funneled in so I looked
at all of these as Pros for the
opportunity of like possibly becoming a
PA but when I sat down and I really
thought about it and I was like you know
what like I don't I don't want a
master's in health science like I don't
want this degree I'm going to go after
this degree and it's not going to do
anything for my life in the future
because all I want to do is become a PA
that's all I want to be I want to be a
PA I want to work in the field um that's
the career that I want to get into and
so when I took a true assessment of it I
was like no like I'm not trying to spend
extra money just to have a degree that
I'm not really going to be using because
at the end of the day I I'm just using
it as a bridge to get my Master's of
physician assistant medicine so it
wasn't a good fit for me now does that
mean that it's going to not be a good
fit for you I don't know like maybe you
have the you know funds that are
disposable for you that you can actually
put into a second master's degree and
like believe me it will assist you like
they will look at you know you can apply
to schools that look at your last 60
credits or 30 90 credits and that would
be your master's degree and if you do
really well in them then hey you know
you might be able to just kind of truly
overcome that GPA and that is what
you're going to be kind of counted on or
that's what you're going to be assessed
on so that may be an option for some of
you for me it wasn't an option and I
like I'm just not I'm not of the opinion
of like doing something that really
isn't going to truly be beneficial in
the future to me um just to get to that
bridge of what I really want to do and
so that's why I was like look I'm not
doing that I'm not paying all this extra
money I'm not moving my family um to
Connecticut for I think it was going to
be a was it a year program I think it
was going to be like a year like fully
like a year it was either a year or 18
months and I would be able to do it in a
year if I like you know kind of was
accelerated with certain things so I
wasn't I wasn't trying to do that but we
like legitimately seriously thought
about it okay like we had this
conversation a and I sat down and we had
a conversation about like what would our
lives look like you know like what would
work look like how are we like paying
for life in general with two children um
little ones at that like what's
schooling looking like all of those
things were taking into consideration
but it just didn't work so if you're
trying to overcome a low GPA there are
very different options that you can do
outside of just simply like getting a
second master's degree um if it's a
matter of like looking at things in
terms of what is your funds going to
look like I would suggest just
cherry-picking like the prere it
requirements that you did poorly on um
and doing all of those like maybe if if
it's a year of your time um then do
those prerequisites and build your GPA
that way um because it's going to be
cheaper than doing a whole new master's
degree if it's going to come out to be
the same then do the master's degree but
for the most part it's going to be less
expensive um and that's the route that I
chose I literally just went through
looked at the prerequisites that I
didn't do well on like anything that I
didn't get an A on or um some things
there were some courses that I got like
a c on I think that was like micro was
it micro or maybe second semester of
biochemistry something like that there
were like maybe two science coures that
I got a C on um for like one of the
semesters um and I retook those because
I was like you know like this is
seriously tanking my GPA and it helped
you know I was able to bring my GPA up
significantly
overall and science GPA and that is the
route that I chose to do again it's not
the route for everyone but you're asking
me and in my opinion like I didn't want
to spend the money to do a master's
degree when I could just like be very
strategic and spend like $500 here $400
there for three and four credit courses
at my local Community College to
actually like satisfy those
prerequisites and boost my GPA so I
think it's a matter of what will work
best for you and your family um and if
you do plan on you know using your
Masters in health science or Whatever It
Is by medical science degree in the
future while you still try to get to PA
school um to get like healthcare
experience or things like that then hey
yeah that might be a very great option
for you um for me it wasn't but uh
that's just my two cents okay hopefully
this video helps um again there are lots
of videos that that I've already made on
how to overcome a a low GPA so you can
just type that in the search bar maybe I
might tag one somewhere for you um and
then you know for the most part just
really have these conversations with
yourself and your family on what the
best decision will be in terms of like
overall lifestyle um and future
lifestyle if you do decide to go the
route of getting it would essentially be
your first Master's um or second Masters
to then get a third Masters as a
physician assistant okay all right
hopefully this helps if you have any
other questions for me leave them the
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guys so much for watching I will talk to
you guys next time bye