PA and PT Admissions in the Time of COVID-19: A Panel Discussion

Presented by Jeremy Turkall, MS, Erika Brooks, CSPO, and Thomas O'Shea, PhD, MEd on September 10, 2020 at 12:00 pm

This session will cover the changes to Physical Therapy Centralizes Application System (PTCAS) and Physical Therapy Admissions due to Covid19, and also updates made to better accommodate prospective students and DPT programs.

During this time the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) has provided recourses to our member programs to ensure they have the ability to conduct an admission cycle as close to normal as possible during COVID? PAEA also facilitate conversations about the immediate and long-term effects of any changes to the admissions process.

The global COVID Pandemic has changed the daily lives of individuals across the globe. One area that has been greatly affected has be the healthcare industry. As PA Programs across the country begin to recruit, assess and select individuals to start in their PA Programs since COVID, it is important to realize that the “academic landscape” has changed. Come learn about how the University of Iowa PA Program has repurposed their recruitment, assessment and selection process for applicants since the global pandemic.

Seminar Archive

Presenter Bios

Jeremy Turkall has over 13+ years’ experience working in higher education, primarily in admissions and enrollment management. He has also worked in student affairs, orientation, career services, and alumni relations. His early career began at the University of Akron, and has since worked for Education Management Corporation, Chancellor University, and The Cleveland Institute of Art in a variety of roles and responsibilities. Then in 2015 he started working at University of South Florida (USF) Health College of Pharmacy as the Admissions Advisor and Interim Director of Admissions responsible for advising, recruitment, marketing, social media, and interviews. Then in 2017 he transferred to the USF School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences as the Academic Services Administrator for admissions, alumni, and community engagement. His current duties entail oversight of the enrollment process, recruitment, marketing, social media, alumni relations, career services, and community engagement for the School. Jeremy currently holds a Master’s degree in higher education administration, and is pursuing a PhD in Educational Leadership at the University of South Florida.

Erika Brooks is the current Application Services Manager at PAEA. In this role, she oversees the CASPA application experience and CASPA data analysis to ensure that health professions advisors have the necessary resources to assist their students on their journey to becoming a matriculating PA student.

Before joining PAEA, Erika worked at the American Medical College Application Service with the Association of American Medical Colleges for eight years. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, she attended the University of Cincinnati and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in health promotion and education, with a concentration in community health.

Thomas M. O’Shea, PhD, Med is the Director of Administrative and Students Services for the University of Iowa PA Program and Adjunct Faculty Member in the University College Division at the University of Iowa. Dr. O’Shea has worked in higher education for almost 20 years and his main focus is on recruitment, admission, transitional programming and student success. Dr. O’Shea is an active member of PAEA, Central Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (CAAHP) and the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (NAAHP) which allows him to work with health-advisors across the country to provide insight into what students can do to be successful in their healthcare journey.