Health Professions Advising [HPA]

All advising, whether by appointment or drop-in, is a one-on-one meeting with an HPA professional advisor.

Join the HPA Hub on Canvas

• Please complete the brief enrollment form to be added to the HPA Hub on Canvas to be notified of events and opportunities of interest and to access informative materials.

HPA staff

• Ms. Annie Laib Jenkins | Associate Director for Health Professions Advising
  
• Dr. Susan Meacham | Career Advisor for Health Professions Advising
• Ms. Jen Heinold | Assistant Director for Health Professions Advising
• Ms. Patricia Hughes | Administrative Operations for Health Professions Advising

Contact us

For questions or administrative assistance:

• Email HPA@vt.edu, OR
• Call 540-231-7287
  [Leave a message if you call outside of office hours or we're on another call.]
• We'll respond to messages and emails during office hours.

Office location

Health Professions Advising is a service within Career and Professional Development, located in the Smith Career Center on the Blacksburg campus.

• HPA FAQs about getting admitted, undergraduate academic preparation, getting experience, and the application process. This includes HPA FAQs related to the impact of Covid-19 on preparing for and applying to health professional school.

HPA 101 and 202 info sessions

• We encourage you to attend one of these sessions prior to advising so that your individual advising session will be more productive.
• These 60-minute info sessions are held during fall and spring semesters.
• See details and schedule on HPA events.

More HPA events

• HPA also offers opportunities to meet with health professionals, professional school reps, and sessions to prepare for interviews and write application materials.
• See HPA events for details. 

Getting notices about HPA events

• To receive information about events, complete this brief enrollment form. We will add you to the HPA Hub so you'll receive notices of events.

Explore health careers

• NIH: Explore health and medical science careers
• Health career info includes the specific professions listed below (and more).
  • Chiropractic
  • Dentistry
  • Dietetics
  • Medicine overview:
    • Allopathic (M.D.)
    • Osteopathic (D.O.)
  • Nursing
  • Occupational therapy
  • Optometry
  • Pharmacy
  • Physical therapy
  • Physician assistant
  • Veterinary medicine
  • And other graduate health professions

Careers in medicine class

• 1-credit | A-F graded | fall semester only
• Course: BIOL 1214; CRN 81700. (see the timetable of classes for more information) 
• Offered each fall semester; Wednesdays, 5:30-6:20pm.
• Format: In person.
• Open to any interested Virginia Tech student.
• A variety of health professionals and admissions officers speak to the class about careers, preparation, and admission processes.

Undergraduate preparation

• Timeline: what to do from first year through senior year of your undergrad program.
• Academic, extra-curricular, and co-curricular prep.
• FAQs about getting admitted, undergraduate academic preparation, getting experience, and the application process.

Common prerequisite coursework by profession

• Prerequisite coursework varies both by profession and by the specific institution offering the professional degree.
• Students are encouraged to review graduate school admissions requirements of each institution and program of interest to ensure completion of prerequisite coursework.
• Some Virginia Tech courses may be restricted to students from specific majors during certain terms. Please consult with your academic advisor if you have questions about how this could affect your academic plan.
• View academic preparation with common prerequisite courses by profession.

Applying, admission exams, letters of recommendation

• Tips and resources
• Admission exams
• Letters of recommendation
• FAQs about getting admitted, undergradute academic preparation, getting experience, and the application process.

Health Professions Evaluation Committee [HPEC]

Many health professional schools/programs expect, encourage, or accept, as part of the admission application process, a "committee letter of evaluation" (also known as a "committee letter") written by personnel in the applicant's undergraduate institution. The Health Professions Evaluation Committee (HPEC) at Virginia Tech are personnel who write these committee letters. The HPEC writes such letters only after a process which includes a formal interview with the student-applicant.

• More about HPEC
• Timeline and deadlines for applicants (students and eligible alumni)
• Information for assessors about completing an assessment form for an applicant

Guaranteed admission opportunities

Definition:

A guaranteed admission agreement or opportunity means that a college, university, or professional school program guarantees admission to individuals who meet certain criteria, including admission and application requirements.

Health professional school program guaranteed admission opportunities available for Virginia Tech graduates:

• George Washington University School of Nursing accelerated bachelor of science in nursing.
• University of Virginia School of Nursing Clinical Nurse Leader Program.