Alumni Spotlight

Devin Wulff graduated in May of 2019 as one of UP’s outstanding student athletes. Not only was Devin a stellar student but he was also an outstanding runner on the men’s cross country team at UP. After graduation, Devin took a job as a physical therapy rehabilitation aide at a local clinic. Working as a PT aide allowed him to log hours towards his application while also getting paid. Devin also found time to coach cross country this past fall at his former high school. Devin credits each of these two jobs in helping to strengthen his application and gave him valuable insights into patient care and how to communicate with various patient and athlete populations. Throughout the fall he also spent time each day on his applications, essays, studying for the GRE, and taking two online classes. We are excited that Devin has accepted a spot in this year’s class at the University of St. Augustine's DPT program at Austin, Texas. He started there in January and we wish Devin continued success and all the best!

1. Give a short description of your application process / tips for upcoming applicants.

The main components of my application process included earning observation hours, studying for the GRE, and working on my application essays and personal statements. One tip I have for upcoming applicants would be to get started on observation hours and GRE test prep early. I started working towards my observation hours during my first year at UP at local clinics. Working in various settings is important as well. OHSU has great pre-health internship opportunities to look into. I would also recommend signing up for the GRE during your junior/senior year and start exam preparation while you have resources available to you at UP (such as professors, test prep books, and the library). Also, for PTCAS specifically, the general essay and supplemental essay prompts are typically pretty similar from year to year, so I recommend starting some of those rough drafts now. Again, utilize the writing center and English professors at UP while you have access to them. I chose to take a gap year between undergrad and grad school to work on my applications and give myself the best chance at being accepted to a program the first time. While I am glad I did, because it gave me more time to work on my applications, I also wish I had utilized some of the amazing resources that I had available to me while I was still on campus everyday. 

2. How did your time at UP help you with your career choice, application, etc.? 

My academic advisers and professors at UP were key in helping me along my career path. I still keep in touch with my academic advisers, A&P, and Biology of Exercise professors. They were all great resources and helped me along this path during my entire time at UP. Also, I took the PT/OT internship course my junior year and earned credit hours for job shadowing throughout the semester. This was an excellent opportunity that UP offered that I would highly recommend if you are interested in PT/OT. I also utilized the career center each year to help look for internship opportunities around Portland.  

3. What are your favorite memories of UP / any highlights?

One highlight of my time at UP was taking Anatomy & Physiology and Biology of Exercise. Taking those classes showed me what I was truly passionate about and sparked that interest in pursuing physical therapy after graduation. My favorite memories were the labs that we did in Bio of Exercise. For example, administering and taking the VO2max test and lactate threshold tests were such cool experiences that many people don't have during their undergrad. They were such real-life hands-on learning experiences that got me interested in pursuing the health professions. 

4. What general advice would you give aspiring pre-health types?

Try new things and get out of your comfort zone, even if it doesn't seem relevant to pre-health at the time. For example, coaching high school cross country, or taking various psychology/sociology/philosophy electives, or job shadowing occupational therapists, might not have seemed directly related to physical therapy at the time, actually ended up being some of the strongest components of my application. These experiences gave me things to talk about in my essays and graduate school interviews and showed that I had other interests and experiences outside of physical therapy. You want to be able to show that you are a dynamic person and can bring fresh perspectives to the table.