From Strength Coach to Physical Therapist: Amber Schlemmer's Graduate School Experience

Unlocking Success in Graduate School and Beyond
Graduate school is often described as a journey filled with challenges, growth, and triumphs. For Dr. Amber Schlemmer, a physical therapist and alumna of the University of Michigan Flint's Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program, her path to success was anything but traditional. In a conversation with Dr. Christopher Lewis, Dr. Schlemmer shared insights into her decision to pursue graduate school, the obstacles she overcame, and the critical lessons she learned.

Finding the Right Path
Unlike many graduate students, Dr. Schlemmer didn’t immediately decide to pursue further education following her undergraduate degree at Michigan State University. A few years into her career as a personal trainer and strength coach, she realized that her scope of practice was limited when working with patients recovering from multi-trauma injuries. This sparked her interest in physical therapy, and through careful self-reflection, she determined this field aligned with her passion for understanding human capacity and rehabilitation. For prospective graduate students, her story underscores the importance of embracing life experiences and listening to your professional instincts when deciding to further your education.

Overcoming the Nontraditional Student Challenge
Dr. Schlemmer’s decision to attend the University of Michigan Flint was influenced by her role as a nontraditional student. With a young family and deep roots in her community, relocating for a graduate program was not an option. She praised the proximity and high-quality faculty at U of M Flint, calling her program a “necessity” that ultimately became one of her biggest blessings. For students in similar scenarios, proximity, supportive faculty, and realistic planning can be key in managing academics and personal responsibilities.

Lessons to Thrive in Graduate Programs
Graduate school demands a significant adjustment, requiring new habits and dedication. To succeed, Dr. Schlemmer emphasized effective study techniques and embracing the grueling pace of her courses. Her late-night study sessions at a 24-hour McDonald’s highlight the importance of resilience and time management. Dr. Schlemmer believes that excelling in graduate school goes beyond academics—it’s about forming critical thinking skills and learning to apply principles flexibly.

The Value of Practical Experience
Dr. Schlemmer credited her clinical rotations for shaping her into the physical therapist she is today. Through real-world challenges and mentorship, she emerged with newfound confidence in critical thinking and decision-making within the profession. For future students, Dr. Schlemmer encouraged taking advantage of internships to explore diverse perspectives that enrich long-term career growth.

Advice for Aspiring Graduate Students
Dr. Schlemmer offered sage advice: do thorough research before applying to programs, maintain a well-rounded perspective, and remain adaptable as professional interests evolve. Graduate school may feel overwhelming at its peak, but she reassures students that the light at the end of the tunnel is worth the hard work.

A Worthwhile Journey
As Dr. Christopher Lewis aptly described, graduate school is “a blip” in the grand timeline of one’s life, but it is a transformational journey that prepares students for lifelong success. Dr. Schlemmer’s story stands as a testament to resilience, adaptability, and the rewards that come with pursuing your passions. For aspiring graduate students, her journey serves as inspiration to embrace both the challenges and possibilities that lie ahead.

 

TRANSCRIPT

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:00:01]:
Welcome to Victor's in Grad School, where we have conversations with students, alumni, and experts about what it takes to find success in graduate school.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:00:11]:
Welcome back to Victor's in Grad School. I'm your host, doctor Christopher Lewis, Director of Graduate Programs at the University of Michigan, Flint. Really excited to have you back again this week. As always, I love being able to sit down and talk to you, work with you as we work through this journey that you're on. And I call it a journey because it truly is a journey. No matter if you are just starting to think about maybe I want to do this graduate school thing or you've applied, maybe you've gotten accepted, maybe you're in graduate school and you're looking for that light at the end of the tunnel. No matter where you are, it is a journey. And there are things that you can do to prepare yourself to be successful in that journey, no matter where you are in that journey.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:00:52]:
So that's why every week I love being able to have these conversations with you, to sit down with you, to talk with you, and to bring you different guests, different people with different experiences that have been able to go through graduate school themselves and have found success in that journey for themselves. Today, we got another great guest. Doctor. Amber Schlemmer is with us today. And, Amber is a graduate of the doctorate of physical therapy program at the University of Michigan Flint. She did she ended up doing her undergraduate degree at Michigan State University. And then, as I said, got a clinical doctorate at the University of Michigan Flint. We'll talk about that here in just a moment.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:01:29]:
But I'm really excited to have her here and to have her share some of her experiences with you. Amber, thanks so much for being here today. Thank

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:01:37]:
you for having me, Christopher.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:01:38]:
It is my pleasure. Really excited to have you here. And first and foremost, one of the things that I love being able to do is turning the clock back in time. I have the power.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:01:50]:
I'd love to do that.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:01:51]:
Yes. So So we're gonna go back in time. And I said that you did your undergraduate work at Michigan State University. And at some point during that time that you were there, you made a decision, you made a decision that you wanted to go further, you wanted to get another degree. You wanted to go to graduate school. Bring me back to that point. And what made you decide that you wanted to go to graduate school?

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:02:14]:
So, actually, funny story. It was not during my time at Michigan State that I decided to go to graduate school. So, as a matter of fact, as I was going through my program at, Michigan State, I was that I was a a a strength and conditioning coach for, Olympic sports at Michigan State. And so I absolutely loved what I did. I had full intentions of becoming either a a strength coach or remaining a personal trainer like I was because I absolutely love the so passionate about the the human capacity and what I saw those athletes do and grow into. And so I was very set that graduate school wasn't for me, and I was going to continue along the path that I set out with my undergraduate degree. And so it wasn't until about three or four years after I graduated actually when I was working as a personal trainer and I started to take on some more multi trauma patients, some auto accident patients who had had sustained an automobile accident and had some kind of ongoing physical impairments. And so I quickly realized that my scope of practice was kind of being exceeded, and there's a lot more to know out there than, you know, what I was giving these patients at the time.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:03:11]:
And so that's kind of what started the gears turning for me a little bit about what else is out there. Maybe I do wanna consider doing something else, and I dabbled with PA and pharmacy and decided ultimately that, physical therapy was the most logical continuation of what I was doing. And it wasn't too far away from being able to experience that, the potential in the human capacity. And so that's kind of where I set out when I started to realize that there was a lot more to know than what I knew, and I wasn't happy with what I knew.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:03:37]:
Now as you started to realize that and you started to figure out that there was more that you wanted to know, you decided that you wanted to apply to become a physical therapist, to be going into a clinical doctorate program in physical therapy. And there's a number of different programs throughout the state of Michigan and beyond that you could have selected from. And you ultimately did decide to attend the University of Michigan Flint. Bring me back to that point of that search process for yourself, that application process for yourself. What made you ultimately decide that the University of Michigan Flint was where you wanted to attend?

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:04:15]:
So I have a little bit of a different backstory. I was what you might consider a nontraditional student. So at this time, I had just had my son, who was my second. And so as I was deciding to go back to grad school because I hadn't planned on it previously, there's a couple of prerequisites that I needed. And so I I took them at U of M Flint, and I loved the campus. I loved the, you know, the classes. The professors were great there. And so you're right.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:04:37]:
The DPT programs in in Michigan and really across the nation are pretty competitive. And so the law of averages states that you should apply to multiples, and I'd say upwards of, like, five to 10. Well, because I was this nontraditional student, proximity was very important to me. I had my home, my family, and unfortunately, we were not able to uproot ourselves and move to any of these programs across the state or across the nation. And so I put all of my eggs in the U of M Flint basket because I really appreciated the school, obviously, the location. I'm from a small town near Flint, called Flushing. And so, it's a fifteen, twenty minute drive for me. Right? And so as I started to apply to the different programs, I will say that I put my name in in the hat for at least two others just to kind of get my feet wet and understand what, you know, different programs are looking for, but I knew for sure that I wouldn't be able to, you know, accept those acceptances.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:05:25]:
And so, U of M Flint was the the place for me, and I am so grateful. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, because I don't know if you know the statistics, but there's quite a few humans that don't get in the first time when they apply for for PT school. Right? And so I'm very fortunate to say that I was able to be accepted the first round and the stars had aligned, and I was able to begin the program. And so for me, it was unfortunately not so much a a choice as a a necessity, but, boy, did it work out for me.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:05:50]:
So as you go into a new educational environment for you, you had been out of school for a little bit of time. Now you're coming back into school. So there is a transition. There's a transition into graduate school. And then as you go along and through that graduate program, there are small transitions when you're going from year one to year two to year three and the expectations a little bit different as you go from term to term and what you're being expected to be able to do, to be able to prove to your faculty members to show that mastery within the subject area. So talk to me about, and you did find success in all of those different transitions. You ended up graduating, you got your degree, you've become a physical therapist. You've been out in the field for a number of years now.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:06:34]:
So as you think back to those transitions that you went through, what did you have to do as you were transitioning into the program to find success? And what did you have to do as you were going through the entirety of the program to maintain that success within graduate school.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:06:51]:
I will say I'm one of those fortunate humans who in high school I don't tell my 17 year old daughter this place. Through high school, I was never really one of those ones that needed to study a whole lot. School and academics kind of came naturally to me. I'm very fortunate to be able to say that, and I do realize even my time at Michigan State, it laid the foundation and the the habit forming, the habit development, in terms of, like, studying and, you know, preparedness. But boy, does it not hold a candle to graduate school and the and particularly the DBT program. So transitioning into the program was really not all that difficult. I was taking undergraduate level prerequisite courses. And so to me, that was just kind of par for the course.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:07:25]:
I was used to that. I say all the time that I would be a forever student if there were any money in it. If I could go to school for the rest of my life, I would love that. But getting you know, once I was in the program, I will say that it it was kind of a good dose of reality, really, if I'm being honest, because DPT programs tend to front load some of their academics and, you know, front load some of their what turned out to be some of their tougher courses, your anatomy or physiology or kinesiology, some of your your higher, more advanced topics. And I would like to say, number one, to set the stage for the rest of your, you know, academic career, but also to kind of weave those friends out that maybe aren't as strong in those those areas because that's exactly what we do, you know, a % of our time as physical therapists. And so that first semester was definitely a little bit of a culture shock for me. I think I had stacks and stacks of note cards because this was before a computer generated all of these lovely study guides and and study aids and whatnot. So I handwrote all of my note cards.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:08:18]:
I was studying more than I ever had in the past, obviously, but, yeah, this came with a little bit of a a nontraditional path for me. So I would get home, you know, make the kids dinner, go through our bedtime routine, get them to bed. And then in Flushing, the only thing that's open twenty four hours is a local McDonald's. And so I would go and have a a cup of decaf coffee and stay there till two or 03:00 in the morning. And boy, do you get to see some pretty interesting things at that time while you're back there studying. And so I think the biggest, transition for me really was just kind of the meat and potatoes of the the course load, especially in those first couple semesters. But once you have that foundation built, it makes for great success down the road in the program because that's where the, you know, the courses start to become a little bit more niche and dedicated towards, you know, pathways that you intend to take. So they're just a lot more focused, I guess, and less advanced concepts, more critical thinking, if you will.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:09:07]:
And and if I'm being honest, that's where I really appreciate my time at U of M Flint because I feel like they made really great clinicians out of us, giving us that ability to critically think and kind of think outside the box a little bit, not just follow the textbook, not just I say all the time in my my clinic that patients and their their impairments don't often read the textbook. Meaning, it's not like a list of impairments or a list of conditions. Right? That's you know, we have comorbidities that play a role and lifestyle behaviors that play a role in how patients present. And so it was a great skill to have to be able to think outside the box a little bit more, and I can certainly thank my professors for that.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:09:39]:
You know, as you think back to graduate school, there are things that you learn along the way that prepare you for the work that you do. And you're in a career area that is kind of lockstep in regard to you're studying to be a physical therapist, you become a physical therapist and you learn in the program, leads you to being able to do what you're doing. But there's also things that you learn within a program that may not be the tangible things that you're doing on a daily basis. So as you think back to your graduate school experience and you think about the work that you're doing now on a day to day basis, how did that graduate degree prepare you for the next steps? And were there any things that you had to learn beyond graduate school that you did not learn that you wish you had learned in graduate school?

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:10:21]:
So I will say that the especially the U of M Flint DPT program trained me very well to be a well rounded clinician. Right? And this is obviously one of those professions that you have to have a license, you have to have a degree in that profession in order to practice. And so they they certainly did their job in terms of curriculum, making sure that students were prepared before they went out in their clinical, internships, the rotations. I will say that I think outside of the nuts and bolts that were learned in the program itself, the three ten week clinical rotations that we did, I think were absolutely integral. And for me specifically, I had one clinical instructor for my last rotation who really challenged me. And I will say, I went home after almost every single day of this clinical rotation just a level of exhaustion that you can't imagine. Right? There's a different level of physical and and mental exhaustion. This was literally everything.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:11:12]:
And so I had never really experienced that, but it was because she was really challenging me and making me critically think about why we're choosing every single exercise and what that's gonna do for this patient and why it's so important for this patient. Because if we get two hours a week with this patient, which is more than most medical professions can tell, we have a really great opportunity to make a pretty big impact on their lives and certainly on their pain or injury status. So I'm really appreciative of not only the faculty, but those humans that continue to host students and teach the next generation of physical therapists. We we actually currently, have two in our clinic right now at primary prevention, and so hopefully, they're getting the best experience as well. So I will say the clinical rotations were great. Throughout the program, I will say that I knew I wanted to open my own practice. I knew that, you know, I didn't wanna work for one of the bigger companies that, you know, productivity is the standard and we're, you know, looking for, you know, how many patients we can see an hour and not the outcomes or how much better we can make that patient. And I will say, disclaimer, not every single clinic is like that, but we've had our experiences.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:12:11]:
Right? So throughout the program this was in our last year of the program. The curriculum since changed a little bit since I've been there, but we had to take a management class, so business management class. Throughout that class, we had to create a business plan. We had to do a full proforma. We had to basically create a clinic. And so I looked at my group who no one else had intentions of opening their own clinic. And I looked at my group and I said, do you guys think it's okay if we do this for, like, Flushing, Michigan area for my clinic? I'll give you all the information. And so we can sit down and create this.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:12:38]:
To me, it's much more tangible than a hypothetical clinic that we're about to create. Right? And so a little bit of strategy there in terms of my classmates help me write my business plan. Right? But ultimately, learning more about what it means to be a private practice owner and how that differs from being your clinical PT, basically. I will say I'm very much a PT first, very much a businesswoman second, but I'm learning quite a bit. And I and I appreciate that course for what it taught me in in terms of making sure that I had my ducks in a row before I really launched this beast that we've opened here.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:13:09]:
Now as you think back to your graduate school experience and you think about other students, whether they're going into physical therapy or some other area, what are some tips that you might offer those individuals thinking about graduate education that would help them find success sooner?

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:13:25]:
Number one, I would say do your research, be prepared. Each clinical program offers something a little bit different. I chose, you know, U of M Flint for proximity reasons, of course, but like I said, boy, did that work out for me in terms of, I had some of the best faculty working under doctor Amy York and doctor Ryan Bean. And, you know, while I was there, doctor Tom Rudiger was there. And, oh my goodness, I'm I'm leaving out a few, so please don't don't hold me to just those humans. But we have a really, really great faculty there. So be prepared. Do your research.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:13:57]:
Make sure that that program is where you see yourself in five to ten years in terms of their strengths and what they're touting throughout their program. Ultimately, though, what we said throughout our program was, hey, get the degree first. Right? And then we'll kind of decide where we wanna be. It's okay to kind of narrow your focus as you go through school, but maintaining that ability to be well rounded and not have a specific niche coming right out of school will allow you that opportunity to see physical therapy from quite a few different lights. Right? And so it will keep you from being stuck in that first job if that's how you feel. Right? I think the statistic is that, you know, eighty percent of new grads stay in whatever field or whatever, you know, pathway they took directly out of school. So if you start as an outpatient orthopedic physical therapist, you're likely gonna stay there for your career. Right? If you started as a neurotherapist, you're obviously gonna try to stay there for your career.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:14:45]:
It just allows you to be a little bit more, I don't know, niche and focused once you get out of school. But coming out of school, try things. Go to those clinics where you're able to see a a wide patient caseload just so you can start to pick up on trends and, like I said, see things from a little bit of a different lens. During school or, you know, after the application process, after you've been accepted, you've been accepted into a graduate program. Graduate programs are not easy. They're not intended to be easy. They're intended to make the best of the humans that set out to become part of that profession. And so while it seems like there's no light at the end of the tunnel, while it seems like in the especially in the first couple semesters that this is a level of challenge that you maybe have never really seen in your life.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:15:24]:
Know that, boy, is it worth it. And as long as you put your head down, you get to work, you do the work, you know, you really try to learn things from a deeper perspective, and it's gonna pay off in the end. And there certainly is light at the end of the tunnel. It's it's a short three years, believe it or not.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:15:38]:
It definitely is a short period of time. And I always tell students that it that graduate school is definitely a blip. And as you go through that education, you wanna take as take as much out of it as you can because it's a period of time where you can explore, you can try things, you can do things that once you dive into your career, you may not be able to do. So taking full advantage of all of the opportunities that exist and are provided to you is so important. Agreed. Well, I truly want to say thank you, Amber, for being here today, for sharing your experience and for all that you're doing to help people in your own community and being a great representative of our program out in the world. And I truly wish you all the best.

Dr. Amber Schlemmer [00:16:23]:
Thank you so much. Thank you for having me today.

Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:16:25]:
The University of Michigan Flint has a full array of master's and doctorate programs if you are interested in continuing your education. Whether you're looking for in person or online learning options, the University of Michigan Flint has programs that will meet your needs. For more information on any of our graduate programs, visit umflint.edu/graduateprograms to find out more. Thanks again for spending time with me as you prepare to be a victor in grad school. I look forward to speaking with you again soon as we embark together on your graduate school journey. If you have any questions or want to reach out, email me at [email protected].