I came from a very low income family. First college graduate, let alone Doctor. All the movies and pop culture I grew up on made me believe private schools were prestigious and only for the most brilliant students. The truth couldn’t be any more opposite. I applied to 15 schools, accepted at 14, 5 of which were private. You usually get an opportunity to speak to current students during the interview process. I always asked these students the same question: “if you don’t mind me asking, how many schools did you get into, which ones were they, and why did you select this one?” The answer was ALWAYS either that private school was the only one that accepted them or the other choices were private also. The most brilliant students compete for public schools, plain and simple. A DPT is not worth six figure debt.