Other things to consider: My application is more suited to medical school. I have only have about 500 "direct patient care hours" as a home health aide, and my gpa is 3.7 and my sgpa is a 3.6. Along with this I have hospital volunteering, shadowing (several neuro-surgeons, psychiatrist and pcp), research and tutoring. I have
NO PA shadowing hours, and I had some set up but because of coronavirus it got cancelled.
Based on this, it does not appear as though you are ready to submit a competitive application to PA school this year. I'm not an expert on PA admission but I believe a lack of shadowing is fatal for any application to professional health programs.
PA is a shorter path but the work that PAs do is fundamentally different from the work that MDs/DOs do. You need to decide what your priorities are and what type of work you want to engage with for the next 30+ years.
I have not taken the MCAT yet; it was my plan to take it Sept 2020 and study for it during the summer (but due to coronavirus who knows what will happen now).
A September 2020 MCAT would be conducive to applying to medical school in June 2021.
Some concerns I have regarding medical school: - How much will I miss out on my daughter's life if I choose to go to medical school. Having to work and do undergrad, along with research and volunteering has been difficult for me as it is. Will the lack of time I have with my daughter increase? Will my boyfriend's family have more of an influence on my daughter and mold her into someone I don't want her to be?
Many folks attend medical school with children. I agree with the poster above that it is not easy without a support system but people have done it / will do it in the future.
I can't answer questions about your boyfriend or his family, that is up to you to navigate. At the end of the day, you need to make decisions are that in your own best interests and the best interests of your child.
- Could I realistically live as a single parent off loans during medical school and support me and her and find a good daycare?
This will vary by region. You are able to take out additional loans to support dependents. Childcare costs vary widely around the country.
- How does constantly moving around (for school, for residency, for fellowship and job) affect a child?
In terms of moving vs not moving for medical school, this is a tough call. Most advisors will recommend that you apply to many programs. While there are a lot of programs in NYC, they are all competitive and admission is not guaranteed. You could apply to a limited range of programs within your geographic region, you have good reason to do that, but you may be increasing your chances of an unsuccessful application.
When you are looking for residency programs, you can choose to only apply to programs within a certain area depending on your interest and desire to stay local. Again, there are risks with that strategy but it is possible.