4x re-applicant for PA school, new opportunity in Healthcare Management, should I keep chasing PA school?

[FirstGenerationP.A.]

I am a first-generation college graduate who earned a BS In Biology (Minor in Psychology) back in 2016. I have 10 years of experience in pharmacy (Trauma centers, ED, medication reconciliation, retail) and most recently multiple years of experience as a MA in a Dermatology office. I also have a strong GRE score (cumulative 314) and years of research experience/presentations at multiple conferences. For the last 4 years I have been applying and re-applying for PA school without breaking through. I have improved each year, but due to a poor start in my early years of college my cumulative GPA is low. My first few years of college I had no idea how to be successful in school while working full-time. I completed 3 years as a pre-pharmacy major before failing Organic Chemistry resulting in loss of my scholarship. At this point I moved states, established residency, and went back into school with re-focused energy and did significantly better. I learned how to be successful in college. Based on how CASPA calculates my cumulative GPA it is a 2.75. I graduated with a 3.5 from the institution who issued my Bachelor's degree and successfully earned high mark in the most difficult classes I took (A in O-Chem, Biochem, A&P, Advanced A&P, etc.) I aimed to show strong success in the more difficult classes to demonstrate how I have developed as a student. Showing how much I have grown and improved over the years. Due to the competitive nature of the programs I have only earned one interview over these four years. I felt I did extremely well in the interview, but was not accepted. Shortly after this I received a promotion at my job to become the manager of the Dermatology Practice, resulting in more than double I was making before. I've been in my role for about a year and have received an additional 10k of raises since beginning, I am doing very well in this role. I have a very small amount of school loans currently and I am going back and forth on whether or not to give the PA application process one more shot. I currently have a great schedule, great opportunities for growth, and it has been nice to have my efforts result in something tangible versus putting 40+ hours into applications that result in nothing but rejection letters. I did get extremely close this past cycle, so I am seeking advice on whether or not I should stay on my current track or keep chasing "the dream". I really am passionate about patient care and feel I thrive in it, but I also thrive in my current role. Statistically speaking w/ loans/earning potential I may stand to earn more on my current track than going back to PA school, 2 years without a salary, plus the loans and interest earned. A part of me still longs for the opportunity to become a PA despite my recent success, and I am trying to figure out if it's simply because I have been chasing it so long or because that is what will make me the most happy. Any sound advice is appreciated.

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[Means]

I think it is important to note that you are probably not having any success due to your low cGPA despite your upward trend. Many PA and med schools alike have screening cutoffs at a 3.0 GPA so chances are most places you are applying to aren't even looking at your app. I would find out which schools only look at your most recent 60 credits if you wanted to apply again. Only you can determine if it's worth it to continue pursuing that career path. If you are set on becoming a mid level provider you can always go the nursing route and become an NP.

 

[DocOrBust2019]

You probably just need to get your cGPA over a 3.0. Your application is likely being screened automatically for the low GPA.

I'm not sure how many credits it would take, but as a reinventor myself I have taken a 3.04 cGPA at 140 credit hours all the way to a 3.34 by taking ~66 credit hours in the last year with a 3.98 average in that span. I have completed the prereqs for med school while adding some easy but interesting classes here and there. I think you can probably do the same thing with respect to PA school. You've done your prereqs, but there may be some other helpful bio courses you could take - an upper level Physiology and Morphology series, immuno/virology/etc. I know you majored in bio so perhaps not... Maybe some psych or counseling classes, even ethics stuff? I'd be willing to bet if you get to a 3.0 you'll have a good shot at more interviews.

I can say that managing an office probably isn't helping your application. If you like your job and you're happy with it as a career, then do that. If you can't see yourself doing anything but practicing medicine, then you already know your answer.

Good luck.