Becoming a Physician Assistant

[Revolver]

My backup if I don't make it into pharmacy school is to become a Physician Assistant. I'm curious as to how difficult it is to become a PA. Do they have their own seperate school where there are thousands of applicants and they only take a few? Is it hard to get into a school to become a PA? How difficult is the coursework?

From my research PA's make slightly less than pharmacists so I'm thinking that it's not as hard to get into a PA program, but there still is very much competition. (Keep in mind I'm a CC student filling pre-reqs at this time.)

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[guetzow]

That topic has been bludgeoned to death there. In general, however: 1) GPA is more of a deciding factor now (vs clinical experience), 2) Contact each individual program for 'Exact' pre-requisites, 3) Some programs may still have clinical experience as a deciding factor, or factor that may 'trump' less than stellar grades, and contrary to what you may have seen on a website (Survey) or Heard, 4) PA salary is directly related to the 'specific job you do'/ is tied to the revenue you generate for the practice, i.e.- You are worth what revenue you generate $$. The phrase "PA's make 'this'....(Insert salary amount)" is totally Meaningless. While this fact is the bane of FP PA's (Who inevitably make less on average), it is true.

 

[Revolver]

Ok, and just how competitive is getting into a PA program? For pharmacy, the average school has 1000+ applicants and they only accept around 100.

I would hope that PA is not this bad.

PS the average GPA for pre-pharm students is 3.5. How is it for PA? (Mine is 3.2 at the moment)

 

[guetzow]

I'd say 3.5 and above is 'Competitive'. Without much clinical experience, the higher (GPA) the better. Somethin's gotta give (GPA or experience). You can't get something for nothing. This applies to 'either' profession. But again, you have to do some due dilligence. Untill you actually contact a few programs and ask, you're just spinning your wheels.

 

[Revolver]

Well that sucks. It looks like physician assistant and pharmacy are equally as hard to do. Why oh why is there not an easy medical profession besides nursing?

PS: My GPA right now is 3.2, 2A's and 5 B's, with two B's being in Bio 1 and Chem 1.

PPS: Did any of you guys retake classes just to raise your GPA?

 

[melcal]

Well that sucks. It looks like physician assistant and pharmacy are equally as hard to do. Why oh why is there not an easy medical profession besides nursing?


EASY? who said anything in life was easy?? whoa.... that's a big . everyone has to work hard to get to what they want. i don't know where you're coming from but if you're looking to get into a medical career the "easy" way, i suggest you look somewhere else.

your gpa is decent, don't waste your time retaking classes unless you totally failed them. get some healthcare experience -& see if anything's easy there.

 

[Monika]

Ditto.

Don't walk into a PA school admissions committee interview with the "this is going to be EASY" attitude...you will be rejected faster than you can blink. Come to think of it.. if you fill out your applications with that attitude you will not even be granted an interview.

Don't be afraid to step up to the plate & work hard to reach your goals!

 

[deleted6669]

Ok, and just how competitive is getting into a PA program? For pharmacy, the average school has 1000+ applicants and they only accept around 100.

I would hope that PA is not this bad.

PS the average GPA for pre-pharm students is 3.5. How is it for PA? (Mine is 3.2 at the moment)

typical pa school receives > 800 applications for 80 interviews for 40 spots.....

 

[RAMPA]

Well that sucks. It looks like physician assistant and pharmacy are equally as hard to do. Why oh why is there not an easy medical profession besides nursing?

PS: My GPA right now is 3.2, 2A's and 5 B's, with two B's being in Bio 1 and Chem 1.

PPS: Did any of you guys retake classes just to raise your GPA?

how old r u?

 

[possibilitz]

I'll tell you how hard it is to get into PA school: I graduated with a BS in Kinesiology in 3 years with a 4.00 cum GPA (graduated at the age of 20). I had three fabulous LORs. I work as a PT tech, personal trainer, and swim instructor (and have been for over a year). I have great feedback from the patients at the PT clinic that I work at. I got an interview for a PA school (over 1,000 applied; only 200 got intereviewed) to fill one of the last seats (40 seat fill). I did not get in. I'm assuming it's due to only a few seats left; considering I was in the last interview group (14 of us; interview was 12pm-6pm with multiple parts, multiple interviews, group project... ETC). Or, I didn't get in purely due to my lack of "sick care" experience (CNA/RN/MedTech/EMT....). GOOD LUCK to anyone who is trying to get in! It sure is ToUgH!

 

[Lacabed17]

I will be starting my junoir year in the fall and right now i have a low GPA. I want to get into a PA program. Can i significantly raise my GPA over the next 2 years to get into the program? i had a bad 2 years and I am now very seroius and determined to do what it takes to do exceptionally well. Any advice?

 

[Lacabed17]

I'll tell you how hard it is to get into PA school: I graduated with a BS in Kinesiology in 3 years with a 4.00 cum GPA (graduated at the age of 20). I had three fabulous LORs. I work as a PT tech, personal trainer, and swim instructor (and have been for over a year). I have great feedback from the patients at the PT clinic that I work at. I got an interview for a PA school (over 1,000 applied; only 200 got intereviewed) to fill one of the last seats (40 seat fill). I did not get in. I'm assuming it's due to only a few seats left; considering I was in the last interview group (14 of us; interview was 12pm-6pm with multiple parts, multiple interviews, group project... ETC). Or, I didn't get in purely due to my lack of "sick care" experience (CNA/RN/MedTech/EMT....). GOOD LUCK to anyone who is trying to get in! It sure is ToUgH!

.

WOW it looks like you had all it takes to get into the program....keep trying and im sure you'll get in. Right now im a certified EMT and i will be taking CNA courses soon do you think that will give me a good chance in getting into
PA school?

 

[deleted6669]

.

WOW it looks like you had all it takes to get into the program....keep trying and im sure you'll get in. Right now im a certified EMT and i will be taking CNA courses soon do you think that will give me a good chance in getting into
PA school?

don't waste your time getting the cna. emt is much more relevant experience. concentrate on the grades and using your emt in a meaningful way(working, preferably although volunteering is ok). if you want more training do the emt-intermediate class -that gets you IV's, a few meds, and some adv airway.

 

[Febrifuge]

You know what? If you don't get in, I suspect the reason why might be somehow related to this:

My backup if I don't make it into pharmacy school is to become a Physician Assistant.

Look, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt, and assume you're stressed, nervous, and basically freakin' out about the future, but generally a good person. So I'm not going to be snotty about it -- but here's the thing: I've spoken with enough PA school admissions people and advisors to know that my application, which includes a pretty uninspiring GPA, is about 3000% more like what they're looking for. I'm not typically super-confident about my chances... but if the other 799 applications include a few dozen folks looking to get in as a fall-back plan, my odds get better.

Take the time to check out specific schools, and shadow a PA. Not just for the sake of your application's competitiveness, but for your peace of mind. The other people who have apps in for slots in PA school don't want you there if you don't really want to be there... and in the long run, you don't want you there either. Life's too short to settle for a job you aren't really all that into.

 

[hughesn2]

Dear kid,

I know that by now you have realized what you have done since this forum is 6+yrs old.
But I was maybe in the same boat as you. My first 4 semesters at MSU my GPA was a 3.28, then went up to a 3.35 by the end of my Jr. year. Only problem is that if you go as a a Physio major like me at MSU your first 3yrs should not be a baseline for future. Our Physio 1&2 and BioChem 1&2 courses are actually considered more difficult than Med or DO schools, with a class average of a 2.5 (and 25% of the 300 students automatically get a failing grade!). Yeah tell me about rough when of the 300 students AT LEAST 180 of them are Pre-DO or Pre-Med students and usually the only people that finish one of these classes with a 3.0 (top 40% in the class) are kids that will graduate MSU with above a 3.60 GPA. I have yet to meet an ex-student who didn't have a cumulative GPA of above a 3.5 GPA finish with a 3.0 or better in any of these 4 classes.
PA school is just as tough as Pharm school b/c you MUST get at least 1000hrs of clinical hours as a CNA or EMT.
I am even at the stage where I have to look for a backup plan for my backup plan b/c even Podiatry school may be hard to get into b/c I only have a science GPA (including BioChem and Physio and MicroBio) at a 2.8 GPA. But if you include mathematics (which DPM and PA schools do look at) I have a 3.16 sci-math GPA
While there are people I know that take the smart, easy route and become KIN majors and their GPAs are stacked with Intro Physio courses and Intro Anatomy courses that are at least 3x less challenging than my courses.
Sometimes at AOP (orientation) it is good to know a plan and literally ask students "Which is the major that can get me into a PA school w/o needing to take the classes that the class average is a 2.3-2.5 GPA?"

 

[Groovepie]

Well that sucks. It looks like physician assistant and pharmacy are equally as hard to do. Why oh why is there not an easy medical profession besides nursing?

PS: My GPA right now is 3.2, 2A's and 5 B's, with two B's being in Bio 1 and Chem 1.

PPS: Did any of you guys retake classes just to raise your GPA?

Dude, you wouldn't last a day as a nurse the way you whine and complain. BTW the average GPA in my nursing class was 3.4 with a science GPA of 3.5. Going into PA school as a critical care RN my cGPA is 3.85 with a sGPA of 3.82 and 3.96 in my last 60 credits (including my AS in Nursing). So if you want to compete you better quit doing salary surveys, stop crying about how hard life is and get to work!

 

[indiumscan101]

Hello I am taking pre-reqs right now to apply to PA school. I know PA programs in general discourage their students and outside job, but does is the any PA student out there who is both working and doing the classes. I could really uses some advice on this matter

Thank you

 

[deleted6669]

Hello I am taking pre-reqs right now to apply to PA school. I know PA programs in general discourage their students and outside job, but does is the any PA student out there who is both working and doing the classes. I could really uses some advice on this matter

Thank you

there are a few 3 yr part time programs out there that split the first yr into 2 years and allow you to work 2 out of 3 years. the 3rd yr is the same as the regular 2nd yr.
see www.physicianassistantforum.com for a MUCH better pa forum than here with > 20,000 members vs the 5 pa's who post here.

 

[Anonymous PAC]

My backup if I don't make it into pharmacy school is to become a Physician Assistant. I'm curious as to how difficult it is to become a PA. Do they have their own seperate school where there are thousands of applicants and they only take a few? Is it hard to get into a school to become a PA? How difficult is the coursework?

From my research PA's make slightly less than pharmacists so I'm thinking that it's not as hard to get into a PA program, but there still is very much competition. (Keep in mind I'm a CC student filling pre-reqs at this time.)

I didn't waste my time reading the rest of this thread after this initial post which is COMPLETELY INSULTING to the PA profession. By now I'm sure you've figure out which route to take and will have researched both professions. If you did you'd have found that the PA profession is not a "back up" and is extremely difficult to get into. I attended one of the top programs in the country in which only 4% of applicants are chosen to matriculate each year. The dean of the medical school my program is a part of stated himself that the PA program is now more difficult to get into (statistically speaking) than the MD program at the school.

(I'm not saying MD programs aren't hard to get into...I know they are. However, it is frustrating that there are ignorant people like this walking around thinking that becoming a PA is easy and use it as a "back up career" because it has been listed as one of the top jobs for the future.)

 

[jwk]

I didn't waste my time reading the rest of this thread after this initial post which is COMPLETELY INSULTING to the PA profession. By now I'm sure you've figure out which route to take and will have researched both professions. If you did you'd have found that the PA profession is not a "back up" and is extremely difficult to get into. I attended one of the top programs in the country in which only 4% of applicants are chosen to matriculate each year. The dean of the medical school my program is a part of stated himself that the PA program is now more difficult to get into (statistically speaking) than the MD program at the school.

(I'm not saying MD programs aren't hard to get into...I know they are. However, it is frustrating that there are ignorant people like this walking around thinking that becoming a PA is easy and use it as a "back up career" because it has been listed as one of the top jobs for the future.)

Perhaps if you'd looked at the FIRST post a little closer you'd see that it was from almost 7 years ago (duh!) and only recently resurrected by a newbie or two (like yourself) who seem to be unable to start a new thread for a new topic and just tag onto an old one. Try not to get your panties in a wad over a 7 year old post from someone who hasn't even made an SDN post online in almost 6 years. Great first post. I'm sure you're proud.

 

[Anonymous PAC]

Actually, if you read MY post you'd see that I said "by now I'm sure you've figured out..." which clearly implies I know that it was an old post from 6 years ago. Also, regardless of whether the poster from the OP is still on the network there are bound to be other people who read that and feel the same way. I didn't join a forum to gain pride and something needed to be said. If you're a PA then you should understand the frustration around ignorance like this and if not then you have no right to tell me what to do. I'm sure many of my colleagues would feel equally disrespected by this type of thinking after all of the hard work we did to become a PA-C and continue to do while working as a PA-C.

 

[salley]

Keep in mind a lot of people are reading this, and the content is helping them, so I don't think old dates really matter, as long as the content is still relevant to someone.

As for the person that asked if it is a good idea to work while going to PA school, I would say no. Keep in mind that your going to be responsible for diagnosing and treating patients, and you are only going to school for 2 years, vs how many years for a doctor? I think it would be wise to study very hard in school, and only focus on school; you are going to be responsible for peoples health, and that has to be your number one priority.

 

[agbvhhhh12]

desperately looking for input:
Im a transferring undergrad, I was accepted into a Pre-psychological and Brian sciences program at UCSB and into the Psych program at UCSD. Im pursuing becoming a PA so i need to keep my gpa up. im in love with SD. however the program at SB allows me too choose between a BA in psychology or a BS in Biopsychology which was the major i initially wanted to study. Im conflicted because I really like SD and if im not mistaken its a higher ranked school however im concerned about how competitive it is and if it would be possible to switch to a science major (cognitive science possibly). however im not too certain if my major is of that much importance for PA school assuming i completed pre-reqs on the side. SB i know for sure is a great school too but i dont see myself being as happy/motivated there however i think it may be a bit easier to focus on my studies since its a college town versus a city. i know ultimately the decision comes down to me however i would really appreciate other perspectives especially coming from psych or pre-health background.