I need help on deciding a career, is pt even worth it anymore with high loans? So debating on Physic

[abc245]

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[jblil]

Citing for context, as I am sure many folks have the same questions and doubts:

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For me pt seems very chill and laid back, my personality is like that. A lot of the time it was teaching patient certain exercises, being upbeat, setting up equipment, and being positive. I feel comfortable in a PT setting, however I feel like it can be boring since its nothing really new. I can see myself doing what the PT does and being comfortable with it right now. I can feel like I can go work as a PT right now and not feel out of place. My personality is pretty laid back and chill, I have the mentality of I don't live to work, but rather work to live. Bad thing is that the money seems low in comparison to the schooling, 3 years of schooling for a Doctorate in physical therapy. Expect somewhere from 50k to 90k from fresh out of school to capping out around that. Some people make more, but thats top percent. Seems low stress and a chill enjoyable life is the impression that I have got. The PT I worked for seemed very laid back type of person, he worked with patients, chatted with them, and then mountain biked and surf after work. Felt like alot of it was just hanging out with patients and teaching them exercises and monitoring their progress. Seem low stress and being content with life. Wake up at 9 work till 5, go home and do my other hobbies. I am also big on exercising, since I exercise everyday and human anatomy was a fun subject for me in school. So I am probably more interested in that subject.

Now for PA seems a very practical career choice when are you calculating on the future of the profession. What I mean by practical I mean that its a very needed profession in that you can prescribe medicine and you pretty much work as a doctor. With the shortage of doctors and considering the state of healthcare and the rise of baby boomers theres a big shift for more affordable providers which is the midlevel providers like PA. PA can work in various settings, pay is pretty decent. Expect from 60k to 170k. I have seen crazy numbers for PA I just checked on indeed.com a job site and there was a posting for 90 per hour as a PA to work in psychiatry in my area. Other hourly pay numbers are around 65 per hour, 55, etc... So lots of variety depending on setting. Now con is that you have to work under a physician and also this profession can be very very stressful. Plus its a very real profession in that you are dealing with life changing issues for patients. So with more money, comes much more stress. I work in urgent care setting at the moment and sometimes it puts me on edge. The environment can be much more lively and stressful. A PA that I know says she works only 2 or 3 days a week, part time worker and makes around 60-70k. also you gotta work under a md who can be an ass and thats no fun

So I am battling between what lifestyle do I want. Do I want a chill lifestyle, low stress, go to work, make okay money, and go home to my wife and kids or do I want a more money making career choice that has added stress and be working under a physician with less autonomy. I guess I just want to hear people's opinions since I am confused on what I want to do with my life. I think more importantly I just want a sense of direction without any doubt and no regrets. All my friends have found their career choices and I am still stuck in this position.
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Flip a coin - or a dice, since you seem to have considered dentistry before, too.

Seriously: try to think of yourself in each profession, 10-20 years into the future. See which one you like the best, or hate the least.

 

[Cheezy89]

You are absolutely right in considering cost, but higher education in the the healthcare industry will be expensive regardless. It might be best to figure out who you are first. That entails knowing what profession suits your personality, your lifestyle, etc. As jblil said, can you see yourself in the profession for 10 years? The answer to that can truly come after you do some observational hours at a PT clinic. As for me I am someone who enjoy helping people, and I find happiness when I am doing some sort of physical exercises; I am always moving. So when I found out about PT it made sense to me. After doing some clinical hours and after seeing the impact movement had on the life experience of the patients, I stop considering other professions. When you find what you truly want to do, mortgage-like student loans won't be enough to keep you away. Unless you already have the responsibility of taking care of a family then it's a completely different ball game.

 

[redrose424]

Citing for context, as I am sure many folks have the same questions and doubts:

===============
For me pt seems very chill and laid back, my personality is like that. A lot of the time it was teaching patient certain exercises, being upbeat, setting up equipment, and being positive. I feel comfortable in a PT setting, however I feel like it can be boring since its nothing really new. I can see myself doing what the PT does and being comfortable with it right now. I can feel like I can go work as a PT right now and not feel out of place. My personality is pretty laid back and chill, I have the mentality of I don't live to work, but rather work to live. Bad thing is that the money seems low in comparison to the schooling, 3 years of schooling for a Doctorate in physical therapy. Expect somewhere from 50k to 90k from fresh out of school to capping out around that. Some people make more, but thats top percent. Seems low stress and a chill enjoyable life is the impression that I have got. The PT I worked for seemed very laid back type of person, he worked with patients, chatted with them, and then mountain biked and surf after work. Felt like alot of it was just hanging out with patients and teaching them exercises and monitoring their progress. Seem low stress and being content with life. Wake up at 9 work till 5, go home and do my other hobbies. I am also big on exercising, since I exercise everyday and human anatomy was a fun subject for me in school. So I am probably more interested in that subject.

Now for PA seems a very practical career choice when are you calculating on the future of the profession. What I mean by practical I mean that its a very needed profession in that you can prescribe medicine and you pretty much work as a doctor. With the shortage of doctors and considering the state of healthcare and the rise of baby boomers theres a big shift for more affordable providers which is the midlevel providers like PA. PA can work in various settings, pay is pretty decent. Expect from 60k to 170k. I have seen crazy numbers for PA I just checked on indeed.com a job site and there was a posting for 90 per hour as a PA to work in psychiatry in my area. Other hourly pay numbers are around 65 per hour, 55, etc... So lots of variety depending on setting. Now con is that you have to work under a physician and also this profession can be very very stressful. Plus its a very real profession in that you are dealing with life changing issues for patients. So with more money, comes much more stress. I work in urgent care setting at the moment and sometimes it puts me on edge. The environment can be much more lively and stressful. A PA that I know says she works only 2 or 3 days a week, part time worker and makes around 60-70k. also you gotta work under a md who can be an ass and thats no fun

So I am battling between what lifestyle do I want. Do I want a chill lifestyle, low stress, go to work, make okay money, and go home to my wife and kids or do I want a more money making career choice that has added stress and be working under a physician with less autonomy. I guess I just want to hear people's opinions since I am confused on what I want to do with my life. I think more importantly I just want a sense of direction without any doubt and no regrets. All my friends have found their career choices and I am still stuck in this position.
===============

Flip a coin - or a dice, since you seem to have considered dentistry before, too.

Seriously: try to think of yourself in each profession, 10-20 years into the future. See which one you like the best, or hate the least.

I feel like a lot of what was said for PA is applicable to PT. "Practical," "Very needed profession," "big shift for more affordable providers" (PT to prevent a problem is more affordable than a big surgery), "Various settings" "Pay is pretty decent" "dealing with life changing issues for patients"

As you said, PT can be very relaxed in stress free. A lot depends on the setting you work with, and the pay for PT is decent. Sure, taking out a huge amount of loans isn't smart with the loan to debt ratio, but the pay is still decent. Especially if you work in a higher paying setting and add in a little per diem on the side. I've read of people breaking 6 figures. If you want the standard 60k-80k you're going to be working standard hours, but a lot of people do more than that and market themselves or do per diem. The profession can be what you make it.

 

[pegasuscvc]

To be honest, it seems like you don't know much about what PTs do BEHIND the scenes. PT is exercise used as medicine. Just like with medications or surgery, if you do it wrong, you can seriously harm your patient. If you do it right, you can help them immensely. Coming from someone who's needed PT before as a patient, you are very much addressing life-changing issues in your patients. These people don't come to you because they're bored and have nothing else to do. They come because pain or other issues are effecting their quality of life, often drastically, and they're counting on you to help them. There's a lot of brain work going on behind the laid-back, chill PT, at least if he's worth something. It's thankfully lower stress than many other healthcare professions, but don't think it's not a "very real," necessary profession.

As for which one you should go for, part of it depends on your own personal qualifications. There are PT schools out there that are a good deal financially (total loan burden of 60-80K for everything) while still offering a good education. It's possible to get your low-stress job and still have low student loans, but the catch is that those schools tend to be more competitive because more people apply to them. If you end up with high student loans and a low salary, you may find yourself just as stressed as if you chose the higher pay, higher stress profession. Take a long, hard look at yourself and decide what you want most long term.