Is becoming a PA just as hard as becoming a doctor?

[redence]

I'm going to be a senior in high school, and I'm deciding whether or not to do pre-med or do pre-PA.
I've heard both of those fields are competitive, but isn't the pre-med track more competitive, difficult and more stressful? If i were to become a doctor, I would want to be a psychiatrist. Could you guys list some pro's and con's of becoming a physician assistant and a doctor.

I want to start a family as soon as possible, live at least a middle class life(spend some money here and there like on a good car such as a Mercedes .etc), don't really care about status too much, want to have time to take vacations and spend time with family after work. What is the best job for me PA or doctor?

I understand that doctor do make double the pay as what PA's make? but would it be worth it to go to med school? The only thing thats motivating me to become a doctor is people who tell me that I'm to stupid to become a doctor. Overall, I would definitely want to work in the health field but just can't decide between PA or doctor? I'm scared of chemistry btw, not that great at it from high school. (had like a B average)

Should i try premed during college? and if it doesn't workout just try to get into PA school instead since the prereqs are somewhat similar for premed and prePA.

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[Seldon]

I'm going to be a senior in high school, and I'm deciding whether or not to do pre-med or do pre-PA.
I've heard both of those fields are competitive, but isn't the pre-med track more competitive, difficult and more stressful? If i were to become a doctor, I would want to be a psychiatrist. Could you guys list some pro's and con's of becoming a physician assistant and a doctor.

I want to start a family as soon as possible, live at least a middle class life(spend some money here and there like on a good car such as a Mercedes .etc), don't really care about status too much, want to have time to take vacations and spend time with family after work. What is the best job for me PA or doctor?

I understand that doctor do make double the pay as what PA's make? but would it be worth it to go to med school? The only thing thats motivating me to become a doctor is people who tell me that I'm to stupid to become a doctor. Overall, I would definitely want to work in the health field but just can't decide between PA or doctor? I'm scared of chemistry btw, not that great at it from high school. (had like a B average)

Should i try premed during college? and if it doesn't workout just try to get into PA school instead since the prereqs are somewhat similar for premed and prePA.

I'm a premed, so take my advice with a grain of salt. Being a doctor is a calling. You'll have to work 80 hours a week, you'll rarely see your family, and you'll get very little sleep during residency. You're still a HS student, so there are no expectations for you to have this conviction at this point. You should shadow both PAs and MDs and see which one you are more interested in. Being a PA is far less demanding and far easier academically, but that's ultimately irrelevant. Do what interests you and chase the lifestyle that you want. Not everyone needs to be a doctor. Good luck!

Edit: As to your HS GPA, don't worry too much about it. College is much harder than HS, but it is definitely manageable. I also didn't do very well in HS (3.2 GPA), but I found what I was interested in (biochemistry) and learned how to study. Since then, I've managed to maintain a 3.98 GPA in college. I'm confident that you can do it!

 

[redence]

I'm a premed, so take my advice with a grain of salt. Being a doctor is a calling. You'll have to work 80 hours a week, you'll rarely see your family, and you'll get very little sleep during residency. You're still a HS student, so there are no expectations for you to have this conviction at this point. You should shadow both PAs and MDs and see which one you are more interested in. Being a PA is far less demanding and far easier academically, but that's ultimately irrelevant. Do what interests you and chase the lifestyle that you want. Not everyone needs to be a doctor. Good luck!

Edit: As to your HS GPA, don't worry too much about it. College is much harder than HS, but it is definitely manageable. I also didn't do very well in HS (3.2 GPA), but I found what I was interested in (biochemistry) and learned how to study. Since then, I've managed to maintain a 3.98 GPA in college. I'm confident that you can do it!

Thanks for the tip! I have a 3.5 gpa but my SAT/ACT scores are low in high school. Trying to study for it and take it again senior year and improve it by at least a couple of points.

 

[rufflev]

I wouldn't say that a being a physician is a "calling" per say, though unfortunate, many people go into this field for many factors, which include job security, life style, challenges, etc. That said, it seems like you're on a timeline, of which being a PA may be more fitting seeing that you'll have to dedicate more time towards, schooling, research, residency, and/or fellowships before you become a full-fledged attending that works between 40-60 hours a week.

Economically speaking, doctors do make more than PAs do; however, after 3-4 years of PA school, you can immediately work and earn a sizable income. Meanwhile, after medical school, doctors are earning on average 15 dollars an hour, for 70 hour weeks (for 3 to 7 years depending on which residency/program.)

Personally, I think it is more difficult to get into PA school because they have a higher requirement than medical school in terms of prior experience in the medical field. Many PAs, before joining the profession, were EMTs, phlebotomists, etc.

My advice is that - the person who you are now is not indicative of who you are in the future, ignore what others say, because in the end, it is you and your work ethic matters. You can definitely fulfill both requirements for pre-med and pre-PA throughout undergrad (there's a fair amount of overlap) while still figuring out what you want to pursue. Till then, make sure you maintain a high GPA in college and get exposure to the medical field and you'll have options.

 

[theonlytycrane]

Personally, I think it is more difficult to get into PA school because they have a higher requirement than medical school in terms of prior experience in the medical field. Many PAs, before joining the profession, were EMTs.

Lol wut



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[Dox4lyfe]

Personally, I think it is more difficult to get into PA school because they have a higher requirement than medical school in terms of prior experience in the medical field. Many PAs, before joining the profession, were EMTs, phlebotomists, etc.

Sure they have to spend a few hundred to thousand hours working jobs that any responsible adult can perform in order to be competitive, but that doesn't make it "more difficult" Lmfao.

 

[Welshman]

I'm a premed, so take my advice with a grain of salt. Being a doctor is a calling. You'll have to work 80 hours a week, you'll rarely see your family, and you'll get very little sleep during residency.

The average doctor only works 55 hours a week

 

[BusinessAndMedicine]

I'm a premed, so take my advice with a grain of salt. Being a doctor is a calling. You'll have to work 80 hours a week, you'll rarely see your family, and you'll get very little sleep during residency.

Only premeds think that being a doctor is a calling.

 

[jpshoe]

Personally, I think it is more difficult to get into PA school because they have a higher requirement than medical school in terms of prior experience in the medical field. Many PAs, before joining the profession, were EMTs, phlebotomists, etc.

I don’t think it’s fair when anyone compares the difficulty of getting into PA vs medical school. It’s like comparing apples and oranges, yes they’re similar in the fact that they are both jobs in the medical field, but the app process and requirements differ significantly. I’m a PA student now and I was a very successful applicant, applied to 11 schools and got offered interviews at all, only took 3 and got accepted to all of those. On the surface, my stats for medical school look pretty good, 3.78cGPA, 3.88sGPA 8k hours of healthcare experience as an army medic, blah blah.

But here’s the one thing, I never took the MCAT, if I did, I would have done terribly on it. I also never volunteered for anything outside of a keg stand, or knew what the word research truly meant. I never challenged myself in undergrad taking only the minimum required pre reqs for PA school fully knowing my military experience would carry me through the app process. That wouldn’t fly for medical school or for the MCAT. I knew I wanted to go PA the whole time and still have no doubts about my career choice, but the fact of the matter is I would have easily had to spend another full year taking additional courses while studying to take the MCAT, had I done that, I’d just now be matriculating (if I somehow managed to get in) whereas I’m graduating in May as a PA. I have no ego or qualms about what my position will be within the healthcare team, and I am proud of the role and responsibilities I’ll have. It will work for me, whereas I would never want to have the pressures of being a physician. I absolutely love Medicine, it’s my “calling” if we’re all being cheese balls here, but it took me a few years to nail down the path that works for me.

Likewise, it’s unfair for med school applicants to say PA is a backup, it’s just not feasible. The lower tier GPA for med school students (3.3ish) would not yield very many results for PA programs either, unless you had some killer healthcare experience, which would take you several years to accrue if you had none already.

Two totally different animals. So to the OP, as I slowly step down off my soap box, here is my advice to you. Enjoy your first year of school, the pre-pa vs pre-med route is pretty similar early on. You need to explore what each of the professions have in common (quite a lot), and how they differ (quite a lot more). Shadow, shadow, shadow. Shadow a PA, shadow an MD, a DO, an EMT, whatever it may be to get your feet wet in the healthcare world. Leaving high school I could never have imagined being anything other than a doc, now I can’t imagine myself ever being a doc or anything other than a PA for that matter. Learn the roles each player has on the healthcare team and decide from there, only then can you make an informed decision. /rant

 

[rufflev]

Didn't mean to start a riot with my comment - but I still stand with it. It was heavily catered to OP's desires about "start a family as soon as possible, live at least a middle class life", etc.

PA schools do require more experience prior to going into the field, which a majority of applicants lack upon graduating college at the age of 21 to 22. Coupled with OP's previously stated desires, I do believe it would be more difficult to get into PA school from a traditional timeline; however, that is simply my opinion.

 

[piii]

I'm a premed, so take my advice with a grain of salt. Being a doctor is a calling. You'll have to work 80 hours a week, you'll rarely see your family, and you'll get very little sleep during residency. You're still a HS student, so there are no expectations for you to have this conviction at this point. You should shadow both PAs and MDs and see which one you are more interested in. Being a PA is far less demanding and far easier academically, but that's ultimately irrelevant. Do what interests you and chase the lifestyle that you want. Not everyone needs to be a doctor. Good luck!

Edit: As to your HS GPA, don't worry too much about it. College is much harder than HS, but it is definitely manageable. I also didn't do very well in HS (3.2 GPA), but I found what I was interested in (biochemistry) and learned how to study. Since then, I've managed to maintain a 3.98 GPA in college. I'm confident that you can do it!

Lmao a calling, cringe

 

[cbrons]

Personally, I think it is more difficult to get into PA school because they have a higher requirement than medical school in terms of prior experience in the medical field. Many PAs, before joining the profession, were EMTs, phlebotomists, etc.

Um no, its not more difficult nor does it require more "prior" experience that has any relevance to medical practice.

 

[Seldon]

Lmao a calling, cringe

You try 4-7 years of 80 work weeks and see how you feel then. The only way any of us are getting through that is by really enjoying the work and having a massive amount of willpower.

 

[Seldon]

The average doctor only works 55 hours a week

Residency man, it's all about getting through residency.

 

[CrazyboyMD]

PA School- 2-3 years
No Residency
Masters Program

 

[Dox4lyfe]

PA School- 2-3 years
No Residency
Masters Program

Physician assistants actually do have their own residency programs, but it's not required.

 

[CrazyboyMD]

@Dox4lyfe Noted

 

[BusinessAndMedicine]

You try 4-7 years of 80 work weeks and see how you feel then. The only way any of us are getting through that is by really enjoying the work and having a massive amount of willpower.

I've gotten through residency and don't think it's a calling.

Except for surgical fields very few residents work 80 hours a week on a consistent basis.

 

[cbrons]

Physician assistants actually do have their own residency programs, but it's not required.

The have their own fully paid post graduate training jobs but they are NOT "residency" and calling it such is a complete joke and an insult to those of us in real residency.

 

[Dox4lyfe]

The have their own fully paid post graduate training jobs but they are NOT "residency" and calling it such is a complete joke and an insult to those of us in real residency.

Well technically they are called "residency" programs. They're generally about a year long and they mimic the work of a PGY1. Also, they're not fully paid. They make 45-70k (according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) which is in the same range as physician residencies.

I still agree that it's in no way at all the same thing, but I was pointing out the fact that the concept of a residency does exist for PAs.

 

[Welshman]

if you don't know what you want to do you might as well take the pre med requirements freshman year and get started in your clinical hours too because you'll need them for both programs.

That way you can decide after you actually have the experience rather than from an online forum

 

[deleted480308]

You try 4-7 years of 80 work weeks and see how you feel then. The only way any of us are getting through that is by really enjoying the work and having a massive amount of willpower.

I've done it in other fields....and no, "calling" or enjoying it isn't required

You are right about willpower though, just a crap ton of willpower

 

[DrYoda]

You try 4-7 years of 80 work weeks and see how you feel then. The only way any of us are getting through that is by really enjoying the work and having a massive amount of willpower.

I've done residency and it does not require a "calling". I probably averaged 60-something hours a week in my home department. There was the occasional 80+ hour week usually on an ICU or surgical rotation and it was still not a calling it just sucked. And for perspective I work 170 hours a month usually (42.5hr/week) as an attending and I work more than most of my partners. Average hours will vary by field but it's not a sentence to a life devoted to the hospital.

 

[mellie0]

The only thing thats motivating me to become a doctor is people who tell me that I'm to stupid to become a doctor.

I don't think this is a good motivation to become a doctor...

 

[Dox4lyfe]

I don't think this is a good motivation to become a doctor...

Hopefully it's not the "only" motivation or else that is pretty stupid.

 

[Gilakend]

I can't speak for as a whole, but one of the med students I know at my school applied to PA school 3x and never got in. Took the MCAT, applied to med school and got in first cycle. Might be the exception but it just shows that I'm sure there are people on both sides of the fence. At my school the pre-PA students work just as pre-med students. Pre-med students aren't some elite group of modern day gladiators, we're just college kids. So are lots of other people, like engineering students, pre-dent, pre-PA etc that VERY often work just as hard. So is it just as hard? I don't know. But don't expect it to be an easy route regardless.

 

[Mad Jack]

You try 4-7 years of 80 work weeks and see how you feel then. The only way any of us are getting through that is by really enjoying the work and having a massive amount of willpower.

Having willpower doesn't mean you've got a calling, it just means you have willpower.

 

[Mad Jack]

Well technically they are called "residency" programs. They're generally about a year long and they mimic the work of a PGY1. Also, they're not fully paid. They make 45-70k (according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) which is in the same range as physician residencies.

I still agree that it's in no way at all the same thing, but I was pointing out the fact that the concept of a residency does exist for PAs.

Actually they call them fellowships, which is even more ridiculous because to a physician fellowship comes after internship and residency.

 

[CrazyboyMD]

I've always wondered how many differential diagnoses a new PA has under their belt vs a new Intern Resident

Has anyone ever thought of that?

 

[mfrey28]

I've always wondered how many differential diagnoses a new PA has under their belt vs a new Intern Resident

Has anyone ever thought of that?

5 vs 20

 

[CrazyboyMD]

O_O

 

[allantois]

They are both competitive to get into and have then same GPA averages. No shade but it's probably easier to get into a DO program which all have 200-300 students, whereas PA programs are on average 40 students each. The biggest difference is in whether you should be studying for MCAT or getting healthcare experience.

 

[698344]

Only premeds think that being a doctor is a calling.

Honestly so cringe worthy when people say **** like that.

 

[grapp]

I wouldn't say that a being a physician is a "calling" per say, though unfortunate, many people go into this field for many factors, which include job security, life style, challenges, etc. That said, it seems like you're on a timeline, of which being a PA may be more fitting seeing that you'll have to dedicate more time towards, schooling, research, residency, and/or fellowships before you become a full-fledged attending that works between 40-60 hours a week.

Economically speaking, doctors do make more than PAs do; however, after 3-4 years of PA school, you can immediately work and earn a sizable income. Meanwhile, after medical school, doctors are earning on average 15 dollars an hour, for 70 hour weeks (for 3 to 7 years depending on which residency/program.)

Personally, I think it is more difficult to get into PA school because they have a higher requirement than medical school in terms of prior experience in the medical field. Many PAs, before joining the profession, were EMTs, phlebotomists, etc.

My advice is that - the person who you are now is not indicative of who you are in the future, ignore what others say, because in the end, it is you and your work ethic matters. You can definitely fulfill both requirements for pre-med and pre-PA throughout undergrad (there's a fair amount of overlap) while still figuring out what you want to pursue. Till then, make sure you maintain a high GPA in college and get exposure to the medical field and you'll have options.

I think everyone should get a segment of EMT school, but of course I'm biased.

 

[mmmcdowe]

Only premeds think that being a doctor is a calling.

I consider medicine my calling, but I don't think it is necessary in order to be a good doctor.

5 vs 20

You're giving them both too much credit.

 

[jqueb29]

You try 4-7 years of 80 work weeks and see how you feel then. The only way any of us are getting through that is by really enjoying the work and having a massive amount of willpower.

MS4 here. At some point in my life I know I felt as if it was a calling. But now, especially after MS3 year, it's 100% nothing but a job. Don't get me wrong, I want to help patients and improve their lives, and I work very hard when I'm working. But now being more mature and married with plans to start my own family soon, my priorities have majorly changed, just like will happen with a huge percentage of people as they go from young unmarried pre-med to a married/serious relationship mid/late 20s adult in med school. I want to help patients, yes, but my main priority is to provide for my family as much money as I can while also spending as much time with them as I can. And thankfully, even in residency, there are paths in medicine that allow for such a lifestyle.

The 18 year old college freshman version of me thought I would eagerly live in the hospital, devoting my whole life to patient care. The realistic 27 year old me wants to get out of that hospital and back home as quickly as I can.