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BU Medical Sciences
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If you really are a super-driven, hungry person - and I am one as well - then you should know that you would never be happy unless you can reach maximum growth. You won't reach maximum growth in the field of medicine as a PA.
 
Summary of OP's post: There are extensive, redundant threads on this topic. I know all of the basic and advanced details. What should I do?

What do you expect to gain here?
 
I don't say that to be mean, but rather matter of fact. You're likely at a point where you have all the available data and you just need to make a decision one way or another.
 
In my mind the biggest two things to consider are autonomy and time. If autonomy is something you need to feel content, go to med school. A PA, by definition, has a limited scope of practice and limited autonomy. The upsides to becoming a PA are basically that you don't have to go through med school or work for 80 hours a week for several consecutive years during residency and will earn a comfortable income, while being able to practice medicine to a limited extent (before I get flamed, I know PA school is still a lot of work... but it is less work than med school, and a lot less work than residency). The most obvious downside is basically that you'll only be able to practice medicine to a limited extent. Since your father was a PA, you probably have a pretty good idea of what kind of autonomy you can attain as a PA.
 
Very good breakdown sinombre. That is the foundation of my indecisiveness right there. I honestly think I value the time more than the autonomy...
 
Med school itself, no question, is not the reason I am apprehensive. It's residency. It's those late twenties-early thirties... Anyone have any input into precisely what residency is like in the current climate? In terms of lifestyle.
 
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