Need some advice about medical school/PA school, military spouse

[lmrf2613]

Hey everyone, I need some advice on a decision that I am struggling to make.....

I am an senior and will be getting my B.S. in Biology this December. I had planned on going applying to PA school initially but now I'm considering medical school. The main reason that I was picking PA over medical school was because of family life. I am married and having a family one day is very important to me and I don't want to have to wait forever to have children because of my career. My husband is also in the military and will more than likely being in for awhile. He is supportive of me no matter what I do. We have been together for awhile and unfortunately are long distance currently so I can finish my bachelor's degree. I am ready to start my life with him and really don't want to have to be away from him in medical school, although I am confident that we could make it through it. I have already taken the GRE (didn't do the best and was planning to take it again) I haven't taken the MCAT as I did not plan to go to medical school initially. I just need some advice on whether I should pursue medical school instead of PA school and what the benefits would be either way. I am current a medical scribe in the ER and the doctors I work with have told me they think I have a good chance. If there is anyone that has been a military spouse and done medical school I would love some advice. I keep going back and forth between which path to take but the deadlines for both are approaching quickly.... Thanks!!

Current GPA 3.96, all prereqs done except for Physics 2
Currently a medical scribe with 500+ hours
GRE: 298 (Quantitative and Verbal combined), 4.5 (Writing)
MCAT: haven't taken

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Ismet]

I keep going back and forth between which path to take but the deadlines for both are approaching quickly.... Thanks!!

At this point you would not be ready to apply to medical school this cycle. Applications open for submission in June and the early bird gets the worm, you still need to either take Physics 2 or teach it to yourself, study for and take the MCAT, wait a month for the score, get letters of recommendation. Do you have any extracurriculars other than scribing? Volunteering? Research experience? You have a great GPA and great clinical exposure with the scribing, but it seems like there are a lot of puzzle pieces still missing.

I think the first order of business is to figure out what you want out of a career. I have several friends who are PAs and they love it, but would you be happy not having the autonomy or scope of practice of a physician? Have you worked with/shadowed PAs to know what they do and how they feel about being a PA? I get that family is important, but you don't have to put your life on hold for med school + residency. At one residency program I interviewed at, every married female resident (like 5-6) was either pregnant or just had a baby within the last year. Granted this wasn't in surgery or a very intense residency, but no residency is a breeze, and they made it work.

Figure out why you keep going back and forth...the careers are similar in that they are both in the medical field caring for patients, but the scope of each career is quite different.

 

[lmrf2613]

At this point you would not be ready to apply to medical school this cycle. Applications open for submission in June and the early bird gets the worm, you still need to either take Physics 2 or teach it to yourself, study for and take the MCAT, wait a month for the score, get letters of recommendation. Do you have any extracurriculars other than scribing? Volunteering? Research experience? You have a great GPA and great clinical exposure with the scribing, but it seems like there are a lot of puzzle pieces still missing.

I think the first order of business is to figure out what you want out of a career. I have several friends who are PAs and they love it, but would you be happy not having the autonomy or scope of practice of a physician? Have you worked with/shadowed PAs to know what they do and how they feel about being a PA? I get that family is important, but you don't have to put your life on hold for med school + residency. At one residency program I interviewed at, every married female resident (like 5-6) was either pregnant or just had a baby within the last year. Granted this wasn't in surgery or a very intense residency, but no residency is a breeze, and they made it work.

Figure out why you keep going back and forth...the careers are similar in that they are both in the medical field caring for patients, but the scope of each career is quite different.

Yes I forgot to mention that I wouldn't be applying to medical school this round because like you said I need more time to study for the MCAT and get application materials together. I have some volunteering but not much. Unfortunately I've been working 3 jobs and taking a full load of classes, so volunteering has been one thing that has been put on hold. I have everything I need for PA school except retaking the GRE. However, it's quite expensive to apply and I am just not sure I am competitive enough as I do not have any "hands on" patient care experience. Just the scribe work. I am fine with not having the "Doctor" title and yes I have been able to shadow PAs and I see how they work in the ER.

 

[LizzyM]

I get it. The military is going to dictate your spouse's location for the foreseeable future and from where you sit right now you would be starting med school in 2018 and finishing a 3 year residency in 2025. You are looking at the possibility of a long distance relationship for the next 9 years which would/could put a strain on any marriage.

I knew someone who applied only to schools near military bases with the hope of being near their spouse's duty station during medical school. It might have worked out except that the spouse ended up on the most improbable of assignments overseas and raising a small child "alone" and going to med school was too much to bear. Someone else I knew did medical school while their spouse was at sea for months at a time.

Your GPA is excellent but your GRE is very disappointing. How did you prepare? You are correct in identifying the need for hands-on experience as a requirement for admission to a PA program. From what I hear, a year of full-time work as a patient care tech or EMT is the minimum these days. So you have everything for PA school except the GRE and a job that gets you hands-on experience in patient care.

The MCAT is a mountain and if you did below the 50th percentile on the GRE (which I believe you did in at least one of the two domains) your likelihood of breaking 500 on the MCAT is very low.

Med school will always be there. Although it sounds absurd when you are young, there are people who start med school at 35 or 40. If at some point, your personal circumstances are such that med school makes sense, you can take another look. In the mean time, if what you value is time with your husband and the ability to care for patients then PA may be a good choice for you.

 

[lmrf2613]

.

 

[Mo008]

Have you thought of going the RN BSN route? I know it is not originally what you have in mind, but my sister is a nurse and she makes great money with flexibility. Plus, it is a starting point if you’re “ready to start your life.”
And you can always further your education such as becoming a Nurse Practitioner, which is very similar to PA, besides the teaching models, and with more autonomy.