LadyNichiavelli

I absolutely loved rotating there for my surgery rotation as a student! I spent about two months there and had so much autonomy, even as a student! JCMC is a VERY PA-friendly facility overall. From what I remember, the PAs there also have to be a part of the neurosurgery team, and do shifts in the SICU after a probationary period. The residents are mainly the ones in the OR, which sucks if you want OR time (but you can fight for it). But because they’re all in the OR, the PAs run pretty much everything else. Including running the traumas that come in! They had so much responsibility, but it was great and I totally would’ve applied to work there in another life where I’m a PA that likes surgery, lol. Anyway, congratulations and good luck!

We supplement lectures with prosected cadavers and an anatomage table.

Rutgers is not MMI style. They have an interview panel for each interviewee composed of faculty members and current students.

You definitely can and should.

If the schools do not require a letter from a PA, I would send it in. If they do require, you’d have no choice but to wait. If they recommend, but your overall stats seem very solid, I would send it in. If your stats are on the weaker side and they recommend a PA LOR, it’s your call (but in your shoes, I would personally send it in because it’s getting late in the cycle for rolling admission deadlines) and then send it in later.

I agree with the above poster. But I will say that I was in a similar spot as you and ended up putting down the deposit for my NJ studio without ever seeing it first (flights from TX were crazy expensive and I was going away on vacation very soon). I ended up lucking out as I absolutely love my apartment and neighborhood, but that’s just my own experience. Definitely try to swing the cost, but if you can’t, look on as many reviews sites as you can (Google, Apartments, ApartmentGuide, Rent, ApartmentRatings, Yelp, etc.) to get a good overall picture of your place. The comments will vary widely across platforms.

Yup, it should!

It varies greatly depending on region. I live in a small studio with my dog in NJ and I pay $1200/month in rent (including water and sewage) and ~$60/month for gas and electric. And then miscellaneous expenses like Wi-Fi, Netflix, groceries, etc.

I did! I felt discouraged and unsure often on my journey, but in the end, it was all worth it. Keep pushing!

Hi! I got accepted two cycles ago with a 3.35 cGPA and 3.11 sGPA and wrote the circumstances essay. In my own personal experience, the school really is sincere about considering applicants despite a lower GPA if they adequately explain themselves, so I think the essay is worth writing. I hope that helps!

I found a PA to shadow through LinkedIn. I would connect with them and then send a message introducing myself and asking them for the opportunity. It took a lot of trial and error but it was worth it.

Every new PA program gets Provisional status for 5 years starting from the first matriculating class before moving on to other accreditation statuses. I wouldn’t worry about that. Look at the PANCE pass rates to get a good idea of how much the program prepares its students.

I’m a rising 2nd year at Rutgers in Piscataway/New Brunswick, NJ and I really love the area I’m in. My school is in a suburban area (I’m originally from a large suburb of Dallas, TX), so that made the transition/uprooting easier for me to handle as a Southerner. I love the fact that even though I live in a suburb, I’m an hour between major metropolitan cities like NYC and Philly, and not too far from cities like Boston and D.C. If I wanted to escape on an adventure, there’s no shortage of options for me. All this being said, I would try focusing on schools in the same state as metro areas you’d love to work in vs. schools actually in those cities, because you would be able to apply more freely (with more options) and could still do your rotations in those cities. Who knows, maybe going to school in the burbs could be a nice change of pace?

We use the iPad + Apple Pencil + Notability at my program and I’m never going back to a different way of note taking ever again. It’s such a game changer for me.

Being a CNA is more-widely accepted by schools as PCE than scribing (although scribing is a great learning experience).