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So I finally got a job at my dream hospital!! I am currently working there as a Patient Care Technician/ PCT. However, I will be leaving for PA school next year. I really want to return to this hospital and work as a PA! The problem is that getting a job at my hospital is super competitive. Is there a way for me to ensure/ increase my chances of getting a PA job in this facility in the future? (Also, what do you guys think of requesting a absense of leave instead of quitting? Can I be able to come back to the hospital to pursue a higher position?) Thanks in advance!

I just got a job at a big city hospital as a patient care assistant. I start full time on May 14th. I have my EMT cert but practically no experience working hands on with patients. I would love to hear any tips or advice for newbies in patient care! Also- I have about 2,600 hours of HCE from working as a Med Tech, and will just be starting to gain PCE. The plan is to apply to a few schools with late fall/winter deadlines this cycle, and then apply to more in the next cycle starting spring 2019. Does this sound reasonable? Stats: 3.9 GPA 153Q 160V GRE 40+ shadowing hours from 3 different PAs

I am a non traditional student. I recently started college full time at age 27. I am married with 2 kids. I just started my sophmore year. I have 0 HCE hours at this point. Actually I just have 0 hours for anything right now. (I worked as a waitress for the last 8 years). My schedule is already pretty intense and I am having a hard time figuring out how to acrue HCE hours. I know I will have a strong GPA and GRE test scores as I am a strong student. I am going to start volunteering in the emergency department at my local hospital next month and have some shadowing oppertunities lined up. I also may have the option of working as a PCA at a nursing home PRN. (I am currently not working) Does anyone know if being a PCA will work for patient care experience? Any way I look at it, I will be lucky if I hit 1000 hours of HCE by the time I start applying. I know this is on the very low side of HCE hours, but will it really hurt my chances of acceptance? I know its early, but I like to plan ahead. Any advice is appreciated.

I will be applying to PA programs this fall and am currently taking prerequisite classes and working as a PCA. I have the opportunity to become EMT-B certified this summer. Unfortunately, that means I would have fewer healthcare experience hours as a result. In your opinion, which would make a better applicant: one with more hours as a PCA or one with combined PCA and EMT experience, but with fewer hours?