paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Why do you want to become a Physician Assistant? I don't know how to answer this without opening the door for a challenge question? Why not MD and the like. To be honest I don't explicitly know why PA over other healthcare professions. The question to me is like being asked why I want to have manners or integrity or anything else along those lines. It is just something that is ingrained in me. It is not something I have to think about. Any idea what ADCOM is looking for here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 12, 2013 Moderator Share Posted July 12, 2013 the classic response that every adcom member wants to hear is the following: "money for nothing, chicks for free". this is guaranteed to get you into any program. go ahead, try it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G. Davenport Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Although I think this is a silly question, I strongly advise you to think about an answer that reflects your benefit to the profession. Persuasive argument is one of many keys to creating your desired outcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 12, 2013 Moderator Share Posted July 12, 2013 Although I think this is a silly question, I strongly advise you to think about an answer that reflects your benefit to the profession. Persuasive argument is one of many keys to creating your desired outcome. "because I want to make the pa profession an offer they can't refuse" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 the classic response that every adcom member wants to hear is the following:"money for nothing, chicks for free". this is guaranteed to get you into any program. go ahead, try it. I never thought of that but you might be onto something. Obviously I would have to elaborate to fill the word requirement but I catch your drift. Although I think this is a silly question, I strongly advise you to think about an answer that reflects your benefit to the profession. Persuasive argument is one of many keys to creating your desired outcome. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatChecko Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I always thought of it as an opportunity to explain why I liked the PA profession and how I saw myself fitting into it. It's basically the same answer, but there's more meat to it. "I want to become a physician assistant because I admire what PAs do." etc. etc. ad nauseam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 I always thought of it as an opportunity to explain why I liked the PA profession and how I saw myself fitting into it. It's basically the same answer, but there's more meat to it. "I want to become a physician assistant because I admire what PAs do." etc. etc. ad nauseam. Thank you for your reply. I guess I should have expanded more on my original post. Avoiding the ad nauseam is what I am trying to accomplish. I don't want to sound like my answer is canned but the canned answer is the honest answer for me. I don't have a magical defining moment for why I want to be a PA. For me I want to practice medicine. I enjoy using what I know to help people. I like the modality of PA training vs NP. I don't want to go to medical school because I have other goals in life that the length and cost of medical school would interfere with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 Although I think this is a silly question, I strongly advise you to think about an answer that reflects your benefit to the profession. Persuasive argument is one of many keys to creating your desired outcome. Any answer that reflects my benefit to the profession could also benefit other professions like MD or NP. So it still doesn't necessarily answer the question without opening up myself for rebuttal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToppDog Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Thank you for your reply. I guess I should have expanded more on my original post. Avoiding the ad nauseam is what I am trying to accomplish. I don't want to sound like my answer is canned but the canned answer is the honest answer for me. I don't have a magical defining moment for why I want to be a PA. For me I want to practice medicine. I enjoy using what I know to help people. I like the modality of PA training vs NP. I don't want to go to medical school because I have other goals in life that the length and cost of medical school would interfere with. There's your answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G. Davenport Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 You are correct. A desire to serve can come from any health care profession. I suggest you research the education path of each and the history of each and decide why YOU want to go this path. During your research you will either find your answer or perhaps a better path. And I should add, your ability to quickly deal with a challenge like a rebuttal is more important than an answer that doesn't open discussion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torshi Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 haha good one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torshi Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Except you don't want to mention anything about length of schooling in general, that's a weak reasoning to reinforce ones desire to pursue a path Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 Except you don't want to mention anything about length of schooling in general, that's a weak reasoning to reinforce ones desire to pursue a path Well that puts me right back to "money for nothing, chicks for free." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 12, 2013 Moderator Share Posted July 12, 2013 if you are older/married/have kids, etc it's easier to talk about age as being important. if you are 22 and talk about fear of time commitment issues you sound like a weenie; " I don't want to be a dr because I would be 30 before I got my first job and that is sooooo old"....when many of your classmates will be 35-45. AVG age in my class was 35. at 27 I was a youngin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 if you are older/married/have kids, etc it's easier to talk about age as being important. if you are 22 and talk about fear of time commitment issues you sound like a weenie; " I don't want to be a dr because I would be 30 before I got my first job and that is sooooo old"....when many of your classmates will be 35-45.AVG age in my class was 35. at 27 I was a youngin. touche.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paprospect24 Posted July 12, 2013 Author Share Posted July 12, 2013 I appreciate those who have taken the time to provide some insight. It's not like I can bounce this stuff off my friends and get constructive feedback so thank you. This forum is a tremendous help.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickitabanana Posted July 13, 2013 Share Posted July 13, 2013 For me I want to practice medicine. I enjoy using what I know to help people. I like the modality of PA training vs NP. I don't want to go to medical school because I have other goals in life that the length and cost of medical school would interfere with. It'll be worth your while to know why PA vs. NP because you will definitely be asked that at interviews. Based on your other stats, you'll probably be asked why you didn't apply to medical school, too. (I got asked at more than one interview something along the lines of: "Your GPA is competitive enough to get into medical school. Why didn't you apply?") I would advise against directly saying you don't want to become an MD because of the length of school, residency, etc. It's not a good answer (even if it's true). PA school is usually 2-3 years non-stop vs. 4 years of medical school so the length of school is not that much different. It's the residency that adds on years, right? You can convey the same point by saying something like "the PA profession offers more flexibility for both my personal and professional life." This shows you really know what the PA profession is (which I really hope you've researched by now!) and it is true. If they ask you to expand you can go on to say that you like how PAs are trained as generalists and you have the flexibility to switch specialties, can practice somewhat autonomously with physician back-up for more complicated cases, etc. Have you written your CASPA essay yet? You don't want to have your answer sound like it's memorized, but you want to be able to convey why you want to be a PA in less than 500 characters when they ask in person. If you can answer this using somewhat specific examples (as above) of how PAs differ from NP and MD then it should show the adcom that you've thoroughly researched the profession and have chosen it when you compared it to other options. You're right that if you just say you like to practice medicine it won't help and they may ask you why not NP, MD, etc. Please, really do some research on the profession and know why you want this over other medical practitioners. It won't do you any good to use our answers if they aren't how you feel. I'd hate for you to put all the effort into getting into/finishing PA school and then realizing once you start practicing you wish you had chosen something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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