mheights365 Posted November 26, 2013 Share Posted November 26, 2013 Hello, I'm 34yrs old with a B.A. in Criminal Justice from 2001 who has spent the last 13 working years as a paralegal. At 28 I realized I do not want to do this anymore and started to prepare myself for a career change. Well I'm unemployed now with zero debt of any kind and I have no children, no dependants, living back with my family with no real expenses hanging over my head. I wanted to go into the health care field but was always scared of following my dream until now. I want to be a P.A., I already went to CUNY to get a list of pre reqs and as soon as my transcript comes in I'm registering. But since I have no debt and no expenses and no job....shouldn't I do something more than just take my pre reqs the first to years?? I feel like I should take a certification in a health related field and start working somewhere in the interim until I have all my requirements to apply to a P.A. program while putting some money in my pocket. Some opinions or advice would be very much appreciated. I do not have a problem from starting from the ground up BTW...it's not about the salary right now I just want my time to be spent wisely because this is my career path and I'm giving it my all no looking back. Thank you in advance guys I really appreciate it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmj11 Posted November 26, 2013 Share Posted November 26, 2013 Yes, get a hands-on job in health care while you take classes. At least a nursing assistant, if not paramedic (much longer training). If you are lucky you might find a clinic job somewhere that doesn't require training (OTJ training) but it should be hands-on (getting your hands dirty) and not scheduling appointments or pushing paper. While not all programs require this experience (but should) most do and it would be very important to your future experiences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UGoLong Posted November 26, 2013 Share Posted November 26, 2013 I agree that getting some health care experience that pays would be a good move for you. You will learn a lot more about yourself and the world of health care along the way. And you need the experience to apply anyway. My story was a bit different; I kept a non-medical job while I worked part-time in EMS and took my prereqs. It's described in the book cited below. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SocialMedicine Posted November 29, 2013 Share Posted November 29, 2013 become an EMT. where I live you can take a course for 800 bucks 3-4 months in duration 2 meetings a week. you can find a part or full or volunteer position as an EMT. This is real health experience. Do not find a job taking vital signs somewhere as a nurse assistant .... unless you have excellent academics and credentials elsewhere this will hurt your chances of PA school acceptance. ALSO PA schools have different pre reqs. Make sure you get organized and compile a list of pre reqs for all the schools you are interested in to be sure you cover. Stony brook is an outstanding option .... A number of other schools in NY provide a week education .. do not be afraid to leave the city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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