mic87 Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 A bachelor's in science in itself is worthless. He should go for an associate in paramedics, associate in physical therapy assistant, bachelor's in nursing, bachelor's in nutrition, bachelor's in laboratory technology, bachelor's in engineering. ... basically anything useful than wall paper. Studying for paper should only be limited to high school. Believe me, I have a bachelor's in biology with nearly a 4.0. Its only good to help get into graduate school. He could do all the prerequisites for pa school with the list above with an actual career. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UGoLong Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 I love hearing about 16 year-olds with a grasp on what they would like to do. More often then not, they'll end up changing their minds somewhere along the line, but that's OK. Heck, I'm doing something now that I didn't know existed until I was in my early 40s. I think that the best thing a parent can do is encourage them and make sure they get chances to see what the job is like. If a 16 year-old wants to be a PA, they should be taking some good sciences classes, meeting PAs, maybe a little light shadowing, and volunteering in the hospital around patients. It doesn't have to be stuff that supports an application in 6 years, but something designed to give them something in addition to desire for a job they understandably don't know much about yet. When I was 16 and wanted to be an aerospace engineer, my Dad hooked me up for an afternoon with a young Lieutenant in flight test at our local air base. It's over 50 years later now and I can still remember what he looked like, where he worked, and what he had to say. It made a huge impression on me. Try to find someone like that for your child. IMHO, gearing someone to go into a 6 year MD program at 18 might be a mistake. College is the last place you will get a chance to mix easily with people who have other majors and interests. Yes, it's efficient to go to school for fewer years (and maybe fewer dollars) to get to an objective, but it is critical to find the right objective first. Rushing to a premature end goal in your late teens may not be the best way to do that. Give a kid's life a chance to blossom into whatever it is supposed to lead to. Don't let him or her pine for a particular job without getting them linked up with people who can give them a glimpse of what it might be like. Encourage them to take steps that lead to where they think that they want to go, and also to know that changing their mind along the way is OK too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metoo Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 I too have a 16 year old who has her heart (and brain) set on being a PA. She has a chronic medical condition that has exposed her to a variety of health care providers. She volunteers in a spinal cord rehab center so she has some experience besides her own. Her beloved Specialist (DO) and his PA (young and very competent) have strongly suggested PA over MD because of the changes in healthcare...and they are not the only health care providers who have told her this. She has the drive and brains to become an MD or DO but she does not think PA is a lesser profession, just a different choice. She is especially excited about being able to change specialties. She may change her mind, but right now she is very set and very savvy about her choice and is looking at undergrad programs to get there. I know she will be a great care giver because she has sat on the other side and has seen the good and the bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted November 5, 2014 Moderator Share Posted November 5, 2014 keep in mind lateral mobility is likely going away within the next 20 years for PAs as we are required to have more and more specialty specific certifications and credentialing to do anything... as PA schools get longer and the # of med schools having 3 yrs programs increases, one need to seriously consider which is a better investment of time and money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PACdan Posted November 6, 2014 Share Posted November 6, 2014 ...as PA schools get longer and the # of med schools having 3 yrs programs increases, one need to seriously consider which is a better investment of time and money. Gonna be interesting to see where the tipping point is as PA school gets more expensive/longer and more med schools get shorter. I would expect that if residencies ever do become the norm or 'required' for new PAs, that something will have to change in the model to keep the profession attractive over medical school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted November 6, 2014 Moderator Share Posted November 6, 2014 Gonna be interesting to see where the tipping point is as PA school gets more expensive/longer and more med schools get shorter. I would expect that if residencies ever do become the norm or 'required' for new PAs, that something will have to change in the model to keep the profession attractive over medical school. 3 yr required PA school + 1 yr required residency would still be shorter than 3+3 min for med school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PACdan Posted November 6, 2014 Share Posted November 6, 2014 3 yr required PA school + 1 yr required residency would still be shorter than 3+3 min for med school.Yeah. If the gap was only 1 year, I couldn't see that single year being a deal breaker. Two years is getting awfully thin, compared to the "old" 5+ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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