Time for a change.

[nmathew25]

Good Evening everyone! 

 

First off I'm new to the forum and would like to thank everyone for their input. 

 

A little bit about me. I'm 24 and have been enrolled at my local community college for about three years now studying criminal justice. At this point in my life I can tell you criminal justice is not where I belong. I have a 2.5 GPa (due to the lack of effort in my criminal justice classes) 

 

I have been working in healthcare for about 6 years now. Three being a transporter for the OR and three now being a EKG tech. 

 

I guess my question would be... Where do I start now? I just applied for the summer session at IUPUI for exercise science/ pre PA... is that a smart way to go? Do I need more experience in healthcare

? Should I become a paramedic before starting my bachelor's degree? 

 

Thanks again. 

[EMEDPA]

#1 priority is to get a gpa>3.0 to have a good chance at PA school. many programs will not look at folks with less than a 3.0.

[WorkHardPlayHard]

My two cents as a soon to be PA-S. cGPA>3.0 and sGPA>3.2 will give you a good starting point. Pairing this with hands on experience (CNA, EMT, etc) is essential. When I graduated college I spent two years working outside of healthcare to save money for PA school and two years working as a CNA to get hands on experience. This extra time allowed me to link up with some great providers for shadowing and LORs and save a nice amount of cash. Plenty of people moan about having to do the tougher parts of hands-on care but stick to it and push through. You'll be well rounded and ready to do well when (not if) interviews come your way. Good luck!