Have your PA school Essay published

[AJRcoach]

PA Students:

 

As author of the book, "The Ultimate Guide to Getting Into Physician Assistant School" (McGraw-Hill, 3rd Ed.), I recently finished my second book, "How to Ace the Physician Assistant School Interview" and I am in the process of writing my 3rd book, "Essays that Worked for Physician Assistant School Applicants" I need 50 essays! (including supplemental application essays)

 

As a successful PA school applicant, you appreciate how difficult it can be to write a strong essay. Some great applicants, who have excellent GPA's, test scores, and health care experience, struggle with the essay. In fact, a poorly written essay may be the reason an otherwise highly qualified candidate gets denied an interview.

 

I am looking for PA students who would like to submit their essay for publication in this new manuscript. You will be compensated for your submission and your name will be mentioned in the book (optional). If you have an interest, please email me at info@andrewrodican.com , submit your essay and I will email back an "essay release" form and discuss the compensation.

 

Thank you,

 

 

Andrew J. Rodican, PA-C

[Acebecker]

To be honest, this seems a little shady to me.

 

You're the guru on getting into PA school, so maybe you understand the finer points better than I. But, from my perspective, publishing essays of those who've gotten into PA school is not above board. There is a lot of potential for abuse. It's the same as if I were to go to a prospective PA student and sell them a copy of my personal statement.

 

If you have other insight, feel free to share it.

 

Andrew

[cooltrainer]

There are books like this when it comes to medical school, undergraduate, and business school admissions. I'll be the first to admit I went to the library to look for these books when it came to writing my essays for PA school. I think it's a great idea, but also realize the other side of things - PA applicants seem to be so diverse... no one has the same courses taken, experience, why do you want to go to PA school answers - so I am not so sure this would be that advantageous anyways. Any thoughts?

[andersenpa]

This is just another extension of the "review my essay" services.

 

The personal statement is there for a reason- a statement of personal experiences, not an amalgam of other applicant's writing styles.

Being able to write an essay should be one of the professional communication skills that all PAs should have learned by the time they are applying to PA school. English/writing courses are still part of undergrad general ed requirements, no??? Introduction, body conclusion???

 

Or as my technical writing professor said to me:

 

1. Tell 'em, what your're gonna tell 'em.

2. Tell 'em.

3. Tell 'em what you told 'em.

 

These skills are part of the global communication abilties that each PA must have- presenting a case, explaining disease and treatments to patients, consulting other providers.....etc....

 

We should have some minimum expectation on our applicants that is not spoon fed or hand-held through the entire process. Even if there is a way to make a buck off of it. Regadless of what other program applicants (med school etc) do, each profession should hold its own standard.

 

I'm surprised and disappointed that this is presented on our forum.

[Contrarian]

Kids with NO significant life experiences, no significant healthcare experiences, who watched others work, and then had another group of others write a basic essay for them... sitting in a one room school house in corn-fields reading a few books for 10 months, then skating through "clinicals" for 11 months demanding $90k and "parity" with physicians.

 

A National Organization that claims to be representative but couldn't care any less about representing what its constituents want/need.

 

A National Accrediting Body more interested in making $$$cash$$$ by selling silly-A$$ed uneccessary extra tests for pretty certificates, than ensuring that the PANRE is valid and the process is fair, balanced and transparent...

 

The entire process is quickly being watered down and becoming a sad joke... :saddd:

[2010PA]

Sounds like a desperate student looking for an essay to "wow" the hiring process.

[CJKitty]

2010PA, Mr. Rodican isn't a "desperate student," but a practicing PA who currently has (what I feel is) a monopoly on pre-PA literature and application guides. Whatever "compensation" any submissions would have would pale in comparison to the profits he likely gains from his books. I hope anyone considering this thinks long and hard about the amount of independent work it took for them to earn their seat in their respective program, before they sell out and give a future student an unneeded piggyback.

 

On another note, I'm not sure how I feel about his website logo being so stylistically similar to the one used by the AAPA. It invokes a sense of being officially endorsed by the AAPA when I see no evidence of this being true.

[Contrarian]

I'll soon be selling Schlong ENLARGEMENT Herbs that only work if smoked or crushed and snorted...

 

I'm offering a special 2 for 1 rate for PA Forum members and if you spend $100... as a bonus, I will feature your smiling face, demographics and before & after sizes on the advertisement space I purchase here on this forum.

 

"Don't hate the playa... hate the game"....:heheh:

[2010PA]

2010PA, Mr. Rodican isn't a "desperate student," but a practicing PA who currently has (what I feel is) a monopoly on pre-PA literature and application guides. Whatever "compensation" any submissions would have would pale in comparison to the profits he likely gains from his books. I hope anyone considering this thinks long and hard about the amount of independent work it took for them to earn their seat in their respective program, before they sell out and give a future student an unneeded piggyback.

 

On another note, I'm not sure how I feel about his website logo being so stylistically similar to the one used by the AAPA. It invokes a sense of being officially endorsed by the AAPA when I see no evidence of this being true.

 

Thanks for the clarification. I concur with everything you've stated. Every story is unique for the applicant, which is why asking to publish it for another's advantage (and profit) is just a slap in the face for the profession. What a crook.

[Just Steve]

So playing devil's advocate...how does providing structure examples of an essay differ from following the format of things such as research papers? In an essay, the material has to be your own, just like a medical research paper. Research papers are used all the time as a guide to write your own, as there is a typically accepted format that they need to be submitted in. Same with journal articles and the like.

 

yes, I understand and see andersonpa's point that by this point in their academic career, they should be able to construct an essay on their own. I also realize that my reply being "heck by the time they apply to PA school they should have tried working in the medical field" is a slippery slope argument. We have already given up the notion of people having life/health care experience, by giving them an essay is taking away one more screening method.

 

On the flip side though...if the person has no life/medical experience to speak of, it doesn't matter how wonderful they constructed their essay. Fluff filler will still be fluff filler, it'll just be less painful to read. It's just putting lipstick on a pig.

 

I say give the essay writers an idea of how to write. The immense popularity of this website, which is supported financially at least partially from Rodican (his advertisement fees) is proof positive that there is a hungry market out there for this sort of information. If someone feels that they can do it better, then have at it. Free market encourages competition.

 

one more thought...taking time to help groom a pre pa during shadowing is not different than helping one form an essay. The preceptor is offering insider knowledge that will hopefully give their candidate an advantage. If one would want to split hairs, one could say that during the shadowing process there should be no discussion outside of the immediate patients before them..a gag order if you will on anything PA school related. Now of course I think that is silly but an argument could be made.

 

If a person is going to plagarize a PS from a book or website, then they are also going to cheat on exams and cut corners as a practitioner.

[greenmood]

Ethically, there's a line somewhere. I think it's around/between "here's how you write a good, solid, persuasive essay" and "here's how you write an essay for PA school". It might even be beyond that... maybe at "here's a book of other students' efforts for you to look at while you write your own essay".

 

So go ahead and make the book. I won't participate.

 

One thing: I vehemently disagree with JustSteve's comment about shadowing. It IS different than helping "form" an essay. Are we going to gag every professor who encourages a student along the way to PA school? No no, my ethical line is nowhere near there. A mentor has the right and the responsibility to teach and pass knowledge as he/she is able. The student should learn as much as possible. Are we going to punish the student for taking advantage of opportunities? For working hard to apply his knowledge? This kind of experiential learning is completely different than copying the format *cough* content *cough* of an essay from a book.

 

I don't think the argument can be made, even for the sake of the devil.

[Acebecker]

The difference between coaching someone and putting personal statements into a book is that those we coach are the ones who we believe have the potential to complete PA school and do honor to the profession. When we blanket the world with personal statements we are "coaching" every individual out there who comes across a copy of the book. There is no selectivity. This is not good for the profession.

 

Not to toot my own horn - but I'll share a little of my story. I wrote my own personal statement and agonized over it, had my wife read over it several times. Got an interview... Got rejected. I re-evaluated my application, my qualifications, and shadowed a PA for as many hours as I possibly could. Re-wrote my personal statements myself, had my wife read them over half a dozen times, got better references. I busted my tail to make myself a better candidate. I had hardly any input from other people - the only feedback I got was from the school I was rejected by - my top choice.

 

Again, not that I am the shining example of what you have to go through to get into PA school. In fact, I had it pretty easy, all things considered. But I would rather sit next to someone who put their heart and soul into getting into PA school than someone who bought a book, copied someone else's sentiments, and had an easy ride getting into PA school. There is no doubt that those who have to work for it value it more, work harder, and become better.

 

This is my perspective - feel free to disagree and discuss.

 

Andrew

[Just Steve]

Ethically, there's a line somewhere. I think it's around/between "here's how you write a good, solid, persuasive essay" and "here's how you write an essay for PA school". It might even be beyond that... maybe at "here's a book of other students' efforts for you to look at while you write your own essay".

 

So go ahead and make the book. I won't participate.

 

One thing: I vehemently disagree with JustSteve's comment about shadowing. It IS different than helping "form" an essay. Are we going to gag every professor who encourages a student along the way to PA school? No no, my ethical line is nowhere near there. A mentor has the right and the responsibility to teach and pass knowledge as he/she is able. Who is to say that this mentor cannot be of the cyber or written persuasion? There are many people I see as a mentor through their writings...Ed Viesturs is one, Yvonne Chouinard is another. While we have never engaged in personal conversation, that is not to say their actions and beliefs haven't shaped my actions. The student should learn as much as possible. Are we going to punish the student for taking advantage of opportunities? Opportunities such as those found in the written form..say...compiled in a book? For working hard to apply his knowledge? Applying this book found knowledge into their own construction of an essay? This kind of experiential learning is completely different than copying the format *cough* content *cough* of an essay from a book. Have you ever submitted a self conducted study, a report, a research piece, even an opinion piece constructed in a format that was pre destined? Or have you always come up with your own unique way and just hoped the submission would make it past the initial screening? I know from my own experience in PA school, we have written reports due. Some are research based..others are something even more crazy...something called SOAP notes. Crazy huh? Should we not use sample SOAP notes to learn from? How is this practice different from a sample essay?

 

I don't think the argument can be made, even for the sake of the devil. I agree...I don't think you made an argument. My best guess from your writing is that your differentiation is based that a preceptor is a live person giving spoken word, instead of something written in a book.

 

At the end of the day, this is all casual banter as people who are going to pad resumes, plagarize, dodge responsibility, and generally find ways to be marginal performers will continue to find ways to work the system. If they get past the interview process and actually get into a class, the first quarter will flush them or they will straighten up and get in line with the program. If somehow they get through the system and actually get the "-C"...well then...the system as a whole failed.

 

I do enjoy a good debate though :-)

 

My responses in red...not only to stand out, but it fits the role as the devil's advocate too :-)

[Just Steve]

The difference between coaching someone and putting personal statements into a book is that those we coach are the ones who we believe have the potential to complete PA school and do honor to the profession. When we blanket the world with personal statements we are "coaching" every individual out there who comes across a copy of the book. There is no selectivity. This is not good for the profession.

 

Not to toot my own horn - but I'll share a little of my story. I wrote my own personal statement and agonized over it, had my wife read over it several times. Got an interview... Got rejected. I re-evaluated my application, my qualifications, and shadowed a PA for as many hours as I possibly could. Re-wrote my personal statements myself, had my wife read them over half a dozen times, got better references. I busted my tail to make myself a better candidate. I had hardly any input from other people - the only feedback I got was from the school I was rejected by - my top choice.

 

Again, not that I am the shining example of what you have to go through to get into PA school. In fact, I had it pretty easy, all things considered. But I would rather sit next to someone who put their heart and soul into getting into PA school than someone who bought a book, copied someone else's sentiments, and had an easy ride getting into PA school. There is no doubt that those who have to work for it value it more, work harder, and become better.

 

This is my perspective - feel free to disagree and discuss.

 

Andrew

 

I feel you..I get where you are coming from. As an individual who has been sticking bandaids on booboos since the late 80's, I have a small passion for this medical thing. If I saw some non focused, non committed, marginally performing, self entitled punk dosing next to me in class, it would make me want to gouge out their eyes and serve it to them for their lunch. Strangely, what gets me even more riled up are the folks who are obviously brilliant, scoring top marks in everything they do, but have no passion. They could care less what they do as they bored no matter what. What a waste of brilliance...but that is a whole different discussion.

 

Many pre pas shadow PAs cold...meaning, they find some kind soul who agrees to spend a day or so being followed around and engages in casual chat about the profession. Your point of feeling like the ones who get coached, get coached by a mentor who feels the profession will benefit from the applicant's attendance...I think that falls into the world of LORs. There is no way on earth I could agree to pen a LOR for some kid who followed me for a few days, much less some student in some class I may be teaching. An LOR, in my opinion, is a signed statement saying "I truly believe this applicant has the right stuff and I am willing to sign my name to it". You only get that sort of endorsement out of me after I see you perform a bit, hopefully under a bit of stress so I can see how you hold up. I see shadowing as "bring your kid to work day". A casual affair that offers a perfunctory glimpse into a rather complex world. But opinions vary...that is what keeps the world interesting.

[jesscbv]

I have to say, having just turned in an application myself, that it's SO tempting to want other people to approve your essay before it hits the adcoms' eyes. I wrote, scrapped, and re-wrote several essays this year. (It's my second time applying.) I agonized about "how SHOULD this sound?" and "Is this what they want?" I even posted an essay on the forum for some feedback. A forum member reminded me that it probably wasn't a good idea...who knows who's looking at it? Also, I figured if I wanted to turn in a GREAT essay about ME and what makes ME unique that I should probably write it MYSELF. I wasn't looking for anybody here to tell me what to write; I wanted approval. But if I didn't feel confident enough in my essay that I could just turn it in with my application, how would letting a bunch of other people pick it apart make the essay any better? I deleted my essay from my post on the forum, scrapped the whole thing (again) and decided to write about what I wanted the adcoms to know about me. Basically, what I'm trying to say is this: we all know how to write an essay. If you worry too much about "what they WANT to hear" versus writing about what makes you a good candidate, then you're not going to end up with an honest/accurate/intriguing result. I've never looked at one of the books being mentioned, but I figure it's probably pretty much the same thing as me trying to use the forum members' advice to write a better essay. Some people might try to use the books, but really you'll probably end up better off if you don't. I'm curious how many people went the route of using examples from a book and ended up being accepted....