Planteater Posted October 28, 2011 Share Posted October 28, 2011 I submitted my application today for a brand new program, set to begin in January 2013. I applied to one other school, but some things have come up that make that one next to impossible to attend. I actually started looking into becoming a nurse practitioner, but I just don't think I can go that route. So, anyway, I was wondering if any of you students here on the forum are attending brand new programs. I'd like to know if there is anything in particular I should be concerned about or asking questions about. At this point I could wait it out and apply next year to a few other programs (that would start 8 months later in August 2013), but honestly the thought of being in the charter class is sort of exciting to me. Opinions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Steve Posted October 29, 2011 Share Posted October 29, 2011 Things I would wonder is where do they get their lecturers from? Are they all lined up for the year already or will you be facing multiple days of "free study time" aka: had a "no show"? What about clinical rotations? Do they have their sites lined up? Do they have staff dedicated to getting you hooked up or will you be on your own for finding rotations? Will there be any live "labs" during the didactic year where you get to visit clinics for the day/week? Are they accredited? Where did their staff/director come from? Do they have any experience in working/running a PA program? What is their backstory on why they are no longer at their previous school? Do any of the staff live local in town, if so, for how long? Are they connected to the community to help facilitate local clinical interactions? Are there other PA/med/RN programs in town that you will be "in competition" for regarding rotations? Those are just a few thoughts that would run through my head Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planteater Posted October 29, 2011 Author Share Posted October 29, 2011 Steve- thanks for the input. Here is what I know so far: They have hired on permanent PA and MD staff for lectures. I do not know about the lecture schedule, so I will be sure to look into that. They have their sites lined up- in fact the two health systems that they will be working with each contributed over $500,000 towards the renovation of the building the program will be using. The systems both have hospitals and outpatient clinics. They will have a cadaver lab. I do not know about standardized patients and lab clinics- I will be sure to ask about that. Their director came from a very reputable program. I do not know about his experience running a program though or the backstory- I will look into that. They are definitely connected to the community and they have a dedicated medical director for planning rotations and communicating with the area clinics/hospitals. There are lots of PA programs in NC and several of them are within 50 miles of each other, but none of the others use these particular health systems for rotations, so I think that is good. I will ask to be sure though. One of the health systems does provide med school rotations and I do not know about area RN programs- good thinking and I will ask. Thanks- I've thought about a few of these things, but you pointed out several things I hadn't thought about. I appreciate it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenmood Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 I would ask about their plan for addressing needed changes to the program/curriculum, etc, on the fly during the year once the class has already started. If they don't have a specific plan for dealing with complaints and problems, or say they don't anticipate needing one, you're in trouble because they aren't functioning in reality. Ask about the integration of the PA program with their other health programs. Did they create a new curriculum for you? Are you going to be forced to attend a pharmacology class that was tailored for pharmacy students? Are they interdisciplinary? Probe deeper into their clinical coordination. That's a tough job. That they have someone assigned to do it is the bare minimum, IMO. Ask specifically about what sites they're considering. In the end, a new program is a risk for all the reasons you should imagine from the questions posed here. But it can be rewarding to be a part of something new and to help shape it from the ground up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planteater Posted November 1, 2011 Author Share Posted November 1, 2011 greenmood- thank you for the insight. I like the idea of asking about the plan for addressing changes. I am waiting until they finalize the curriculum to find out a bit more there- if I remember correctly they will be presenting it at the school level soon for approval and then I can find out more. I love the idea of being a part of something new, and I am pretty sure at this point I would like to take the risk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LESH Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 I submitted my application today for a brand new program, set to begin in January 2013. I applied to one other school, but some things have come up that make that one next to impossible to attend. I actually started looking into becoming a nurse practitioner, but I just don't think I can go that route. So, anyway, I was wondering if any of you students here on the forum are attending brand new programs. I'd like to know if there is anything in particular I should be concerned about or asking questions about. At this point I could wait it out and apply next year to a few other programs (that would start 8 months later in August 2013), but honestly the thought of being in the charter class is sort of exciting to me. Opinions? Does this program have ARC-PA Provisional accreditation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted November 1, 2011 Moderator Share Posted November 1, 2011 clinical rotation availability and quality. I know of some programs around more than 10 yrs that STILL don't have enough peds and gyn rotations for all their students.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planteater Posted November 1, 2011 Author Share Posted November 1, 2011 LESH- not yet. They could not get scheduled with ARC-PA until Sept. 2012. They won't enroll/take any money until they receive the provisional accreditation. If I were to get into both programs I've applied to, it would be a big risk to choose this one I know. But, I really like this one better, so I will just cross that bridge when/if I come to it. They have told me they fully expect to be accredited in Sept., but I do realize any program can say this even if there is nothing to back it up. Are there any questions you would recommend I ask with regards to the accreditation process? EMEDPA- I will ask specifics about the clinical rotations. I did look up the 2 health systems that they will be affiliated with (that provided funding and have granted them some sort of agreement) and there are a lot of different potential sites, but I am not sure if all these sites will actually be available for rotations or not. Thank you so much for all these points everyone. I really like this particular school- I almost went there for undergrad. I had a full scholarship to this school and one other and chose the other (but didn't stay there). Ironically, I am now applying to the same two universities for PA school, and am leaning toward this one. I want it all to be as great as it seems so far, but I do live in reality and will definitely check out all the things you have mentioned. I am happy to hear more questions/suggestions if anyone has them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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