Shadowing in Undergrad

[mmerton]

Hello! 

I recently graduated high school and will be starting my undergraduate in August. I am wondering when should I start to build up shadowing hours for PA school? Should I start ASAP? Any advice would be great! 

 

Thanks,

 

Mason

[UGoLong]

It’s not so much building shadowing hours at your stage as it is seeing what life as a PA might be like. A few hours could teach you alot as far as finding out if the career is for you.

Good luck!


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[Anachronist]

Indeed, shadow a broad scope of medical providers. MDs, DOs, PAs, NPs, RNs, etc. You may find something unexpected, and regardless of which path you chose, the experience will be beneficial. Also it would not be unlikely for the climate in each of those programs to change somewhat by the time you finish undergrad.

Traditionally both PA and NP have been positions that allowed providers with prior experience to advance their practice, specifically without going to med school and then residency (30+ year olds with families generally don't want to/can't afford to take 7-10 years being a student again). Sort of two different paths to basically the same thing (despite the bickering about that). So as someone who finished HS and is going to college, it would make sense to strongly consider medical school. PA is most definitely not a "stepping stone." While some do go on to med school or admin positions, that isn't the norm. It is generally considered a "terminal degree" and the only way to become a physician afterward, is to go back to med school, and there is only one PA-to-MD program in the country, and your 2 years in PA school only save you 1 in that program. All that said though, as medicine is changing, PA and NP may well become common choices for newly minted undergrads, there are some already but it is the exception rather than the rule, but "the times they are a changin."

And finally, keep in mind that PA school for all practical intents and purposes is very nearly as competitive as medical school, you'll need to keep your GPA above 3.5 (3.8+ would be better), get those volunteer hours, and expect to work for a year or two after graduation to be a "competitive" applicant. So really, prepare for med school, if your university has a "pre med" program, do it. Look at requirements for your top PA programs and medical schools and make sure you take all of the prereqs that will be required (your university's "pre med" program may not include all of them).

Best of luck.

[mmerton]

6 hours ago, UGoLong said:

It’s not so much building shadowing hours at your stage as it is seeing what life as a PA might be like. A few hours could teach you alot as far as finding out if the career is for you.

Good luck!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Thanks so much for the reply! 

6 hours ago, Anachronist said:

Indeed, shadow a broad scope of medical providers. MDs, DOs, PAs, NPs, RNs, etc. You may find something unexpected, and regardless of which path you chose, the experience will be beneficial. Also it would not be unlikely for the climate in each of those programs to change somewhat by the time you finish undergrad.

Traditionally both PA and NP have been positions that allowed providers with prior experience to advance their practice, specifically without going to med school and then residency (30+ year olds with families generally don't want to/can't afford to take 7-10 years being a student again). Sort of two different paths to basically the same thing (despite the bickering about that). So as someone who finished HS and is going to college, it would make sense to strongly consider medical school. PA is most definitely not a "stepping stone." While some do go on to med school or admin positions, that isn't the norm. It is generally considered a "terminal degree" and the only way to become a physician afterward, is to go back to med school, and there is only one PA-to-MD program in the country, and your 2 years in PA school only save you 1 in that program. All that said though, as medicine is changing, PA and NP may well become common choices for newly minted undergrads, there are some already but it is the exception rather than the rule, but "the times they are a changin."

And finally, keep in mind that PA school for all practical intents and purposes is very nearly as competitive as medical school, you'll need to keep your GPA above 3.5 (3.8+ would be better), get those volunteer hours, and expect to work for a year or two after graduation to be a "competitive" applicant. So really, prepare for med school, if your university has a "pre med" program, do it. Look at requirements for your top PA programs and medical schools and make sure you take all of the prereqs that will be required (your university's "pre med" program may not include all of them).

Best of luck.

Wow ! Thanks a ton! That is super helpful, I will definitely take a look at other careers. I found out about PA online sometime sophomore year , ever since then I have been watching as things change and grow. I feel like I have learned a ton from YouTube, google searches, and of course, this forum! Since sophomore year I have only wanted to purse PA, but maybe I stopped looking too soon. Either way, I have always been passionate about medicine and learning as much as I possible could. The one thing that does scare me is the HCE/PCE needed for PA school, I feel like this is hard to achieve while in undergrad since most jobs need some type of schooling/certification. Thanks again for all the wisdom!