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Deciding between two schools


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Hi all! I have the opportunity to choose between two schools and I am so torn! Any advice would be very much appreciated. Problem is cheaper school has a pretty low PANCE pass rate. 

Option A:

state school 

if I qualify for in-state tuition which I should, it would be ~55k tuition total

 closer to my support system 

rotations at lesser known hospitals working with underserved populations 

CONS: PANCE pass rate < 90% 

Doesn’t start until August and I am a career changer so eager to get school started!!!

NO electives 

kind of rundown facilities 

 

option B:

School part of a bigger institution with better connections 

School mentioned many students have a job before graduation 

100% PANCE pass rate 

starts late May

one elective 

CONS:

Much higher tuition: >100k

Slightly further away from support system 

 

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emorrefi

Ouch!  Agree hard decision.   So I will not give you the advice on one or the other, however I will offer you items to put on your PRO / CON list to help you make your decision.

Tuition cost is already there. 

Housing   Is the 100K school in middle of a city where housing will cost you another 200 - 500 more a month?  My choices was a small town with rent 500- 750 vs large city 1100 to 1400 a month.

Electives

Clinical rotations and distance.  Program A for me was MIN of 1 1/2 hours of travel from school for every rotation.  Program B was MAX of 1 1/2 hours.  Remember that's 12 months of rotations of maintaining an apartment at school and one away for the rotation.  I saw prices of Airbnb per night and Weekly rentals for places at each rotation.   Thats a large added expense.

Where do you want to wind up?  Several PA's get offers from the rotations.  So if you want to wind up in that area, great.  If not - Not a PRO or CON.

Pance Pass rate

Drop Out rate (find out if people are leaving the school, getting booted, etc.  Note there are always exceptions that should not count against a program).

Safety - would you feel safe at either school, town, etc

Support structure is good, however it depends.  Once its over 2 hours, it becomes less.

Weather - yes, If you are from FL and have a program in MI, you may not be able to adapt to the cold.  Car also an issue.  2 -WD trucks and high performance cars (Camaros, Mustangs, etc) have no place in the snow, especially if its there for 6+ months of the year.

I know there is more, however m final one is State Regulations...  See where you want to practice.  If you get used to the PA role in one state and wind up in another where you cannot prescribe, it may be a deterrent.

Regardless on which one you choose - you will make the right decision for you and embrace it.  Don't second guess.  Hind site is 20/20, however you can go through life questioning or embracing.

Good Luck  - let us know which one you choose.

 

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The previous commenter made excellent points (especially the cost of living) that should certainly factor into your decision. From my perspective, School A having no electives and a PANCE pass rate <90 would be dealbreakers for me. I understand the appeal of a 1/2 price education (comparatively with school B) but it sounds like you might risk getting what you pay for. Good luck! 

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