Jump to content

What are my chances to get into a PA Program?


Recommended Posts

Hi everyone! I am new to this website. I tell you little bit about myself. I changed my major four times because I want to make my career out of something that I really enjoy. I have shadowed a doctor for 120 hours. I never shadowed a PA. But I have worked as a medical interpreter for little over a year. I am very well aware of PA profession and I have a strong passion to become a PA and to make difference in the community. Right now I am a senior majoring in Health sci and I will be graduating in Spring 2013. i have a cumulative gpa of 3.39 and my hard sciences gpa is 3.1 but once they add behavioral sci and stuff, it will surely be more. I have taken one year of calculus, inorganic/organic chem, Bio and stuff. I have completed all the prerequisites for most schools except the Microbiology course that i will be taking next semester. I sent my caspa application on sep 13. I have not heard from any school yet. What are my chances of getting into a PA program? I applied to schools in NY, NJ, Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania. Any guidance from people already in PA school will be much appreciated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Basically, there is absolutely no way for anyone to tell you what your chances are of getting in (at least not anything that is accurate). Anything people will tell you is a wild guess, and will stress you out even more. Do the schools you applied to have a sticky on the stats of the applicants? That would be a good place to look at to see how you compare to the competition. Good luck!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with lily - none of us can tell you what exactly your chances are. What I can say is that if you have not yet shadowed a PA - you need to. If you don't get into any schools this year I would certainly start with gaining exposure into what PAs do - not from reading about it but from actually witnessing it. :) It can only benefit you

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yep! Definitely shadow a PA! I've heard from many PAs/programs that a lack of shadowing experience just doesn't show that you really understand the profession/doesn't show much passion. Look at the Stats page and see where people have gotten in with their stats. As for your GPA, try to do really well in your last prereq. Your current GPA will probably get you somewhere, but with all of the applicants out there, a higher GPA wouldn't hurt!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everyone is right. I would shadow a PA, keep your gpa high, finish the pre-reqs, continue volunteering, and get more dpc hours. If this application process doesn't go the way you want this year then I would apply early next year when CASPA opens up on April 18th. I submitted my application to CASPA at the end of May and got three invites right away in July and August for interviews for 2 interviews in August and 1 in October. I got accepted in August after my second interview. I applied after being out of college for 5 years. Best of luck to you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

pardon? I didn't understand what you just said.

 

the numbers were a joke. You want odds on placement in a school so I picked random numbers in a ratio fashion to give u a 5 in 13 chance of being placed but gave my estimate a healthy margin of error allowance (the 80%).

 

Sure you told us what states you are applying to but those five states have a combined 47 schools (per the school subsection of this forum. Are you starting to see how it is impossible to give an accurate estimate at your chances?

 

The term "fodder" has a few similar meanings but typically it refers to a high volume of a material that has little worth.

 

"coarse food for livestock, composed of entire plants, including leaves, stalks, and grain, of such forages as corn and sorghum." is a definition from dictionary.com. In other words, it seems your plea for an estimate will be met with a high volume of numbers that won't be verified until you get acceptance or rejection letters. To obsess about them now will only cause your ulcer to grow.

 

They say if you have to explain a joke, it wasn't funny. I guess I need to go back to the drawing board.

 

Ps. Not a joke...be prepared to explain why you spent so many hours with a doc but didn't hang out with a PA. A school that is worth attending should be curious enough to ask.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Welcome to the Physician Assistant Forum! This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Learn More