Current PA students at Emory -- Why Emory?

[Applicant]

Hi,

 

I have a few questions for Emory students. Feel free to PM me or post your answer on this thread:

 

1. What appealed to you about the program before starting?

 

2. Has the program met your expectations? If so, how?

 

3. What were you looking for in a program? What kind of PA are you looking to become after graduation?

 

4. What other schools did you apply/get accepted to?

 

5. What made you choose Emory over other programs?

 

Thank you in advance for taking the time to answer my questions!

[BluePhoenix]

I'd like to start off by saying thank you for your questions and I hope this is one of many posts with questions from those interested in joining the Emory PA family. I know for most people, including myself, finding the program that fits your personality is just as important as the quality of education you'll receive from that program. To answer your questions:

 

1.What appealed to you about the program before starting?

I can't give ONE reason why Emory appealed to me from the get-go because my interest was multi-factorial. My desires were to go to a well-established program that had already ironed out the kinks so to speak. That's not to say newer programs that have started over the years don't have it figured out, but Emory was attractive to me because it has established much of the doctrine by which PA's practice.

Another reason I was attracted to Emory was because of the South Georgia Farm Worker Project that Emory's PA Program puts on every year. I come from a farming family and it was something that was near and dear to my heart. Emory's dedication to public service is ingrained in it's curriculum and exemplified through it's many outreaches in the Atlanta area.

Thirdly, I believe that Emory's program differed from many other programs in that they provide the same resources to you as the Med Students receive. I actually wasn't acutely aware of this difference between Emory and other schools until interviewing at other statistically relevant universities. Case in point: Emory University offers one of the most comprehensive and hands-on Anatomy Labs in the country. Many universities don't even have a true lab, much less cadavers set aside specifically for PA students to dissect. I can honestly in retrospect it's been an enormous benefit.

 

2. Has the program met your expectations? If so, how?

I think to put a fine point on it, Emory is better than advertised and it's one of those things you have to see to believe. To confess, I was surprised when I got invited for an interview, and to be honest I half expected to be greeted with noses held high because of Emory's reputation. I left feeling like I had been with friends all day and knowing there was no other place I'd rather be. The absolute commitment of the faculty to your success is second to none. I know I can speak for my classmates in saying that from day one, we've been treated like family.

 

3. What were you looking for in a program? What kind of PA are you looking to become after graduation?

I think this can be answered in my response to the first question, but to reiterate, I knew my decision was never going to be based on how each school looked on paper. Two of my top 3 schools were much different (in a bad way for me) than I expected them to be. To answer the second part of the question, keep an open mind. I think from module to module, we all change our minds. Emory teaches with an emphasis on primary care, but many of our lecturers are esteemed professionals in everything from CT Surgery to Infectious Disease.

 

4. What other schools did you apply/get accepted to?

This is a question best left unanswered only because to me and many others this may be something personal. However, I will tell you I was accepted to two other top 20 schools that I really WANTED to like, but just didn't feel that spark that I felt with Emory.

 

5. What made you choose Emory over other programs?

What did it for me was coming away so impressed by how welcoming they were, coupled with the resources the school has available to it's students, and the faculty commitment to it's student body as described by the students present at my interview.

 

I can honestly say that I've chosen the right place and there's no place I'd rather be.

[just_me]

1. What appealed to you about the program before starting? ​Reputation and location of the program/university

 

2. Has the program met your expectations? If so, how? Meh....I didnt really have any expectations so I cant really answer that. I just knew it would be hard, but not knowing what to expect kept me from having expectations....if that makes any sense

 

3. What were you looking for in a program? What kind of PA are you looking to become after graduation I just wanted a program where I felt like faculty cared, was in an area that I didnt mind living in and I would dress casual for class with no attendance requirement....simple huh?:smile:

 

4. What other schools did you apply/get accepted to? UNE UAB accepted...interviews at others which I turned down after my first acceptance (UNE)

 

5. What made you choose Emory over other programs? I felt comfortable there after my interview...second most comfortable was UNE and third most was UAB, which is funny because initially that was my #1 until I interviewed there...

 

Emory is a good school but there are other great programs as well. They have a great anatomy lab but others do as well (tbh, they didnt have dissection for PAs until 2011). the most important thing is to chose a school where YOU felt comfortable after you interview. Forget names, status, what others think etc....I would even say forget cost....go to the school that made you feel comfortable from the moment you showed up to interview. On paper it doesnt really do anything....anyone/thing can look good on paper....its the interview that makes a school pick you and thats how you should pick a school. In the end its only because I felt comfortable with my experience with the program that made me choose it....had any other school I interviewed at made me feel that way, i would have been there instead