dndandrea Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 I just completed my Associate of Science degree at a community college last semester and plan on transferring to Cleveland State University to finish my undergraduate. The counselor advised me to take the "PRE-PA" path which would give me a general "Health Science Pre-PA" degree. Now this seems like a general degree that will prepare you for the PA program, but honestly I don't think I can do anything else with that degree. Would it be a better idea to look into some sort of health care bachelors degree such as respiratory therapy or something that has the same pre-reqs i'd need to get into PA school? Or should I stick to the Pre-PA program assuming that maybe they prefer Pre-PA students that got their undergraduate from the same school? The school doesn't require any health care experience but we all know thats a hoax. If worst came to worst and I didn't make it into PA school, all i'd be left with is a 4yr "Health Science Pre-PA" degree. I can't get any job with this degree... If i knew my major when I got done with high school I would have found a 2-year degree for a healthcare job so I could work in the health care field while I was finishing up my undergraduate. That way i'd be ready to go to PA school as soon as I finished my undergraduate. Every local hospital requires certifications or degrees to work in the health care field. I cant even apply for a medical assistant or cna job and I thought those were 2 of the lowest on the list. I'm really bummed out right now because I need to start working and gaining experience or else all this work will be for nothing. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinntsp Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 The answer to your bolded question is yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dndandrea Posted February 2, 2013 Author Share Posted February 2, 2013 Thanks, does anyone else have any advice? In the meantime i'll start looking at what I should do as my undergraduate then instead of Pre-PA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gamecaco4 Posted February 2, 2013 Share Posted February 2, 2013 I'm basically in the same spot as you are, dndandrea. I'll have my associates in science and have been debating over what to get for my bachelors. The Univ I've chosen to transfer to doesn't offer a Pre-PA bachelors, but does offer a Pre-PA track that wil assist me in making sure I have all the pre-reqs. After a lot of research, I THINK I've decided to go with a neuroscience degree. Of all that I coud be interested in, this one gives me the most pre-reqs. The only thing keeping me from committing to it right now is that I'm not sure that I would be educated enough for ANYTHING if I don't get into a program on the first round. I would hate to work that hard and go through that much schooling to still be a CNA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dndandrea Posted February 3, 2013 Author Share Posted February 3, 2013 I'm basically in the same spot as you are, dndandrea. I'll have my associates in science and have been debating over what to get for my bachelors. The Univ I've chosen to transfer to doesn't offer a Pre-PA bachelors, but does offer a Pre-PA track that wil assist me in making sure I have all the pre-reqs. After a lot of research, I THINK I've decided to go with a neuroscience degree. Of all that I coud be interested in, this one gives me the most pre-reqs. The only thing keeping me from committing to it right now is that I'm not sure that I would be educated enough for ANYTHING if I don't get into a program on the first round. I would hate to work that hard and go through that much schooling to still be a CNA. Well the bachelors degree is Health Sciences but it's part of the Pre-PA track like you're saying. Even with a "Health Science" degree, though, I still won't be able to use it for much besides getting into graduate school. It's not a career type degree which why I don't understand why they want me to follow that path. I'm going to bring it up to the counselor next time I make a trip out there but it won't be for a while. I'm too busy with school & work at the moment so I was looking for advice on here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Steve Posted February 3, 2013 Share Posted February 3, 2013 Well the bachelors degree is Health Sciences but it's part of the Pre-PAtrack like you're saying. Even with a "Health Science" degree, though, I still won't be able to use it for much besides getting into graduate school. It's not a career type degree which why I don't understand why they want me to follow that path. I'm going to bring it up to the counselor next time I make a trip out there but it won't be for a while. I'm too busy with school & work at the moment so I was looking for advice on here. It seems you already lean towards a career style degree vs. a "pre" degree. I think that is a fantastic plan. Spend your time wisely and get a degree that will give you options when it is all said and done. Tons of folks get into PA school with non life science degrees, they just take the required additional sciences as well. Now if you are determined to only apply to one school, with little to no HCE, in the shortest amount of time possible, I would suggest contacting that program directly and get the inside scoop from them directly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dndandrea Posted February 3, 2013 Author Share Posted February 3, 2013 It seems you already lean towards a career style degree vs. a "pre" degree. I think that is a fantastic plan. Spend your time wisely and get a degree that will give you options when it is all said and done. Tons of folks get into PA school with non life science degrees, they just take the required additional sciences as well. Now if you are determined to only apply to one school, with little to no HCE, in the shortest amount of time possible, I would suggest contacting that program directly and get the inside scoop from them directly. Well i'd love to get the most and best experience I can while i'm doing my undergraduate. However, even though I live around tons of hospitals including the Cleveland clinic, I can't find a single place that will hire someone without a specific degree or certificate. What i don't want to do is make my long journey to PA school even longer than it needs to be, unless I have no other choice. Which is currently why i'm trying to look at my options. I want to start getting experience now but all the MA and CNA jobs around here require the specific degree. My Associate of Science degree doesn't do me any good. I wish I would have knew what I wanted to do while I was in high school so I could have prepared earlier and got an associates degree as a MA or something. Now it's kind of too late to go back and get something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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