Your Path to becoming a PA/NP

[EMNP]

What was your path like before becoming a PA/NP or a PA/NP student?

 

Many people went straight from college to a PA program or from a ASN -->BSN to NP, while some did ASN/BSN to PA etc..

 

How old were you when you got into PA/NP program?

 

What kind of job did you have prior to entering the program?

 

How much does being an RN or Paramedic help while in PA school? I know RNs know a great deal of medicine so I was wondering..

 

How much do you like/dislike your current job and why? What specialty are you in? (For those who are done already)

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Eduardo

[Doc Savage]

I was a Combat Medic for 8 years and a Pulmonary Critical Care Tech for 4 years while I did my undergrad in Biology! I was 29 years old when accepted with a 3.8 Science GPA and 3.6 cumulitive GPA. The knowledge I have gained in my work experience has proved invaluable to me in PA school.

[ventana]

BS in Business

4 yrs in USAF as Jet Crew Chief (took prereq's and MCAT for med school but never got in)

MBA

Tried business world (yuk)

PA school

PA

Masters in PA at Nebraska

 

Waiting for the PA-MD bridge for IM (see tag line below)

[haeriphos]

BS in Information Technology

13 years in IT

5 years as police reserve officer w/ first responder training (volunteer -- thinking about LE as a career)

Went to a cardiac arrest one night and loved it (not the fact that she was arresting... you know what I mean)

Got my EMT-B, left the cop gig, volunteered with EMS for three years

Did two years of science pre-reqs for school while in EMS

Now a PA-S and loving the science, puzzle solving, and challenge of it

 

Knowing basic patient care skills like taking vitals and understanding basic physiology and pathophysiology will go a LONG way towards making life in school easier. And I'm talking BASIC skills here -- not RN-level stuff. That would also help but it seems that the foundational items are the most challenging for people without a medical background.