Slc215 Posted May 21, 2013 Share Posted May 21, 2013 Hello everyone, I am a current PA student finishing up my clinical rotations and I graduate in December 2013. I was wondering if anyone could give me some input on the starting salary for an entry level PA who just passed the PANCE Exam and who has no PA experience. Perhaps you yourself just landed your first job, or you know a PA who did, and you could shed some light on the topic. I know a lot of it depends on what specialty area, where in the United States, ect... but I am trying to get some feedback and prepare now, so when all my mounting bills and loans start to come due I have an idea of where I may stand financially. I am looking specifically for entry level PA salary for the Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater area and in orthopedics/orthopedic surgery, but I would also be curious to see the entry level salary for other specialty areas in that same general region. That being said, anyone that has any info on entry level PA salaries for those who just passed the PANCE Exam, in any specialty, anywhere in the United States, that could be helpful as well. I myself actually do have some orthopedic experience, just not as a PA. I worked as an athletic trainer for approximately the last 10 years, with the last 3 years of the 8 working for an orthopedic surgeon. I worked roughly 60-70% of the time in the office in the capacity much like a LPN/MA would, and the remaining 30-40% of my time I performed sports medicine/clinical outreach to local high school/college sporting events. I am not sure if this experience could help with negotiations of salary for an orthopedic PA position or not, but I am sure that it probably couldn’t hurt. Any advice or information would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance for any input that you might be able to give. Sean 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Savage Posted May 21, 2013 Share Posted May 21, 2013 I recently graduated last August and I landed my first job before I graduated, and out of state/network from where I graduated. 90K base salary, 5k sign on bonus, and trauma call/after hours surgical case bonus (averages about 10-20K a year) General and Vascular Surgery, Oregon, No prior experience in any surgery, prior military medic and critical care technician. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted May 21, 2013 Moderator Share Posted May 21, 2013 75-85 is a typical starting range for a new grad depending on specialty and location with a bump to 80-90 in 2 yrs or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator LT_Oneal_PAC Posted May 21, 2013 Moderator Share Posted May 21, 2013 I've seen new grads getting close to 90k for ortho in my area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator LT_Oneal_PAC Posted May 21, 2013 Moderator Share Posted May 21, 2013 I've seen new grads getting close to 90k for ortho in my area. Now that's including call I believe though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cupojava Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 I know of one PA in that area who graduated 2 years ago and was offered 86K starting salary right out of school. No experience. In Neurosurgery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lov2xlr8 Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 Location, location, location, but my classmate is 1:1 with Orthopod in NYC, first job out, works 40h week (sometimes less), 2 OR days (scopes/totals) and 3 clinic no call, started at 96k + bonuses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slc215 Posted May 23, 2013 Author Share Posted May 23, 2013 These are all great examples, keep them coming, and please be sure to give the city/location so we can get a better idea of the normal range for those areas. You don't necessarily need to put the exact city if you don't want to but an estimated area would be helpful. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted May 23, 2013 Moderator Share Posted May 23, 2013 there are some very high new grad salaries out there bit most of them are either 1. rural 2. lots of hrs 3. involve call. one of my students with no prior em background(she was an MA) got an em job right out of school doing 14 twelve hr shifts/mo in Idaho for 110k. definitely not typical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FSUnoles Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 there are some very high new grad salaries out there bit most of them are either 1. rural 2. lots of hrs 3. involve call. one of my students with no prior em background(she was an MA) got an em job right out of school doing 14 twelve hr shifts/mo in Idaho for 110k. definitely not typical. lol i would imagine 110k would go along way in Idaho. shoot id take that and start paying down loans 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunny2spot Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 I started in EM 1 yr ago fresh out of school, no experience at $50/hr plus bonuses, approx. 150hrs/month, $5k CME in New England. That's gone up to $55-57/hr with a new RVU-based model. I got other offers, one in primary care in Boston for $75k. Haggled my heart out and got them up to $76k. The AAPA salary report is a HUGE key to this whole process. I felt confident negotiating and eventually walking away from terrible offers because I knew the numbers down to the smallest detail (specialty, region, yrs of experience, etc). Totally worth $50 or whatever it costs. Split it with some friends and pass it around ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slc215 Posted June 7, 2013 Author Share Posted June 7, 2013 Thanks to everyone for taking the time to share your experiences, I know that all the new PA's who are getting ready to enter the workforce appreciate it. If anyone else has more examples of salaries/location/specialties for fresh PA's right out of school, please share them with us. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogLovingPA Posted June 8, 2013 Share Posted June 8, 2013 I am a new graduate starting in urgent care in SE Virginia at $45/hr, working three 12hr shifts/wk. This offer was significantly greater than other offers I received for this area in other specialties. Some offers I've heard floating among my classmates - $75K (after haggling) for pulmonary/critical care and $68K in gyn onc. SE Virginia is known to be lower than national averages in salary (strong military presence is rumored to be the cause) however in general, I would say in general the tone among my classmates is one of slight disappointment in offers they are receiving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delco714 Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 I'm making $90k plus $20k a year in loan repayment in Bangor, Maine (plus loads of other other bennies). Urology office, surgery assisting, er consults 40hr a week max. call 24 hr -one Saturday every 4-6 week (built into pay)- only need to round in the morning and very rarely come in to ed or OR after you go home after you round Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slc215 Posted June 23, 2013 Author Share Posted June 23, 2013 Thanks to everyone who has posted to this thread, all the insight is greatly appreciated. I will continue to check this thread from time to time to see if any new posts get added. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator ventana Posted June 24, 2013 Moderator Share Posted June 24, 2013 Join aapa as a student. Buy salary survey. Get all your questions answered 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAS2014 Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 A friend of mine started in emergency medicine in Columbia, Missouri (college town) right out of residency at $95,000 + productivity bonuses + sign on bonus + paid malpractice + free health insurance + plenty of other incentives. Her contract also allows her to do PRN shifts within the UM hospital system for $70/hour. Sounded like a good deal to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElleThePAC Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 Hi Everyone, This is just based on various employers I've talked to. Our local EM groups in West Central Florida range anywhere from $45 an hour with few benefits (malpractice, 401k, and a high deductible health insurance, no CMEs or paid time off) to $52/hour with full benefits that are absolutely amazing. I understand that there are productivity bonuses, and salary increases every year (up to $5 an hour increase) From what I see the $52/hour group is much more competitive to get into due to a low turnover rate. The $45/hour ER groups tend to have a very high new grad turnover rate. Just my observation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcava17 Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 This is a great thread. Good info! By any chance does anyone know if these numbers are similar in Miami? Also, how should I go about asking PA's to shadow them? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 27, 2015 Moderator Share Posted October 27, 2015 This is a great thread. Good info! By any chance does anyone know if these numbers are similar in Miami? Also, how should I go about asking PA's to shadow them? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk salaries in florida tend to be low as there are many pa programs there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ERCat Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 I got a job as an EM PA (mainly working fast track to start) for 52/hr plus benefits (2000 CME, 401K after one year, and medical/dental/health with an HSA). That's what I ended up going with because they're huge on supervision and training their "midlevels" and that's exactly what I need. They do monthly workshops for procedure training and lectures, and they're sending me to a 3 day conference to learn procedures. So while the pay is at the low end for ER and there are no bonuses as far as I know for my first year, the learning experience makes up for it. It's like a quasi residency. The other job I was offered was in urgent care... Base salary was 85K but he made his PAs do a "training salary" equivalent to 70K for the first 1-2 months (ugh) and that had the benefits like the job listed above, plus free care for me and my family at the urgent care. I turned that job down because I really wanted to do ER. Lastly I was offered a per diem job in a rehab for 55/hr. Since it was per diem no benefits were offered. I am in a big city in AZ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ERCat Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 I should have noted above that I did have to pay for my licensing and DEA although I can take it out of my CME fund. Also full occurrence malpractice for all offers above included. Get occurrence or claims with tail. Some of my classmates offers (also new grads in a big city in AZ) - Neuro ICU PA: 85K for working about 21 days a month for shifts "as long as it takes to get the job done," plus being on call occasionally... Average benefits and malpractice included - Men's clinic PA (mostly a testosterone clinic): 100K working 4 8 hour days per week, don't know the benefits but I am sure full benefits and malpractice - Pain management PA: 110K plus 5K sign on bonus (!!!!!) for a 4 day work week -- dang! And full benefits and malpractice - Internal medicine PA: 80K plus bonus based on productivity (I think 5% of procedures or something like that), full benefits but only claims made malpractice - "6 month ER Fellowship" PA: working as a PA in ER with heavy supervision but no real didactic; 40 hour work weeks at 30/hr for 3 months then 40/hr for the last 3 months... Then hopefully she gets hired but no guarantees. Health insurance offered but no 401K. Also a new grad friend working in Southern CA started in urgent care for 45/hr for the first 6 months and then 50/hr from then on... Don't know benefits. Seems low for the area... Much higher cost of living than here in AZ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas5814 Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 Hello everyone, I am a current PA student finishing up my clinical rotations and I graduate in December 2013. I was wondering if anyone could give me some input on the starting salary for an entry level PA who just passed the PANCE Exam and who has no PA experience. Perhaps you yourself just landed your first job, or you know a PA who did, and you could shed some light on the topic. I know a lot of it depends on what specialty area, where in the United States, ect... but I am trying to get some feedback and prepare now, so when all my mounting bills and loans start to come due I have an idea of where I may stand financially. I am looking specifically for entry level PA salary for the Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater area and in orthopedics/orthopedic surgery, but I would also be curious to see the entry level salary for other specialty areas in that same general region. That being said, anyone that has any info on entry level PA salaries for those who just passed the PANCE Exam, in any specialty, anywhere in the United States, that could be helpful as well. I myself actually do have some orthopedic experience, just not as a PA. I worked as an athletic trainer for approximately the last 10 years, with the last 3 years of the 8 working for an orthopedic surgeon. I worked roughly 60-70% of the time in the office in the capacity much like a LPN/MA would, and the remaining 30-40% of my time I performed sports medicine/clinical outreach to local high school/college sporting events. I am not sure if this experience could help with negotiations of salary for an orthopedic PA position or not, but I am sure that it probably couldn’t hurt. Any advice or information would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance for any input that you might be able to give. Sean My first job after I graduated I was making 44k. Well I was on active duty and it was 1990. :-) If you can get the AAPA salary report it will give you an abundance if info based on location, specialty, and years of experience. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
late_bloomer Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 My first job was Urgent care and got about 42 an hour, moved to a different city and still working Urgent care and is about 60-65 an hour depending on which place.(major city) Other areas I have applied for similar job is about 45-50 an hour (small city), Location makes a difference. I drive far to work my 12 hour shifts. Highest paid hourly jobs I know of is ER at about 75 with maybe top at 80-85 but those are not very desirable jobs, work you like a dog.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boatswain2PA Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 I was too late in replying to an email so I just missed $140/hr for a 24 hr shift over Thanksgiving. Location makes all the difference in the world. Not just for what you make, but also how your treated and cost of living. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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