PA school is essentially broken into a year of didactic classroom study, followed by a year of clinical rotations. The basic concept allows a foundation of medical knowledge based on study through the first year to support the student as they move through their clinical year. I personally would prefer the two years to be mixed, but without prior medical experience, the current curriculum and organization of PA school is appropriate. Not all students have a medical background, and honestly, being a medic in the military, or a nurse, will not prepare you to function as a PA without the didactic portion. There is a ridiculous amount of information they cram into that first year, it is impossible to retain it all, but what resides in the memory gives you the basic principle and foundation for what an individual will need for clinical rotations and eventual employment as a certified PA.
Now, I had taken science courses, Chemistry - 4 semesters (3 introductory/general, 1 organic), Biology (3 semesters - introductory/general/cell), Anatomy (2 semesters - intro to anat/physiology, and human anatomy plus human physiology), all with labs, but I wasn't really expecting what PA school threw at me once I got there. Hell, during the first semester of PA school we had Pathophysiology, with all my science background you would think this class would be easily managed. Not so, it was very demanding and difficult. I knew from the start that PA school would be very difficult, especially with trying to devote time to my wife and kids also.
I have decided to not include the personal nature of my struggles in PA school in this blog, those struggles are detailed in my book (Combat Support "The True Burden Of Sacrifice") and I feel that writing about them once is enough. Needless to say the first year of PA school was difficult, it was difficult for me to maintain the grades asked of me, and it was difficult for me to keep my sanity as a student to try and get through the first year with the knowledge I needed to continue.
For anyone interested in PA school, I have a couple of tips:
1. Be prepared to do nothing but devote your time to study, this is vital to building a strong medical foundation
2. Try not to allow other aspects of your life to sway you from devoting the time you need to studying, many students have families, it is important to continue to be a mother or father, but make sure you have a good 2 hours a night to devote to increasing your knowledge.
3. If you struggle, ask for help, from fellow students, or from faculty, regardless of your delusions, no one is interested in seeing you fail.
4. If you are young, 25 years or younger, and your have the appropriate GPA and can score well on the MCAT. Apply to medical school, we need more physicians, and as great as the PA profession has become, you are not a doctor, nor will you ever be one with a PA degree.
5. Dedication, motivation, persistence, all will benefit you, and always get back up when you get knocked down.
Now, I had taken science courses, Chemistry - 4 semesters (3 introductory/general, 1 organic), Biology (3 semesters - introductory/general/cell), Anatomy (2 semesters - intro to anat/physiology, and human anatomy plus human physiology), all with labs, but I wasn't really expecting what PA school threw at me once I got there. Hell, during the first semester of PA school we had Pathophysiology, with all my science background you would think this class would be easily managed. Not so, it was very demanding and difficult. I knew from the start that PA school would be very difficult, especially with trying to devote time to my wife and kids also.
I have decided to not include the personal nature of my struggles in PA school in this blog, those struggles are detailed in my book (Combat Support "The True Burden Of Sacrifice") and I feel that writing about them once is enough. Needless to say the first year of PA school was difficult, it was difficult for me to maintain the grades asked of me, and it was difficult for me to keep my sanity as a student to try and get through the first year with the knowledge I needed to continue.
For anyone interested in PA school, I have a couple of tips:
1. Be prepared to do nothing but devote your time to study, this is vital to building a strong medical foundation
2. Try not to allow other aspects of your life to sway you from devoting the time you need to studying, many students have families, it is important to continue to be a mother or father, but make sure you have a good 2 hours a night to devote to increasing your knowledge.
3. If you struggle, ask for help, from fellow students, or from faculty, regardless of your delusions, no one is interested in seeing you fail.
4. If you are young, 25 years or younger, and your have the appropriate GPA and can score well on the MCAT. Apply to medical school, we need more physicians, and as great as the PA profession has become, you are not a doctor, nor will you ever be one with a PA degree.
5. Dedication, motivation, persistence, all will benefit you, and always get back up when you get knocked down.
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