Interview from TAPA Rep. from UTSW

Here's an interview with Monica from UTSW.

1) Why did you choose to be a PA?

I wanted to become a PA after I did an extensive amount of research my senior year of college.  I've wanted to go into medicine my entire life. I specifically chose becoming a PA because the career allows for so much flexibility. I think part of the challenge with health care is that people can become burnt out. I found a field that will let me provide care to people when they are the most vulnerable but in a way that doesn't restrict me and will give me the most opportunity for life learning. 

2) What did you do to prepare to apply?

I wrote about 10,000 copies of my personal statement and made my friends and family read them. 

I looked up each school I was applying to and read their mission statements and tried to find people I knew who went to the schools to ask about pros and cons. 

I read a lot on the PA boards online.  I read PA blogs (like this one!)

I looked up interview techniques and practiced. 

And I spent time really trying to understand myself and why this is the best fit for me. In order to show other people you are meant to do something you have to know it inside and out.

3) How many schools did you apply to and interview with? What were the interviews like? How did you choose UTSW?

I believe around 10 applications. I was granted 4 interviews but only attended 2. 

They were nerve-racking and exhilarating at the same time. Both were very different. 

UTSW interview consisted of MMI (multiple mini interviews not mult. mini infarctions). I think it's a great way to get to know the candidates. The interview was engaging and helped loosen my nerves quite a bit.

4) What has surprised you about UTSW's PA program so far?

What surprised me about PA school in general is how different everyone's experience is. Some people have time to travel almost every weekend; while others never stop studying because they enjoy it and soak up the most information that way. 

Personally it seemed like nothing stuck during the academic year and that all the hard work was going to be for naught. I was constantly comparing myself to everyone else.  However, it just took rotations to make me feel much more confident as a provider. 

5) Have you found any successful strategies for surviving the didactic portion of your program?

Support each other. The people in your class are the only people who will completely understand you because they are the ones who went through the exact same things as you, even if their view point is different. Your family and friends will understand and be supportive but your classmates will really know what you're talking about when you need to vent or when you need help understanding something in your academics and program. 

6) What's the coolest things you've done so far?

In life? I met a president in the oval office once that was pretty cool. I also spent a week helping crew the coast guard barque eagle, that was also really cool.  (brag brag brag)

In PA school? Helping to deliver a child at Parkland. - I don't have any desire to go into obstetrics but it was an incredible and life changing experience that I will most likely never have again.  

7) Any advice for future applicants other than good grades and shadowing?

Stay focused but also live your life. When we have that much drive and passion to reach our goals it's easy to become blinded to missing out on life or to put it off. I'm cheesy but it's true. Without balance we tend to lose ourselves; and the part that we lose could be the exact thing that makes you an incredible care provider. 

Experience as much as you can so that you really know yourself before choosing your future career. 

Interview with a PA-S from MCPHS

Here is an interview with a PA student from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Science and a PAEA SHP Fellow. 

1) Why did you choose to be a PA?

From working in biotech and healthcare operations, I knew I loved the medical industry, but I kept feeling a draw towards one-on-one patient care.  Originally I was going to become a doctor, however every doctor that I interacted with that was over the age of 40 told me the same thing.  "If I could do it all over again, I would have been a PA."  The PA life-work balance allowed providers to not burn out as easily.  That combined with the fluid transitions between specialties made me decide to instead become a PA.  It was the best decision I have ever made.

2) What did you do to prepare to apply?

Research, research, research.  I first pulled all my transcripts and updated my resume.  I used these things to create a "this is what I'm working with" folder.  Then I made a list of the top things I wanted in a PA program.  For me that was an active larger city, diverse clinical specialities, and a strong involvement with AAPA and professional organizations.  Then I purchased a "How to get into PA School" book and went through the list of schools one-by-one.  It took forever to figure out which programs I liked and match those with programs where I met their requirements. 

3) How many schools did you apply to and interview with? What were the interviews like? How did you choose MCPHS?

I applied to 10 schools.  One had a secondary application that did not appeal to me, so I withdrew my application for them.  Of the other nine schools, I was offered five interviews, and made it into three programs.  MCPHS had three things that greatly appealed to me; 

1) A student-life balance.  They have a three year program with longer winter and summer breaks.  I liked that because I wanted to keep some sense of my normal life while being in grad school.

2) They had a 99% PANCE pass rate and would not undergo reaccreditation until 2019.  To me, that said their curriculum was solid and trustworthy.

3) They were in Boston, located in the Longwood Medical area.  PA students at MCPHS-Boston took anatomy at Harvard Medical School and had some rotation spots at Brigham and Women's hospital.  Those are well recognized institutions that I trusted with my education.

As for interviews, I had everything from five faculty members in front of me firing questions to group scenarios.  The weirdest question I was asked was, "Give me three uses for a pencil other than writing."  The best question I was asked was, "If you couldn't be in the medical profession at all, what would you do with the rest of your life?"  The best way to prepare was using the PA Student Forums and running through the top 100 interview questions.  You don't need to know the exact questions they will ask you, but you do need to be prepared to think on your feet and sell what you are working with.

4) What has surprised you about MCPHS's PA program so far?

MCPHS-Boston raised their class size from 75 to 100 for my year.  They are capping it at 100 from now on, but it was a big adjustment to arrive thinking there would be 75 people and instead see 100.

That said, I am very surprised at how much I like the larger class size.  When you're sick or fatigued, you can hide in the back of lectures and just take in the information.  When you are jazzed about a special lecture, you can sit up front and interact with the professor.  Plus, with 100 students, you are guaranteed to find personalities that match yours.  I am very fortunate to have my study group.  There are six of us and they are my family.  No one in class knows how we were ranked in acceptance, so every day I am thankful that all six of us arrived here on campus to find each other. 

5) Have you found any successful strategies for surviving the didactic portion of your program?

Use the cloud to your advantage.  My study group shares a google drive folder where we split up the task of creating lecture notes.  My class has a shared Dropbox account to share notes between study groups.  We also have a Quizlet account to share our electronic flashcards.  I study flashcards on my phone on the bus or at the gym.

My study group is my real savior though.  I have arrived at my peer's house on a Friday night and left on Monday morning at 8am to take the exam.  We literally just kept reading through our notes and teaching each other for 72 hours straight.  Our breaks were workout videos and doing a push up for every flashcard you got wrong.

6) What's the coolest things you've done so far?

Being the student editor for First Rounds, the student written article section of PA Profession, has had some awesome perks.  Especially when I went to the AAPA Conference in May 2014.  Not only was I able to meet the entire AAPA editorial and marketing staff, but they wound up using some of the AAPA Boston student members as models in their conference banners.  So imagine my excitement when the man whose books have spawned my interest in professional writing, Atul Gewande, got up to speak, and my face was on the banner behind him!  It was at that moment that I realized, even as a first year PA student, I was a big part of this profession already.

7) Any advice for future applicants other than good grades and shadowing?

Talk to every 45+ year old person you meet and ask them if they are happy in their career and personal life.  Everyone is going to make mistakes and have regrets in their life, but learning from everyone else's mistakes will skyrocket your life.  For me, that was talking to everyone I knew in the medical profession in all areas; nursing, operations, security, etc.  It not only has helped me develop my career path, but it has helped me develop my personal life.  Plus, the more people you meet in life, the more experiences you hear about, so the more interesting you will be when you sit down at your PA interviews.

PAEA Student Health Policy Fellowship

Hello! I just got back from our nation's capital where I was able to participate in the PAEA Student Health Policy Fellowship. If you don't know, the PAEA is the national association that focuses on PA education.

Here's a video interview with Marc Geller, PA-S from UT Pan American and myself discussing our time in D.C.

Interview with a UNTHSC PA-S

Here is an interview with a second year from UNTHSC.

1.       Why do you want to be a PA?

-        I chose to enter the PA profession because of my experience while working for a PA. I was able to witness firsthand the respect patients have for their PA. I heard from several patients that they felt a PA spends more time with them during their appointment than the doctor normally would. I really enjoy working with people, and medicine so I thought the PA profession would be a perfect match for me.

2.       What did you do for health care experience before starting PA school?

-        Right after graduating from undergrad, I worked as a transporter in a local hospital in Lubbock, TX. Basically I would transport patients via wheelchair or hospital bed to and from imaging and procedures in the hospital. I was able to interact with the patients, which I enjoyed very much, but I was using this job to get my foot in the door into another medical setting. While working in the hospital I asked a PA who worked in the hospital, if I could shadow her. She told me where to go to contact her supervisor and I ended up shadowing a different PA in an Internal Medicine clinic on the afternoons that I could off work early. One weekend I asked the PA if I could take her out to lunch as a thank you and to pick her brain about the application process and school. While at lunch she mentioned me getting a job at the office as a MA. She talked to the office manager and the physician who owned the practice and I was hired as the PA’s personal scribe and a MA, while not scribing. So basically I went into all the appointments with the PA and typed her notes in EMR. Needless to say, I had an amazing experience prior to starting PA school and it prepared me well.

3.       How did you pick UNTHSC? What was the interview experience like?

-        After applying to eight different schools, five in Texas, one in New Mexico, one in Arizona and one in Colorado, I was offered interviews at 5 of the schools. My first interview was extremely nerve wrecking. I have a good friend who was currently in PA school and her advice to me was just to be myself. I could not have asked for better advice. I was myself at my first interview and two days later I got a call from the school offering me a seat in the class. I later went on to interview at 4 more schools. With each interview I would research the schools and find information about the class size, course schedule, PANCE pass rates, and faculty turnover rates and compared the information across the schools. My interview experience at UNTHSC was great. It was a very welcoming environment and I witnessed the camaraderie amongst the students. It was a place that I knew I would fit in well at. In the end, I chose UNTHSC because of its reputation, location and because it was close to family.

4.       What study strategies have worked for you in PA school? 

-        This is an excellent question, that I tend ask myself regularly. Finding the perfect studying technique has been difficult for me. Some classes, I am able to just read the power points and soak up the information. Other classes, I like to convert the power points into handouts because I don’t care to stare at the computer screen hours upon hours. I am a very visual and audio learner, so what I have found most beneficial when I am able to, is to preview the lecture the night before to become familiar with the material and then when I am in lecture and listening to the professor explain the material, it’s like going over the material for the second time. Unfortunately, not all professors are good about posting the power points until class time.

5.       Any advice for future applicants?

-        I think the best piece of advice I could give future applicants is to get your applications turned in as soon as you can. Once you turn in your CASPA application, start working on secondary applications that are available to you. Stay on top of what material you still need to submit for each school by what date. When it comes time for interviews, be yourself! The application and interviewing process is long, keep your head up and stay confident.

Update

It's been too long! School has kept me busy, as well as life in general. I'll have some more interviews coming this summer, starting with another student interview tomorrow. Thanks for reading and be sure to let me know if you have any questions or requests!

TAPA Fall Conference Video Interview #4

Just in time for the Spring TAPA conference this weekend, here is my interview with Nupur from UT Pan Am at the Fall 2013 conference.

Health Care Experience

Health Care Experience is a big part of your application. Many programs even require a minimum amount of hours you need before applying. I had a few friends from my class tell me about their previous health care experience so you can see some of the variety represented in our program and have an idea of the variety of experiences out there. 




Before school, I worked in a clinic with doctors of all specialties getting CTs and MRIs approved with insurance companies. I learned about the MANY different types of insurances and what criteria they look for before they will approve your imaging study. I learned how important it is for a practitioner to be detailed in their clinical notes in order to make it easier for the people getting the approvals. I also gained experience navigating EMR software, because I had to look at patient labs, previous imaging studies, current meds, and clinical notes.




I worked as an EMT/Paramedic in between graduating from undergrad and getting into PA school.  I also completed a 2-year community college certificate program while I worked to upgrade my abilities/title/pay early on.  I also worked my last year as an ER technician.  For me, it helped cement that I wanted to be involved in hands-on medicine (not research) as I had no previous experience in which to defend any post-grad education.  It’s helping me immensely with PA school in the functional aspects of it, such as feeling comfortable with patients and skills I’ve already encountered (eg: VS, interviewing), and some knowledge background, particularly on emergency-related health care which covers a huge variety of trauma and disease.




I worked as an MA at a sports medicine and orthopedic office in Bryan. As an MA, I took histories and vitals, ordered xrays, took out staples and stitches and cleaned incisions/wounds, helped put on casts (and got to use the awesome cast saw to cut them off!!), ordered, scheduled, and authorized MRIs, CTs, arthrograms, and surgeries, wrote orders for PT, sent/called in prescriptions... The doctors that I worked for are the team physicians for A&M athletics, and one of them is a renowned orthopedic surgeon, so I got to meet a large variety of patients, from Olympians and college athletes to 90 year olds with DJD. Working there helped me gain a bigger idea of what working in a medical office involved and how to be the best you can for your patients, and I was able to be taught by some of the most passionate and caring physicians! 




I didn’t know I was interested in medicine until I had the opportunity to work in the medical world as a pharmaceutical sales rep.  I think it helped me prepare for school  in a number of ways.  First, having 8 years of real-world experience after college has definitely prepared me for this program.  I feel I have a mature outlook to a post-grad program like this from being out in the professional work force for years.  Second, I have learned a lot about the healthcare system in general.  There are many facets of healthcare other than just the provider-patient interactions.  The hospital/system dynamics and politics, the payer influences, and the overall business side of healthcare is often overlooked by those going into medicine.  My experiences have helped me gain a deeper understanding of these aspects.  As far as the pharmaceutical understanding and disease state knowledge, I definitely am more prepared for certain disease state blocks and pharmacology drug class sections of the program.  That being said, this program continues to open my eyes to the amount of knowledge that I have yet to learn.

Once I decided to pursue a career in healthcare, my first step was to seek out shadowing opportunities.  Through family friends that were doctors and pre-healthcare organizations in undergrad I was able to find opportunities to shadow orthopedic surgery, spinal surgery (office visits only, no OR), family medicine, and emergency department.  While in the ED, the physician was complaining about the transition to EMR and the pressure he was feeling from administration to utilize a tablet to document patient visits.  I convinced him to let me give it a try just on a whim, and it eventually morphed into a scribe position for the remainder of that semester.  

I also worked at a company that did zip-line canopy tours.  This was not a healthcare job, but I did all I could to turn it into one.  For example, I initiated first-aid training sessions, outfitted the rescue bags with better first-aid equipment, and updated all emergency action plan protocols.  I believe you can show your passion for health and patient care regardless of the job you work, so don't be discouraged if it's hard to find HCE.

My most recent job before PA school was working as a scribe/MA for an orthopedic and spinal surgery office.  I found this job by relentlessly applying to every place I could find, until I got a hit from a Craigslist post.  I would not have landed this (paid) position had I not had the previous experience scribing in the ED (unpaid). Take any job, even if it's unpaid, that gets your foot in the door and prove to them that you can contribute to their practice. I sent countless letters of interest to any doctor's office I could find to ask about open positions...never hurts to ask.





I worked as a clinical dietitian prior to coming to PA school which gave me the opportunity to work with interdisciplinary teams including doctors, PA's, NP's, social workers, speech therapist, occupational therapist and physical therapists. It made me realize the unique position PA's are in and the respected relationships they build with not only patients but the interdisciplinary team. My job also gave me great experience in interviewing, educating patient's, communicating with nurses/physicians, charting, writing orders and conducting research.





My healthcare experience was really varied prior to entering school.  In high school I worked as a hospital volunteer, mainly in the ER, so I got to see a lot early (this was 20 years ago before things got really tight regarding PHI).  During college years, I worked in a small town as ER triage and registration and as a 911 dispatcher which was tied with a local "lifealert" system for seniors.  After getting my master's degree in exercise physiology, I worked as a research assistant at a very unique human physiology lab (http://www.ieemphd.org/) that not only conducts experimental research studies, but provides clinical care.  At this job I worked with healthy individuals of all ages and various patients (ex: seniors with HTN, young women with POTS, pregnant women).  Also, I was able to work as a inside chamber attendant for the hyperbaric medicine unit at the IEEM.  Here I assisted in the care of patients that have wounds that are not healing well (diabetic or post surgical), post radiology patients, scuba divers with the bends, and those suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning. I got direct PA shadowing experience with an ortho I personally saw who has an ortho PA working for him, and two PA acquaintances I have that work in the ER and with a cardiologist's office respectively.  All worked at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas.