Direct entry/accelerated Physician Assistant programs: they’re CRAZY competitive.
I’m trying to manage expectations here, please lay it on me. What stats are necessary to be competitive for admission to accelerated PA programs with guaranteed admission straight from high school? Other than high GPA/SAT, what should a teenager focus on to make themselves stand out/be competitive? My student is currently a sophomore in HS.
If you’ve been through this process before, any intel you can share regarding guaranteed direct entry accelerated PA programs is appreciated! (*assuming the minimum GPA is attainted during the pre-professional stage.)
I’d recommend some PA shadowing so your student can become familiar with what a PA can and cannot do, and what a typical day-in-the-life is like so the student will be able to write a convincing narrative essay about “Why PA?”. This essay is a requirement for just about every combined PA program in the country.
Getting some volunteer hours in medical settings is useful, but often difficult since may hospitals and clinics require volunteers to be 18 or older. Nursing homes are usually more willing to allow younger students. Summer camps for disabled children are another place to check. My D2 volunteered with the Child’s Life program at a local hospital as a rising HS senior (she was 17)–so another place to check. Junior EMT (or regular EMT if your state allows under 18 to get certified) is another option.
Non medical community service will demonstrate their commitment to helping others, especially if they volunteer with disadvantaged populations–soup kitchen, food pantries, reading to recently immigrated children or children in low performing (Title 1) schools in after school programs, Big Brother/Big Sister teen volunteer program (my high schooler did this!), etc. Personal service to others, not fund raising.
Make sure the science grades are rock solid, esp chemistry. Some AP science classes if possible.
The link below lists which programs are competitive for advancement to the professional portion of the program and which are guaranteed.
Be aware that most guaranteed programs not only require a minimum GPA, but also a minimum GRE score and completing a minimum number of direct, hands-on patient contact hours.
I just talked to a friend whose daughter is in her last year of the direct entry PA program at Kings College in PA. I would caution you to be sure this is the path you want to take, because it is a long, challenging one. More than once, her daughter has questioned whether or not she could continue. Along the way, several of her daughter’s friends have failed to make the next level of the program because of GPA. Not only are they required to meet the program’s GPA, but have to compete against classmates’ GPAs if there is a cutoff on how many people can continue on.
Conversely, my own daughter has 5 close friends who are PAs. Every one of them did the traditional 4-year undergrad in a science, took a year to get clinical experience, and then went on to a traditional PA program. This route gives you the chance to make sure PA is for you and more of an opportunity to switch gears if it is not for you. Just something to consider.
Thank you! All solid advice, I appreciate it. Covid has made it harder on the volunteer front (local hospitals not eager for young teen volunteers, won’t allow the shadowing, etc.) Next summer my student will be 16 so hopefully more doors will be open.
I saw that link/list was last updated over 2 years ago and was wondering if there’s something more recent that I’m missing.
I was wondering how hard it is to maintain the required GPA’s, but then I also figured if you can’t maintain a 3.2 with a B in science classes, what are your chances of being admitted to a PA program the more traditional way after earning a bachelors? Aren’t the PA programs crazy competitive and require near perfect college GPA’s?
The competing against classmates is the part I’m wanting to avoid. We’re looking for a more collaborative environment where the school doesn’t over-enroll and has space for everyone who maintains the GPA and gets the required contact hours. I guess Kings College comes off the list!
Why PA and not an MD or NP or other path into a medical field? As a sophomore in HS this seems too soon to make such a decision: I recommend keeping options open a lot longer.
My future daughter-in-law just started her PA program in July. She did the traditional 4 years undergrad, gap year, now in a 28 month PA program. She was able to get accepted to several PA programs including her top choice. She did have a good GPA undergrad. She was considering med school and had the credentials but when her MCAT was cancelled during COVID she did some thinking and realized she actually wanted to be a PA not an MD/DO. For her situation the 4 years of school plus internships and residency wasn’t worth it and what a PA does is fine for her. So you can get in even if you don’t go the direct route. If you are absolutely sure look into it. My son did a guaranteed admission to vet school out of high school, did 3 years undergrad and is in his third year of vet school now - so that path worked great for him. Just think of the options and what you want. Good luck!
Work-life balance. PA has more flexibility to change between subspecialties and less debt, fewer years of schooling, more options for working flexible schedules.
While NP & PA in practice do much the same thing and are sometimes used interchangeably, their training is different. NPs are trained first to be nurses and come from that approach while the didactic portion of PA training is closer to the approach of medical school.
Your student would have to look hard at each program and see what the GPA requirements are, as well as the culture (competitive/collaborative - my guess is that most programs are a combination of both). If they intend to go into a medical field, they better be prepared for competition.
It may be that an undergrad direct-admit program is more competitive among the students because there are more rungs to climb along the way (my friend’s daughter was a direct admit to her program but didn’t “officially” get into the PA part of the program until after her sophomore year. And then there were additional academic hurdles each year after that. If she didn’t meet the requirements, she wouldn’t have advanced to the next level and would’ve been asked to withdraw from the program.) While in a traditional post-undergrad PA program, your student would be a “legit” admit from day one, and only have to meet the academic & clinical requirements from that day on.
Also, lots of people are becoming PA’s. My daughter’s friends struggled a bit to find their first jobs (despite coming from impressive PA programs) and couldn’t be picky about the specialty (apparently everyone wants dermatology). So, job saturation is something to think about, since your student is only a sophomore in HS.
ETA - your student shouldn’t write off any program until they research it for themselves, visit the campus and speak to faculty/advisors.
Medicine has changed a lot: weekends are optional in many fields, call is shared, hospital coverage is done by hospitalists, who also have decent lives because they just do a set number of shifts per month. All of the private practice MDs I know have the same hours as PAs and NPs in their group but make much much more $, and also get to decide how the practice is run.
I know many MDs, including myself, who have great work -life balance these days, plus the ability to be more independent and in charge of patient management compared to a PA or an NP. I caution you against closing doors do an MD when your student is only a sophomore in HS.