I am trying to decide on a school to attend next year and my top four are Villanova, Quinnipiac, Northeastern and Loyola Maryland. Quinnipiac is a six year PA program that was hard to get into. I would be in the business school at Villanova and Northeastern. Loyola I am undecided as a major, but I was admitted to the honors program. I am torn between whether I want to go into medicine or business. Loyola and Quinnipiac would both cost me around 40k per year and Villanova and Northeastern would cost about 65k per year. Thanks so much for the help! Any opinions are greatly appreciated!
If you want to be a PA it’s a very easy decision in my opinion. Q with the guaranteed track and cost savings.
Plus they just opened s law school and have upped their game in d 1 hockey. A lot of good things happening there
If you want something else then the decision is different. What is you plan?
To start with, how do you and your family plan to pay 40k each year, and where would the additional money come from for the places that would cost 65k? It is entirely possible that none of these are affordable for you.
That said, if you start the 6 year PA program, and decide to change majors, would you be able to find one that you like at Quinnipiac? If you are undecided overall, the honors program at Loyola would probably give you the most flexibility and support.
At all of the schools I will be taking a $5,500 student loan each year. My family has agreed to do their best to pay the remainder of the cost each year for my undergraduate education. I would be responsible for graduate school.
I am interested in becoming a PA but I am not 100% sure.
No one is ever 100 percent sure. Many students change their mind. Only you can decide what feels right for you.
Based on that, do you think I would be better off choosing to major in business and then always having the option to switch to a premedical or science major?
Which Loyola? With grad school goals, I would not recommend either school for 65K+ a year, unless your parents could pay for it.
Loyola Maryland
If you want to be a pa it’s worth the extra money imho. The pa market place is very hot. Starting salaries are usually terrific and two I know personally where nearly 6 figures starting. And employement is nearly guaranteed.
If you don’t have the correct pre health program of study it is difficult to get these spots in grad school. You can’t easily move from business to pa school for two years. It’s more specialized akin to a nursing progression.
The starting salary is attractive, but I still feel like I might want to explore other career paths before jumping into a 6 year program. As great as the salary is for PA don’t you think that after a few years in a career in Business if I were to choose to go that route I would be able to make a comparable salary?
Maybe. 100k a year is not unattainable but not after a few years unless you are in tech finance perhaps traditional commercial banking or high end sales position.
If you’re a teacher or work for a not for profit you may never make six figures or until you reach leadership positions a bit further down the line
But there are a so many choices and paths. Don’t follow a path exclusively for the money. If you want flexibility definitely look at some of your other options. My only Loyola comment vs the others is the location in Baltimore is not as inviting as some others for off campus activities
Villanova has on campus activities that I am interested in that some of the other schools don’t have such as a club swim team and a band. I live in the New York are and I hope to be able to find a job here after college.
Villanova is strong in the NE
As others mentioned, if your parents can afford 100K extra for Villanova/Northeastern is important. If they can’t I see it as really only having Loyola as your only option. If you aren’t sure about being a PA, I would eliminate Quinnipiac. You seem like someone that would benefit strongly from exploring in the first year or two. Loyola seems to be the best cost/academic option in that case.
My parents would be able to afford it, but it is a lot of money to spend!
ELMPA at Quinnipiac has a 8~9% admit rate and a 50% in yield. This is the highest ranked direct PA program. The competition for the entry for Quinnipiac PA at graduate level is about 25/1000.