Hello there, I’m currently a high school senior interested in becoming a physician assistant. I would like to know how I can work my way up there. I planned on attending a 4 year college majoring in Nursing then going on to med school. However, I’m not sure if that’s a good plan. I live in California and would prefer to attend colleges within the state. I would like to know what’s a great major to pursue in order to become a PA. And what schools are great to apply for in California regarding my interests. What’s the average tuition?
The fastest, least stressful course to PA school is through a direct admit program. You apply to direct admit programs as a senior in high school and are admitted into both the undergrad college and then will continue on to complete the master’s degree program in physician assistant studies. Some direct admit program are compressed 5 year programs that allow you to complete both your undergrad and master degrees in 5 years.
The other route is complete an undergrad degree in any major while fulfilling the admission requirements for PA school, then apply to PA graduate programs.
Admission coursework requirements vary by program, but are similar to those required for pre-med.
Here’s a list of accredited PA programs;
http://www.arc-pa.org/acc_programs/
You should go to the admission website for any schools you’re interested in and read about the specific requirements it has for admission.
Cost will depend on which program you attend and what kind of program you attend.
If you’re thinking of going to college to get your nursing degree, you may also want to consider becoming a nurse practitioner (NP). A nurse practitioner has a scope of practice similar to a that of a PA, but with slightly more autonomy in some states.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/07/AR2011010704936.html