Hello,
I am going into my third year of undergrad. I am a Biology major with intentions of becoming a Physician Assistant. So far I owe $15,840 in loans. I do not plan on applying to PA school right after I finish undergrad. I plan on working as probably a Licensed Practical Nurse or a Phlebotomist for a few years then applying. I plan on paying off these loans monthly. Would this take a long time to pay back?
Well…if you have two more years…you will have about $32,000 in loans…right? Pay beck would be about $350-400 a month for 10 years…but it all depends on the terms of your loan.
Do you already have phlebotomist or LPN training and license? If not, when will you do that…and how much will that cost?
@thumper1 Actually $15,840 is how much I would owe after this year. I plan on taking out a loan for $4,500 this upcoming year which would leave me owing $15,840 after this upcoming year. I do not currently have phlebotomist or LPN training. What I planned on doing was maybe working as a Medical Scribe for at least two years, and while I’m doing that take the necessary courses to obtain an LPN or Phlebotomist license. I’m not sure how much that would cost.
What will your TOTAL loans be for undergrad?
Is there a community college where you can do LPN or phlebotomist training? Maybe you should look into,the requirements…and costs of these programs to help you make a more informed decision.
@thumper1 I estimate my total loans for undergrad would probably be about $25,000. And I haven’t thought about doing the training at a community college. That will definitely save some money. I will definitely look into that.
Why aren’t you applying to be a PA immediately?
Normally I would say keep debt free but a PA has potential of a great salary which would pay off debt easily.
@gpuf has a good point…plus while you are IN PA school…your loans would be in deferral.
@gouf78 @thumper1 The reason why I’m not applying immediately is because with PA school, you have to have a certain amount of Healthcare hours to be a competitve applicant. The more hours you have, the better. That is why I stated I would like to work either as an LPN or a Phlebotomist for a few years before applying so I can have the hours and that experience. Also, when you’re in grad school, your loan payments are postponed until you’re finished? I didn’t know that.
If you continue in grad school…your loans will be deferred.
If you do something else after undergrad…your loans will come due 6 months after graduation…and you will begin repayment.
Not all PA Programs require Direct Patient Care (DPC) hours. Also, I know a number of current PA students who were CNAs during undergrad and got the DPC hours (~2K hours) as a CNA. It is fairly easy to become a CNA and a lot less expensive than pursuing a LPN/Phlebotomist certification.
A number of vocational high schools also offers LPN programs. OP, what state do you live in?
CMA would be quicker than LPN and probably nicer work. Not CNA IMO. Not if you can choose.
I live in Michigan. @Jamrock411
Regular home care jobs that do not require a CNA certification also count as contact hours. Get a summer job or weekend during school job now and the hours will add up. My kid got her hours that way.
Or EMT training if it is low cost.
An LPN program is a one year, full time program. It is not a very cost effective way to get direct patient care hours. CNA certification could be earned over a few weeks in the summer. Look around. We have a few facilities that will provide the training/certification if you agree to work there.
I earned my phlebotomist certification 2 nights a week for 16 weeks, with a full week of hospital work time to get my practice draws (on real patients) in. This was 10 or so years ago in NJ thru a VoTech type program. You have to take and pass a certification test on top of this, pass a urine test for drugs etc. Phlebotomy doesn’t pay well at all and is a job that is a chicken and egg scenario (have to have experience to get hired, how to get that experience without being hired?) . Ultimately I learned a lot and went into another field.
http://www.ssreg.com/hcpolytech/classes/classes.asp?catID=5396
Is where the class was. It was $1,000. Full time pay is about $30,000 a year IF you can get a job with no experience. The jobs I saw were all part time and hourly.
My college roommate is a Phys, Assistant, she went straight from working a basic lab technician (i.e. chemical analysis of samples) job to PA school in Pennsylvania.
I don’t think your debt sounds bad, but I think your post Bach degree plans need some fine tuning 
best of luck to you!
Your plan seems a little “off course” for your actual goal. What degree are you getting your bachelor’s in currently? I work in a hospital as a RN. The nurse assistants don’t all have certifications before getting hired. I guess not all hospitals in my area have the same requirements, though (I also live in MI). I don’t think I would go through an LPN program to get your clinical pt care hours, there should be a quicker way for you to do what you need to do. Have you talked to an advisor at your college? LPNs are generally only hired at nursing homes, and that work is specialized and not for everyone.
You should forge ahead to the PA program. The longer you put it of, the less likely it is to happen. Also, it is not a good idea to take on debt toward a higher paying job, but then use a low paying job to pay down debt while deferring training for the higher paying job - huge opportunity costs there.
If you want to be a PA, get training to be a PA through the most direct pathway. Spending time and money on intermediate work/training is an expensive diversion. I have seen many people go that route and never get their heads above water to finish the training.
So you will be a junior next year? Why can’t you work on contact hours while in school and this summer. It’s likely you school has some type of pre-med advisement/group that could help you get contact hours since you fall into that category. Some of above suggestions are good plus volunteering at free clinics (around here they allow you do be more involved that other environments since often shorthanded), public health volunteering, etc. There’s no downside to applying straight after undergrad - if they tell you that you need more contact hours, then go to plan B but there are lots of different schools out there.
@WISdad23 @scmom12 Well guys, I only have two years left. I do not believe I would be able to get an adequate amount of health care hours in two years. I thought PA schools don’t accept volunteering experience. Do you think it would be a good idea to take a year off from school to spend some time maybe getting a certificate as a CNA or Phlebotomist and work for a year, then go back to school for two years and continue working as that then applying for PA school once I earn my degree? I ask this because I believe I would be able to put in more health care hours this way.