<p>What are the pros and cons of each? What are the duties that are different between the two? Opinions on both are greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>you can do a quick search on google or CC and finds lots of information on both professions.</p>
<p>I think it takes longer to become a nurse practitioner. If you’re still in high school, you should know that there are some 5 year programs for PAs.</p>
<p>If you start as a freshman and apply directly to a 5 year PA program, that would be the fastest route. </p>
<p>My impression is that many physicians assistants are people who started as pre-med, couldn’t make it into med school, and then entered into a PA program after getting their bachelors. Because so many people are in that category, I understand that graduate PA programs are very competitive. </p>
<p>Most, but not all, NP programs want you to work as a nurse before you start a NP program. Some, but not all, NP programs are now moving towards requiring a doctoral degree.</p>
<p>My impression is that PA education involves more chemistry than NP, but I haven’t compared the curriculums.</p>
<p>I’m apparently wrong that PA requires much more chemistry than NP, at least according to the one program I looked at. PA does have a requirement for a minimum number of hours of health care experience.</p>
<p>Some states are very restrictive in what an NP is allowed to do. In underserved areas a NP can operate independently, run her/his own practice, yet in other areas it is unheard of. A PA is always an employee of someone or system(hospital or physician)
To be an effective NP, one really should have hospital experience. You don’t know what you don’t know till it hits you in the face. Trial by fire as an ER/ICU/Med surg nurse. Guarantee you will see just about everything needed in 18 to 24 months and will make you a strong secure practitioner. </p>
<p>Salary wise, depends on the area you will work, I know PAs working for some practices for example a Urology practice that make a nice salary well over 100,000. They would not get that working in a hospital. As an NP in the same role would earn about the same.
NPs working for a practice would usually do the hospital rounds, medication management, a lot of the interpersonal relationship building with families many docs don’t have time to do at length. Teaching is a huge role for NP’s which can be very rewarding. NP are a bit more flexible with exploring alternative measures of health promotion, lifestyle changes etc.</p>