I have now been on the schooling trail for two semesters and this is the third. The class loads are heavier each time, just trying to push my mind. I was told that going to PA school is like trying to get a drink of water from a fire hydrant. That scared me enough to want to expand my mind.
I am diligently working to keep the GPA high, 3.75 or higher is the goal and this time it is looking good for a strong finish.
I was asked to register for classes today and there is such a variety of classes that are available both online, and on the two campuses that are within an hour of my home. The remaining classes I am looking for are Genetics, Microbiology, Organic Chemistry and Anatomy & Physiology.
I cannot believe that the semester is almost over and I am still having fun, although it has been busy. I have to make some quick decisions on courses, it does not look like I should take all these at one time. This would likely be academic suicide, not this guy. I had hoped to finish these by the spring 2011 semester but the intensity is a little scary. Now that I have gotten started, I have registered at three different universities and colleges so that I could take whatever course they offered when I needed it. ECU, ECSU, and College of the Albemarle all offer either online or lecture classes for the many prerequisite classes I need, I have just a couple days to figure it out. Will keep updating information.
My current schedule has been with three classes, medical terminology, nutrition, Anatomy and Physiology with lab. Busy this time, but time is flying by almost over. Still being pulled into work about 20-30 hours a week, it is great to be able to do both but sometimes it is overwhelming.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Second Career as a PA, what are you doing?
Well this is interesting....you have been working in the real estate sales industry for 15 years and have loved it, I could not imagine another field that I could love as much as being a real estate broker in a resort market. I have had some life changing experiences that have tugged me in a new direction and it is now time to create a new me. The future prospects are exciting and to tell you the truth, I was scared as hell. Many of my friends ask the question, "What are you doing man?" I am changing my life and creating my new future.
When you get older or well out of college and decide to return to college, there is no easy way to do it. Now we have children, spouses and the many commitments of life, family responsibilities, money matters, bills to pay and you decide to return to school. This is not an easy chore, there are two years of prerequisites staring me in the face and then 27-30 months of medical school. Right there you could psych yourself out and stop you dead in your tracks, don't let the thought scare you.
Physicians Assistant is the new career I am pursuing and I will try to convey some of the thoughts and experiences that I encounter on my path to becoming a PA . This will take me the next few years, so hopefully it will be helpful to anyone wanting to change their station in life as I am doing.
My new career choice came to me as a result of losing my mother to a brief and fatal battle with ovarian cancer. I spent the good part of 3 weeks in the hospital with my mother as her advocate, getting to know and understand how important it is to ask questions of the doctors and nurses. How to have the medical professional explain thoroughly the medical condition, tests being performed, diagnosis and treatment options. I think that patients and their families should not go through these tough times alone, but many do. The feelings as if they do not have choices or not being sure what is going on. From this personal experience I realize that people really need a caring health care provider and advocate for themselves and their families when going to the hospital. This is my main reason for going into medicine, I want to be that professional that can explain in lay mans terms, the complexity of medical problems, treatment options and prevention.
From my research I have found several schools that offer Physician Assistant programs and I have gone to interview the guidance counselors for the PA programs at each of these schools. The meetings were extremely helpful and I have come away with much information regarding the needed prerequisites, GPA's and other medical opportunities. In some cases I have felt as if I was being pushed to do other programs because of the competitive nature of the PA school program. They were just being helpful, but it felt as if I was not a good candidate for their program and with over 900 applicants and 60 spots I can see their reasons. I can tell you that my mediocre GPA (2.5) from Business School did not impress the faculty, nor did the fact that I have had minimal science coursework from my bachelors degree. I came away with a long to-do list of courses that I need to take prior to being able to make application. I realized I am just a babe in the woods so to speak, and life is like that, those decisions we made along time ago always show up when we don't want them to.
Since those meetings I been taking courses at night and online to move towards my goal. I was told that I needed to make all "A's" so that is also my goal and it has been paying off too. The analogy I was told by my wife is that I am now building my new house of bricks and mortar not straw and sticks. You know I was always told "if it doesn't kill you it will make you stronger", this is one of those times.
When you get older or well out of college and decide to return to college, there is no easy way to do it. Now we have children, spouses and the many commitments of life, family responsibilities, money matters, bills to pay and you decide to return to school. This is not an easy chore, there are two years of prerequisites staring me in the face and then 27-30 months of medical school. Right there you could psych yourself out and stop you dead in your tracks, don't let the thought scare you.
Physicians Assistant is the new career I am pursuing and I will try to convey some of the thoughts and experiences that I encounter on my path to becoming a PA . This will take me the next few years, so hopefully it will be helpful to anyone wanting to change their station in life as I am doing.
My new career choice came to me as a result of losing my mother to a brief and fatal battle with ovarian cancer. I spent the good part of 3 weeks in the hospital with my mother as her advocate, getting to know and understand how important it is to ask questions of the doctors and nurses. How to have the medical professional explain thoroughly the medical condition, tests being performed, diagnosis and treatment options. I think that patients and their families should not go through these tough times alone, but many do. The feelings as if they do not have choices or not being sure what is going on. From this personal experience I realize that people really need a caring health care provider and advocate for themselves and their families when going to the hospital. This is my main reason for going into medicine, I want to be that professional that can explain in lay mans terms, the complexity of medical problems, treatment options and prevention.
From my research I have found several schools that offer Physician Assistant programs and I have gone to interview the guidance counselors for the PA programs at each of these schools. The meetings were extremely helpful and I have come away with much information regarding the needed prerequisites, GPA's and other medical opportunities. In some cases I have felt as if I was being pushed to do other programs because of the competitive nature of the PA school program. They were just being helpful, but it felt as if I was not a good candidate for their program and with over 900 applicants and 60 spots I can see their reasons. I can tell you that my mediocre GPA (2.5) from Business School did not impress the faculty, nor did the fact that I have had minimal science coursework from my bachelors degree. I came away with a long to-do list of courses that I need to take prior to being able to make application. I realized I am just a babe in the woods so to speak, and life is like that, those decisions we made along time ago always show up when we don't want them to.
Since those meetings I been taking courses at night and online to move towards my goal. I was told that I needed to make all "A's" so that is also my goal and it has been paying off too. The analogy I was told by my wife is that I am now building my new house of bricks and mortar not straw and sticks. You know I was always told "if it doesn't kill you it will make you stronger", this is one of those times.
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