The Narrative

Generally, the narrative gives you a chance to tell the admissions committee of your desired institution why you want to be a PA and what makes you special as a candidate for admission.  You may think that no one reads these....but they do! 

The best thing I can tell you is be HONEST and be CREATIVE!!!  Generic, lengthy regurgitations of what the literature says about being a good PA do not make you unique.  Tell an interesting story...something that the committee will remember about you.  Think of a creative way to describe yourself  and your attributes that will stick in our minds! 

TOP 5 NARRATIVE STATEMENTS TO AVOID:

1.  "I have wanted to be in medicine since I was a little boy/girl".....No, no, no, no!!!  We already KNOW this about you...it is true of about 90+% of people who are applying.  How do we know this, you ask?  Because EVERYONE puts it in their narrative!! Remember...we said BE CREATIVE!

2.  "I want to help people".....see reasoning from  #1.....very over-used! 

3.  "I am fascinated with the human body"....See #1 and #2.  I usually stop reading when I see any of these three statements!!

4.  "I want to have a better work/life balance" or "I want to have more time with my family"  While it may be true of a few practices, many, if not most PAs work long, hard hours right alongside their physicians.   You might be lucky enough to walk into a "cushy" job with no call, no nights, no weekends, and no holidays, but in my experience, that would be the exception, not the rule.  When I hear these statements, it immediately screams "LAZY"!!!  Patient care is difficult and requires a lot of passion and dedication.  If you want the "easy road", don't go to PA school.

5.  "I tried to get into medical school, but couldn't so I decided to be a PA"  PA school is not a med-school "fall-back plan".  In many institutions, including mine, the average GPA of entering PA students is HIGHER than that of the incoming med students!  It is more competitive to get into PA school here than it is to get into med school.   We, as a profession, do not like to think of ourselves as a place for med school flunkies. 

CASPA

CASPA is the centralized application service which the majority of PA programs utilize.  Creating an application through CASPA allows you to apply to a number of different programs in which you are intrested...all in one fell swoop!  Some programs require additional information which is not included in the CASPA application.  CASPA is a service of the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA), and has streamlined the admissions process for many of PAEAs member programs.  There are still a handful of programs which do not utilize CASPA, and you must apply separately to those programs. 

You may start an application in CASPA, save it, piece away at it and revise it numerous times before you actually submit it for good.  CASPAs website (linked at the beginning of this post) is very helpful and informative.  The website is very user-friendly and help is always available.  Your admissions coordinator will likely be versed in the CASPA process, as well.

EXPERIENCE!

Having some experience in the health care field is a true benefit and will likely improve your chances of admission.  Many programs set a minimum requirement of health care experience as a criteria for admission.  Even if there is no stated minimum requirement, any experience will be a benefit and will make you more competitive.

There may be strict guidelines on the type of health care experience your program will accept in order to meet this critieria.  Make sure you know what these guidelines are so that you can focus your efforts on experience which "counts". 

Experience can come in a variety of ways.  Working as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), athletic trainer, EMT, etc is excellent, hands-on experience.  Other ways to gain experience may be to volunteer at a hospital or nursing home, shadow a practicing PA or physician, help out at local health fairs...the list goes on and on.

Just remember...the MORE, the BETTER!!  Well-rounded experience is a good idea, too.  Getting a look at health care from a number of different perspectives will give you a better view of how the health care system works, and how the members of the health care team work collaboratively to provide the best care for patients.

Grades, grades, grades

Your grades are crucial to the admissions process.  In many institutions, the entering GPA of PA students is higher than that of PT or medical students.  Many programs will dissect your grades and look at both your total GPA as well as your science GPA (your GPA in all of the science classes you have taken).  Research has shown that a student's science GPA is a good predictor of their academic success in PA school.

The admissions process in PA programs is HIGHLY COMPETITIVE, although the minimum GPA criteria varies from program to program.  There is typically a published "minimum GPA" however, you may want to ask the admissions coordinator what the typical entering GPA is for their students.  You should find out where your GPA needs to be in order to truly be a competitive candidate.

If you find that you have a couple of grades (particularly science classes) that are low, you may want to seriously consider re-taking the class for a higher grade.  If you had bad year or ran into a not-so-hot instructor and got a C in biochemistry, think about investing the time and money to re-take the class in an attempt to get a better grade.  Look around at community colleges, etc in the area which might offer the course at a reasonable cost.  Everything you can do to raise that GPA will help!

What is a PA?

If you are asking this question, this may not be the right site for you.  If you have just heard about the PA profession, you might want to spend some time doing a little research.  A good resource to learn more about PA's is the American Academy of Physician Assistant's website.  You can check it out HERE.  Do your research, talk to some PAs, spend some time shadowing PAs and make sure this is the right career for you. PA school is LONG and DIFFICULT, and is not for people who decide, on a whim, that they "think it would be fun".  

I can tell you some things that PA school is NOT.  It is NOT a fall-back plan in case you don't get into medical school.  It is NOT a stepping-stone to get into medical school.  If you want to be a doctor, go to medical school.  If you want to be a PA, then you're in the right place!  Admissions committees want to know that you are truly committed to this profession. 

Hello, and welcome!  This is an informational site intended to assist you in your efforts to gain entry into a Physician Assistant program. 

DISCLAIMERS:

• This is NOT official advice.  Please do not rely solely on this information as the bottom line on getting into the program of your choice.  Specific questions should be addressed to the Director of Admissions at your desired learning institution.  
• This will not be sugar-coated!  I call it as I see it, as a person with experience in PA education! 
• I will make my best effort to supply you with the most up-to-date resources on PA admissions information in a fair, balanced way.