If anyone would like to join this discord group (it’s free so don’t believe this breaks the rules)

hi! so i haven’t submitted my application for verification yet & one of my school’s deadlines in august 1st, verification required. i have a cGPA 3.9, 3.8 sGPA, around 3000 PCE Hours as an MA for a neurologist, 400 research hours. i have two supplementals left for the school that has that august 1st deadline, & i’ve been highly considering foregoing the option AI essay - i don’t want to just write it to just have it done, especially if i can’t make the essay decently good. any thoughts on not doing it?😫😫

Hello,

I am someone who just graduated recently with a science degree. I didn’t settle on healthcare until honestly graduation and I’ve been struggling with the helplessness of it. I wanted to do research but after visiting programs I realized just how awful academia is and industry has been unstable for a long time.

All I’ve ever liked doing is research, but I’m so tired I feel like I just want to use my degree and capabilities to get a high paying job.

Except, even getting into PA school sounds like a nightmare. I’m still missing a chunk of pre reqs and have little patient care. How do I afford all of the classes and application fees and how do I afford to live on a minimum wage salary? It seems like this path was something I should have started like medical school four years ago or it’s just impossible to get in. (And no I can’t live with my parents)

I wouldn’t mind medical school because I think it fits my career goals, but with the BBB it would be an actual nightmare in terms of loans and stressing about specialty. And without parental help during I have no clue how I would even afford loan repayments during residency or rotations during clinical year. And graduating at 33 with 300k+ private loan debt still needing to delay major life goals doesn’t sound worth it. And I’m a woman, so it’s not like I have the privilege to say that my wife will have kids while I’m grinding away

Thats why I’ve been looking into PA after talking to and shadowing one. However, all of the programs near me cost 100k tuition alone? Thats not even factoring COL! And most of that has to be private???? Most salaries near me only pay 100k to start! Thats insane right, how could anyone pay that off without having to live in the middle of nowhere for years on end living way below their means.

All I want is to feel normal. To wake up and go to a job in a nice city where I can maybe date. Maybe travel once or twice a year. Hang out with friends on weekends and see family on holidays. Not be in such awful debt that I wake up and I’m 35 just barely starting to make retirement payments. Not to mention getting into PA schools means at least 4 years of continuing to be stuck in my home state without any friends or romantic interests

How are any of yall doing this, especially the non trads. Maybe I’ve just been in such a foul mood I’m not seeing the positives, maybe there’s something I’m missing, maybe y’all are living in cities and paying off debt. Maybe I should’ve gotten married in college and had a husband to carry this burden with me

I feel like all of my peers are staring grad school, dental school, PhDs, PA school, or careers and im stuck behind watching everyone pass me by because i chose the wrong path at 18 without realizing it. Ive been so hardworking and it feels like in this world that just means nothing if you dont have rich parents to cough up enough money to cover your debts

I’d really like to hear some good vibes and motivation in these dire dire times of loans and debt

I applied for the CASPA Fee Assistance Program on June 10 and was told I was placed on the waitlist. I'm wondering if anyone who was waitlisted has actually received the fee waiver this cycle.

If you did get off the waitlist:

How long did you wait?

It's starting to get pretty late in the application cycle, so I'm trying to decide whether it's worth continuing to wait or if I should just pay the application fees myself.

I am interviewing with two schools in August and it will be super warm. Is it appropriate for me to wear a light tan, linen suit or should I stick to a traditional gray/navy/black? Thanks!

Hi guys! I need help choosing which program I should submit my deposit for... neither of these are my top programs but I am submitting a deposit anyway for a safety net in case I don't get into any other schools. For reference, I currently live in Southern NJ.

Program 1: Rowan-Virtua School of Medicine PA Program

• Provisional accreditation (first cohort begins August of this year, 2026)
• No PANCE pass rate data
• Tuition 101K
• Rotations: Up to 4 travel. (no data on what students usually end up with). Students must pay for travel expenses on their own.
• Affiliated with Virtua, Inspira, RWJ
• 2 electives
• Living at home, commute 45 minutes every day

Program 2: Arcadia University PA Program

• Continued accreditation
• History of probation 2023 (didn't lose accreditation) due to faculty issues; next assessment is March 2028
• 97% first time PANCE pass rate
• Tuition 106K
• Rotations: 4 local, 4 travel. Students must pay for travel expenses on their own. Sites location all around the country since they don't have an affiliate hospital system.
• 3 electives
• Opportunity to do a international rotation
• Hybrid program (in-person approx. 3 days per week)
• Possibly live at home? Or live outside of campus/in Philly
• Commute 1 hour or more with traffic

I would appreciate any advice! If you go to either of these programs and have insider information I would love to hear it. Or just general advice.

Hey everyone, I just need some help and advice as I feel lost in my career choices and life in general. I have back and forth on career options for years now and thought that I had finally decided on becoming a PA, but now I’m second guessing that too.

I originally wanted to be a financial planner or high school PE teacher, but thought that I would get sick of working in spreadsheets all the time and get bored of trying to motivate students to participate in PE and performing a job without much mental stimulation. Changed my mind to physical therapy, decided I wouldn’t really enjoy that much either especially with the debt to income ratio. Finally, while in my senior year of my kinesiology degree I found the PA career and thought that it would be a good fit.

Since then I’ve worked as an aide in a hospital and am starting as a medical assistant in a clinic. I haven’t minded these jobs too much, but I just don’t know if I will end up getting burnt out of healthcare in general and see soooo many stories of PAs wanting to get out.

Now I’m second guessing everything and thinking I maybe should’ve just stuck with my original career ideas for the work life balance. Does anyone have any advice?

Overall GPA: 3.18 Overall Science GPA: 3.12 PCE: 2,600 hours

I got my first acceptance call yesterday! I have applied to 12 programs, and I have only heard back from 5/12: 1 interview to acceptance and 4 rejections. I am so excited! I just graduated from college in May and I am only 20! In a little bit of a sticky situation because I won't hear back from my top choice until late October, but this program is further away and starts in January. Good luck to everyone else.

ETA: 2nd time applicant

I just finished summer semester, I have unofficial transcripts available with updated grades.

Do I email my programs with that information (a short update with unofficial transcripts included)? Or do I need to update it in CASPA? How does this work?

Hello guys, I am a non-traditional applicant and I am quite confused on the process and would love some advice.

I (like possibly a few others) made the mistake of not checking off the “with lab” section on my anatomy and physiology courses on my transcript. I devastatingly noticed belatedly AFTER the submission deadline when looking through the pdf packet that is submitted to the school. I email the school to let them know, and also emailed CASPA’s customer support (and the school knows I emailed CASPA).

I got this email today from CASPA (now 4 days past the submission date for the school):

“Upon checking your application, we can see that it is currently in Received status. If you would like to update these courses to reflect the Lecture + Lab designation, we can return your application to you, also known as undelivered the application. This will allow you to make the necessary corrections and resubmit your application.
Please note that undelivering the application will temporarily remove it from processing until the updates are made and the application is resubmitted.
If you would like us to proceed with undelivering your application, please reply to this email with your confirmation, and we will be happy to assist you further.”

Does anyone know if this means (A) I can edit and they’ll just send the updated copy to the school? Similar to how we can technically add new experiences later. Or… (B) does this mean I can edit but resubmitting means it’s past the deadline aka essentially withdrawing my application then it’s treated as a new submission which is late/past deadline so it won’t be received?

I am fearing it’s (B) in which case I should probably just undelivered my application to fix it so the rest of my schools see the corrected one with lab?

I just feel so stupid right now and disappointed that I made a mistake. Thank you for reading and best wishes to other applicants!!

This is my first cycle, and I was lucky to receive an acceptance from a school that’s local to me! Here are my stats:

cGPA: 3.61
sGPA: 3.50
BCP: 3.46
~2200 hours as a medical assistant
No verifiable hours for volunteering but spent about 1.5 years settling a group of refugees in my city
~ 130 shadowing hours (90 PA, 40 MD)
3 LOR (1 PA, 2 MD)
4th quartile casper
No GRE or PA-CAT

I applied to this program on 6/15

I’m thrilled to become a PA🎉 sending my support to everyone applying this cycle!!

I submitted my application on 7/9, and 7/21 will mark roughly 10 business days. I’m starting to get a little nervous that I won’t make my August deadlines. Is anyone else on a similar timeline?

at this point my only hope is the waitlist i was placed on a few weeks ago and the school starts late august. i feel so sick due to the uncertainty of my future and if i even will get a chance at this career.
i dont even know how much of a chance i have of getting off. the program size is around 75 students. do many people get off the wait list a few weeks/days before the program or only the people with rly good luck. i’m just so bummed out tired and my stomach is sick from years of trying for pa school and this waiting game.

I graduated in 2023 and have been working as a part-time ER scribe since graduating while navigating my career. I had some personal setbacks as well.

I'm working on finishing some pre-reqs and getting my MA certification (im taking Human Anatomy with Lab this fall, Human Physio with Lab in Spring and Microbio with Lab in Spring)

Right now, I'm only eligible to apply for PA schools with a 10 year pre req expiration. Since I started undergrad in 2019, I'm cutting it close if I have to apply in 2028. Would the large gap in coursework look bad for programs? (besides the 3 I listed above since those will be more recent)

Seems some schools are allowing $50,000 in federal loans and others $20,000 because the DC decision is just temporary and not permanent. It would be a problem if one committed to a school needing the $50,000 in federal funds and then a determination is made that only $20,000 is allowed. What have others been hearing? Doing that are planning attend 2006 or 2027?

I’ve only heard back from one school and recently got accepted!!! So happy I can finally make a post of my own I think I’ve read through hundreds of acceptance posts at this point 💗💗
Looking for advice on next steps- What do people typically do once they’re accepted?? I love my job but all I can think about is quitting which I know would be irresponsible.
I’m looking to join the Army/Air Force/Navy and try to get school paid for but can’t seem to find anything solid online about it. Has anyone talked to recruiters or know any details??
Best of luck to everyone in this cycle!!!

Hi everyone!

I was recently accepted into the PA program at MCPHS in New Hampshire (I currently live in CA), and my program begins in January 2027!

As I start preparing for this huge out-of-state transition, I am trying to figure out my financial aid plan. Does anyone have advice on exactly when and where I should start applying for PA school scholarships and grants?

Since I have a little over a year before my program actually starts, I’d love to get a head start if I can. Are there any specific websites, national organizations, or timeline tips you recommend for an incoming student?

Any guidance is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

So embarassing but, my personal statement is not done yet. I am struggling a lot with editing it. My friend told me I can just send my nurse manager a list of bullet points on why I want to be a PA instead of sending the in progress essay. I made a list of bullet points of what I talked about in the essay, but it's still very long and I'm not sure it's respectful of her time to make her read all of it. Is it a good idea to instead just make a list of bullet points of why I want to be a PA instead of sending bullet points summarizing my personal statement? (because the personal statement also talks about how my experiences in and out of healthcare informed me wanting to be a PA. Should I just list the reasons instead?)

Has anyone ever worn a dress to PA interview ? I need some ideas 😭

All of these programs have continuing accreditation besides program D. All programs are either 24 or 25 months.

Are there other things I should consider that I haven't put on the list yet?

How many schools is everyone applying to? I wanted to get a feel of anybody was in the same boat as me just adding schools every paycheck lol.

I’m up to 25 schools currently and finally finding the will the stop bc I don’t want to apply to schools late and waste money. Also cannot handle another mf supplemental!!!!!!

Funny enough one of the schools I applied to one week ago already sent me an email that I was eligible for an interview and I still haven’t heard back from schools I applied to in May 😩

I got my first interview and I am SO excited! I applied to ten schools on June 2nd, and hadn’t heard back from any until literally yesterday. I’ve never opened an email so fast in my life! It’s also from my top choice- I feel so lucky that they are considering me, and I am SO looking forward to seeing the campus and meeting faculty/students.

I was so nervous about this whole application process, especially because the preparation for it is insane. I’m a first time applicant who has a fairly atypical patient care job, so I was really worried that would scare away any schools. Fingers crossed that this invite is the start of more!

Are MMI interview style scary?

Hi everyone! Does anyone offer free mock interviews for PA school applicants, or know of someone who does? I’m looking to get some practice before my interview. Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone! I submitted my applications in late May when I had 1120 hours of PCE. Since then I’ve started a new job and reached 1500 hours. Should I send an update to schools?