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Okay I am almost ready to apply and just want to make the correct decision that will hopefully change my life for the better going forward. So the general consensus, from working with people in the health profession, reading about future outlook of the health profession, and even talking to relatives who are medical doctors, they seem to agree that PA is a good career choice. But that is vague to me, cause alot of careers in the health field can be considered a good career choice.
I love the versatility of the profession, the low debt to high income ratio, and the short amount of schooling. My relative who is a DO says if she could do it all over again she would do PA or orthodontist. My aunt made an interesting point, she said why not just go all the way? If you gonna take 2 or 3 years of schooling to be a PA why not just add a couple of more years and be a Dr.? Which got me thinking.
I have a relative same age as me who is studying to be a podiatrist. My relative who is pretty cocky makes it seem like podiatrist will offer him a life of abundance, owning his own practice, making lots of money. The podiatrist he shadowed seems to have a very enjoyable lifestyle. The podiatrist he shadowed said he will give him one of his own office when he graduates. I am afraid I will end up being jealous and bitter which would really annoy me. Hate to say this, but ego does play a part of this as well, on both sides. Cons would be my relative will graduate with over 200k in debt and will have to give up basically 7 years of his life if everything goes to plan. Also read about residency shortages, but do not know the validity of that.
As a PA I could potentially graduate with less than 100k in debt and look at a starting salary of 80 and potentially capping to 120-130k with 2 or 3 years of schooling. I have even read of PA having their own private practice with a supervising physician that visits ever so often. I have an entrepreneur heart in mind, so my strategy is basically get a stable base income where I can pay off my loans fast and start building up wealth sooner. With the exposable income then I will start investing my money to obtain passive income with whatever. It is very important to me that I don't end up being poor. Anyone has personal experience in regards to this matter? would love to read about it.
I have two friends who are pharmacists and they work crazy hours and don't make a lot of money.
One poster mentioned physical therapy. It depends on your level of education whether it can be a lucrative career. The physical therapist I used for several months last year said she doesn't make much money, even though she has a bachelor's degree in PT and more than 10 years' experience. On the other hand, my friends' daughter recently graduated with a Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Northwestern in Chicago. I suspect she'll be able to do very well financially and have a satisfying career and good life/work balance.
I know one PA personally, and she works insane hours. She's very dedicated to her patients, and when she's not in the office she is dealing with them via email and phone. She even replies to emails from patients when she is away on vacation. I realize not all PAs would have such a schedule, but it's something to consider.
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I have two friends who are pharmacists and they work crazy hours and don't make a lot of money.
One poster mentioned physical therapy. It depends on your level of education whether it can be a lucrative career. The physical therapist I used for several months last year said she doesn't make much money, even though she has a bachelor's degree in PT and more than 10 years' experience. On the other hand, my friends' daughter recently graduated with a Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Northwestern in Chicago. I suspect she'll be able to do very well financially and have a satisfying career and good life/work balance.
I know one PA personally, and she works insane hours. She's very dedicated to her patients, and when she's not in the office she is dealing with them via email and phone. She even replies to emails from patients when she is away on vacation. I realize not all PAs would have such a schedule, but it's something to consider.
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What specialty is your PA working in? How is she doing financially?
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