Stats about the Physician Assistant Program at Albany Medical College for the class of 2017
Estimated Year of Gradation: 2017
Number of Students: 42 Number of Early Accepted Students: 5 ACPHS: 2 Siena: 2 Russell Sage: 1 Number of Applicants: 1150 Average Age: 26 |
Average Overall GPA: 3.55
Average Science GPA: 3.46 Average Chemistry GPA: 3.33 Average Clinical Hours of Experience: 2970 Hrs Backgrounds: Nurses, Dental Hygienists, PCA's, PCT's, & PhD's GRE Scores Verbal 62% Math: 58% Analytical: 54% |
About Me
My life before PA school: I attended Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS) and earned a Bachelor's degree in Health and Human Sciences. Participating in a many research projects ranging from organic chemistry drug development to patient-provider communication, I learned a variety of information to prepare for PA school. I was also a peer tutor in all of the basic sciences at ACPHS and oral presentations (public speaking). Aside from life in school, I also love to run (primarily distance like Half-Marathons), play tennis and am part of the Hudson Mohawk Road Runners Club in Albany, NY.
Currently, I graduated from Albany Medical College's Physician Assistant Program in May 2017 and practice as a Critical Care Fellow PA at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. More updates to come regarding my experience with my fellowship.
Currently, I graduated from Albany Medical College's Physician Assistant Program in May 2017 and practice as a Critical Care Fellow PA at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. More updates to come regarding my experience with my fellowship.
Clinical Hours
For my clinical hours I worked at Kinney Drugs in Syracuse, NY as a pharmacy technician (600hrs). This wasn't the best patient contact experience but I learned so many drugs and am very grateful for my experience. When I started college I took my freshman year to adjust to school and only maintained a work study job on campus. By the summer time I began working at St. Peter's Hospital in the ICU (1000hrs). I spent the next 2 years there learning everything post-operative from dressing changes, central lines, chest tubes, resuscitation and so much more. I have seen extremely rare cases, severe cases and even frequent flyers...yes even the ICU has frequent flyers. I worked the first summer on the night shift because that was all that was available but it was well worth it. When my per diem job started to become limited I transferred down to the emergency department where I learned so many new things (900+hrs). I performed countless EKGs, drew countless tubes of blood, and assisted in many PA procedures from suturing up wounds to disimpactions. I only worked for the ED for 8 months but I worked over 50 hours a week over the summer to get all the experience I could! Let me tell you... no paycheck could replace that experience!
Aside from my paid jobs, I volunteered at the Joan Nicole Prince Home in Scotia, NY (200+hrs). This is a two resident house for 3 month terminal patients. Our job as volunteers was to cater to their wishes while giving meds and tending to their other toileting and bathing needs. This volunteer position was wonderful because I was able to give sunshine to the dark clouds of end of life. These patients came into this house knowing that they were terminally ill but I took the opportunity to make their end of life the best that I could by sharing stories, watching movies, playing games and even going for walks in the garden. See the link below to check out more about the home or even to volunteer there! They are ALWAYS looking for people interested in donating time to the home!
I still volunteer at the home while in PA school!
Aside from my paid jobs, I volunteered at the Joan Nicole Prince Home in Scotia, NY (200+hrs). This is a two resident house for 3 month terminal patients. Our job as volunteers was to cater to their wishes while giving meds and tending to their other toileting and bathing needs. This volunteer position was wonderful because I was able to give sunshine to the dark clouds of end of life. These patients came into this house knowing that they were terminally ill but I took the opportunity to make their end of life the best that I could by sharing stories, watching movies, playing games and even going for walks in the garden. See the link below to check out more about the home or even to volunteer there! They are ALWAYS looking for people interested in donating time to the home!
I still volunteer at the home while in PA school!
I also volunteered at the Capital City Rescue Mission Free Clinic in Albany, NY (~200hrs). Here I was part of a medical staff that gave care to uninsured patients from all over Albany. This was in conjunction with the homeless shelter so we were able to learn so much from a different type of population. The take away points from this experience were mainly the overall function of a clinic from the intake to diagnosis and even treatment. For more about the CCRM click below!
MD or PA?
Many college students ask this question on information sessions or just in passing when they hear that I am a PA student. To be honest, I kicked around this idea for a while so I can completely understand why it is a hard decision to make. For simplicity purposes, I will lay out what I saw as pros and cons of each. Obviously, this is slightly biased as I am a PA student now, but I am very familiar with the medical school process as well which helped me make my decision.
Physician Assistant
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Medical Doctor
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