are there benefits to being a pa compared to np? i'm a non-trad trying to figure it out. definitely know that med school is not for me. thoughts?
Hi nonny,
Well, I’ll make the statement that BOTH are awesome careers. Obviously, as a PA-C, I have my own biases. However, I was in the exact same position as I was considering between the two. I think the biggest differences lie in the education and preparation, but there are some career differences.
You first need to decide if you want to specialize. NPs have to specialize by age and area (family medicine, pediatrics, acute care, geriatrics, etc). They are restricted to that area. PAs do not specialize. We can care for all ages in all settings. Also consider that PAs are ALWAYS required to be supervised. This term is quite loose in most areas, but we can NEVER practice independently. NPs can (in most states).
Second, you need to figure out what educational pathway makes the most sense to you. My undergrad degree was in French. If I wanted to go to NP school, I would first have to get a BSN (or do an accelerated MSN for non-trad programs), work as a nurse, then go to NP school. This would have taken me much longer to get to my end goal of being a provider. For PA school, they accept any undergrad degree so long as all of the requirements are complete. The pre-reqs were more extensive, but I could get to my end goal more efficiently.
The education is a little different. PA schools are modeled after medical school. NP schools follow a nursing model. We take similar classes but the focus may be slightly different. My impression is that NP school tends to do a better job at focusing on the whole person. NP schools tend to have more online options. Very few PA schools have an online option.
Rotations can be VERY different. My program found all of my rotations for me. Every NP I’ve talked to had to find all of their own rotations. BUT NP programs tend to be MUCH more flexible if you need to work during your education. PA schools generally are not. PA programs discourage working while obtaining your degree.
A big difference I learned when I was in PA school was that NP schools generally have lower clinical hours of experience. I do not know if this is still true, but the figures I was given was 2000+ hours in PA school versus 1000+ for NP. Can’t find my source and this could be total bs, but that’s what I was told.
In the real world, NPs and PAs do the same things. I work with an awesome NP and we do the same job. Practically speaking, when you work you’ll be doing the same things. I think the biggest difference is practice setting (specializing versus not) and the educational path to becoming a provider.
You have to do what makes sense for you. I can’t know that, but hopefully my insight helps. If anyone else has some insight or needs to correct me, please do!
tl;dr
PA school may be better if you are not already a RN and want to be a provider quick. It may be better if you have zero idea what you want to practice. It may be better if you can afford to go to school and not work. If may be better if you don’t want to find your own rotations. It may be better if you are seeking to study alongside med students/follow that model.
NP school may be better if you are already a RN. It might be better if you want more flexibility with your education. It might be better if you have a strong idea of where you want to work. It might be better if you need some online options. It might be better if you have a ton of health care connections and can get rotations easily.
