Biology Grad debating on NP or PA

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Ok so i recently just graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Biology. To be honest i really didn't enjoy it at all, in fact I hated it. Anatomy & Physio and Epidemiology were pretty cool. However Basic Biology and learning about the cellular process of things is really boring to me. So i gave up my dream of being a doctor. My goal was to become a healthcare provider, I wanted to provide the bulk of patient care and diagnose. My disappointment in my major sent me researching other careers and I suddenly developed an interest in Nursing approx one yr before i Graduated.

I didnt really understand the role of the nurse. I thought Nurses did what CNA's do and Doctors did what nurses do. I learned that nurses are very knowledgeable (from working with them), their the eyes of medicine and first ones on the scene. That type of experience is invaluable and it would make more sense to ask a nurse about your symptoms before a doctor. I always thought doctors provided most of the patient care. The only thing i don't like about nursing is the cleaning aspect of it, however ill get over it.

To test out my theory on Nursing, I decided to take a nursing class "Pathophysiology" and I loved it, it was also taught by a male NP. He was very knowledgeable and made the subject very interesting which i though was incredible coming from a science major. Are exams were NCLEX style and he focused a lot about common occurences/hallmarks of the diseases we were learning, aswell as throwing in his own experiences. Just hearing him mention the word "patient or simply talking about patients was enough for me" I felt like I had finally been given some food lol.

So I used by last year of school to fullfill all the pre-reqs for nursing school. Ive been heavily weighing my options since graduation and I often have alot of people telling me "you act more like a doctor or you shouldn't settle for Nursing" just based on my personality. I'm always confident and detailed when working in medical environments and people always say "You always act like you know what your doing". which puzzles me because shouldn't every professional be that way. You should be confident when explaining things and that helps the patient trust you more.

I know that i can accomplish anything i set my mind too but I want to enjoy the learning process this next time around. I like nursing more-so since its holistic and moving to other areas is pretty easy. You can go into a lot of different fields with nursing. Ive already been accepted into an Accelerated Nursing MSN program

So here is my question: Is Nursing, PA or MD taught at the cellular level like my bio degree or is it more like the pathophysiology class I took? Im pretty knowledgeable about each role and their limit. My question is mainly about the learning process and what each one focuses on.

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Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

PA would likely allow you to get into the role you crave more quickly as you would just need to make sure you've fulfilled the pre-reqs there and then you'd be in the program (of course pending acceptance). With NP's they do have some direct-entry programs so that's what you'd want to look for unless you plan on going back to get your RN and then BSN/MSN (there are waaaay too many routes to mention here to get to NP/MSN).

PA and NP do essentially the same thing. PA's are taught more the medical model (diagnosis, treatment of disease) while NP's are taught more with the nursing model (diagnosis and treatment of the WHOLE person). The end result is pretty dang similar though the LAWS regarding each can be a bit different depending on your state. See, PA's will ALWAYS be paired with a physicians to oversee their practice. PA's are under the Medical board of your state. NP's are INDEPENDENT in some states meaning they don't have a physician involved AT ALL in their practice. They can open their own clinics and practice much more as a MD would. Some states, though, require NP's to have a collaborative physician similar to a PA. In some states PA's and NP's also cannot prescribe controlled substances while some can only prescribe class V-III controlled substances (like mine). Others can prescribe anything.

It varies so much you need to look at pre-reqs for the programs you're considering as well as your state laws. Keep in mind laws regarding NPs and their practice are evolving while PAs will never have the chance for full independent practice.

Good luck in whatever you choose. There are also plenty of other threads about this if you use the search function

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I appreciate @anh06005 your response. I'm quite familiar with each role and their limitations as far as scope. However you really didn't answer my main question. My question is about the learning processes. I really dont want to endure another program that focuses a majorly on the cellular level extensively. I want an experience similar to my patho class, Centered around disease process and patient care.

Thankyou for your response tho

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Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

Ah. I guess you did ask more of that huh? NP certainly doesn't go into the cellular level. I can't imagine PA going too much into it either considering how long the programs are! If you want the less science-y one it will likely be NP (but you will have to bear some research and nursing theory classes).

Maybe I got your REAL question that time?? Lol

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Lol Thank-you. I didn't realize you were a NP. what do you mean by less science-y lol? Is nursing theory and research really that bad?

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Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

My main science classes I had as a grad student were advanced patho and advanced pharm. Other than that it's research, nursing theory, policy (which were boring to me...I like science). Then you get to your clinical classes where you go more into care for various disease processes and apply it in the clinical setting. Mine were divided into peds/women's health, adult 1 (more urgent care), adult 2 (more chronic diseases), and a practicum where I could see anything.

I haven't gone through PA school (of course) so I can't offer you much insight there. We do have a few PA's around these boards though.

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From what I've read on threads comparing the two, PA is taught using the medical model and appears to teach more on a cellular level then NP.

You sound more like PA student in your post to me for some reason. What puts you off PA school?

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@thenightnurse456 haha thats interesting just today a doctor was trying to convince me to go to PA school. Im curious to know how do i come off like a PA student? Is it my personality or approach.

I really want to get into the workforce sooner and PA in my opinion isnt very flexible. I have alot of different interests like for example traveling in and out of the country, missionary work, forensics etc. I also want to become a Neonatal and Family Nurse Practitioner. Like I mentioned before the experience nurses get is invaluable. However maybe my experience was warped due to my boring instructors. Ive looked at a few PA curriculum's and alot of the classes mirror my bio degree and that made me cringe. I like science but its going to have to be taught in a very interesting and engaging way or else it will be torture to me. I dont want to learn about RNA,DNA, nucleotides, ribosomes etc ill trade that for mono, HIV, Cancer, meningitis etc anyday..... The cellular level is just not intriguing to me

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pa school is pretty hard to get into. 3.5+ gpa and 1-2 years of healthcare experience is the norm as an EMT, paramedic, cna, pct ect. anything involving direct patient care. Most schools require LOR's and some require the GRE. Some schools also have specific prereq courses that you would have to take that may not be included in a bio curriculum. You also usually apply a yr before your start date. Most PA programs are 27 months in length although it can vary between 24-36 months.

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I'm not sure it's just a vibe I got. You seem more medical then nursing to me.

I'm a nurse who became more interested in the disease process, diagnosis etc. I wanted to become a NP but it takes too long in my country and the role is still so new here and complicated. So I have gone back to get my medical degree.

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Specializes in Prior military RN/current ICU RN..

Just a question..you say you are "always confident and detailed when working in medical environments"

What does this mean? Are you a licensed RN or physician? What medical licensure do you hold? What do you define as a "medical environment"? Why would a brand new biology grad be working in a "medical environment" unless I am missing something.

Be cautious of using statements like "you should be" one way or another. What works for one does not always work for another. Humility and courtesy will get you a long way.

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windsurfer8 I'm not really sure why you would ask if i was a RN or Physician when i clearly stated that I was a recent bio grad, that's not even possible and not all jobs require a medical license. Reading will get you a long way aswell lol :)

I also feel as though you misinterpreted my comment about confidence. Regardless of the profession or situation you should always appear confident when relaying information. Being detailed also ensures their is no miscommunication or lack of understanding on the recipients end. People need to trust that you know what your doing.

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