So who went to PA school

[Wolf at the Door, BSN]

I am strongly considering PA school over NP school. Stanford in California looks intruinging. Very few available MSN NP programs. DNP well to be honest I am just not interested in being in school for something that is not going to be a net gain only adding to my debt.

[Miffy]

So even though I am currently In NP school, I would strongly encourage you to go to PA school. I'm currently writing a research proposal for my nursing research class, and doing a concept analysis for my nursing theory class. -__- I feel that both of these classes have ZERO applicability to my practice. The NP curriculum is full on fluff and lacks in science. Although you will not be able to practice independently, I see more value in the PA curriculum and degree, and see many more job opportunities (atleast in my area) for PAs vs NPs. Best of luck in your journey!

[kalycat, BSN, RN]

Not me personally, but I work with several PAs who were once nurses. They wanted to first assist in procedure and work with surgeons. (Our facility does not use nurse first assistants, even if they're NPs) They do not regret any loss of autonomy and manage the day to day care of our most complex cardiac patients.

I'm still on the fence. There may come a time that I will want to be independent. Overall, I can see the draw on both sides. The PAs I know state that they also preferred the emphasis on the medical model versus the nursing model. This seems to be an important factor in their level of satisfaction.