Interview with Erica Cousins, entering PA student [Show summary]

Erica Cousins, PA school reapplicant, shares what she did differently the second time around to get admitted to several programs.

A soon-to-be PA student shares tips for gaining acceptance to physician assistant programs [Show notes]

Our guest today, Erica Cousins, is happily anticipating the start of PA school.  She earned her BA from Boston University in 2012 and is currently working as a Home Healthcare Case Manager in California. Let’s learn how she decided to become a PA and got accepted to three PA programs.

Can you tell us a little about yourself? Your background and where you grew up? [1:58]

I grew up in Vermont. I went to school in Boston and have been in San Diego for about seven years now. I’ve been involved in healthcare since before high school - at 14 I started volunteering at the local hospital. I knew for a long time I wanted to go into healthcare. When I was younger my older brother was hit by a car and that introduced me to a side of healthcare I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Being by his side while he was being taken care of and recognizing what makes one healthcare provider more effective than another was really valuable. I also just had a very genuine interest. My mom would always say I was never nervous or shaken by the things going on with my brother but interested and watching intently.

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Why PA and not NP, MD, or DO? [4:09]

I thought for a long time I wanted to go to medical school. I was premed at BU, and it wasn’t until my junior year that I learned more about the PA role and how they play a part in the healthcare team and got more interested in it. It appealed to me even more. I like being on the PA side of the PA/physician relationship. I have someone to bounce ideas off of, and I like the collaboration and camaraderie. There are lots of opportunities for a mentor/mentee relationship, and I have always enjoyed having a mentor. I looked into NP but I would have to get a second bachelor’s in nursing and then do the two years for the NP. I was willing to do that, but once I learned more about the nursing vs medical model, I wanted to stick with the PA route. PA students and medical students both learn under the medical model, which deals more with the underlying medical afflictions – what is going on with someone and starting treatment. The nursing model is more related to behavioral medicine.

https://youtu.be/PgBtKhaDizU

Was your 2019-20 application your first application to PA school or a reapplication? [7:31]

It was a reapplication. I applied the first go around, applying to 11 schools and did not get into any schools, I wasn’t invited to any interviews. That was such a humbling thing. My application was strong, I went to a great school, and had thousands of direct patient care hours in many different areas of healthcare, so it wasn’t a halfhearted application.