New user, Looking for input on what college/major

[Hankasaurus]

Your Location: Oklahoma, USA 
Your Age: 29
What kind of degree do you want?: Bachelors in a health-related field, end goal is a MPAS (Physician Assistant)
Current Regional Accredited Credits: N/A
Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: 3 with Sophia for A&P I
Any certifications or military experience?: Lots of medical certifications (EMS, CPR instructor, etc.)
Budget: unknown at this time, expecting to have to get federal loans 
Commitments: I work full time, 
Dedicated time to study: About 25hrs/week
Timeline: Preferably within 18 months
Tuition assistance/reimbursement: I have access to tuition reimbursement in about 4 months through my job ($5k/yearly) 

Hello everyone! I am looking at obtaining a bachelors (assuming a B.S) in a healthcare related field online (Health Sciences, Healthcare Administration, etc.) with my end goal being able to get into a Physician Assistant School (in-person). I'm mainly looking for recommendations on schools for the Bachelors aspect. 

I have over 10+ years in healthcare, so a lot of those classes I can work through fairly easy. I just started Sophia last week & knocked out Anatomy & Physiology I today & working on the lab class now along with lifespan development. My goal is to knock out most of my pre-reqs on Sophia & have maximum transfer credits into wherever. I'm aiming to finish 1 class/week.

I was looking at WGU's B.S. in Health Science & using the planner/guide another user posted in this, however, WGU only gives P/F grades, not letter grades, which would require me to go to a local institution to take some science courses again, as most PA schools require a specific Science GPA. 

My goal is to have my bachelors within about 18 months (since I'm not getting any younger).

Any recommendations for schools? 

Thank you!

[Charles Fout]

Good for you!

It's wonderful that you aspire to be a PA.

Have you discussed your career goals with your colleagues?

It appears that you are surrounded with people who have been there and done that.

You are probably already in frequent conversation with the people who are able to provide you with the best advice.

[Hankasaurus]

Good for you!

It's wonderful that you aspire to be a PA.

Have you discussed your career goals with your colleagues?

It appears that you are surrounded with people who have been there and done that.

You are probably already in frequent conversation with the people who are able to provide you with the best advice.

I have, however where I work is mostly physicians/medical students, as it is a teaching hospital, & as much as I would love to do MD/DO, it is just too long/expensive for me. I also have a house & wife, so that also plays into it. 

Also for the field I'd like to go into after PA (Undersea/Hyperbaric Med), not many PA's are in the field, & most have done "traditional" undergrad.

[ss20ts]

Before spending your time on math and science courses through ACE providers, you need to see if the colleges you're looking at for your MPAS would accept ACE credit. These are courses that you may have to take from an RA college.

[fmsoa]

Before spending your time on math and science courses through ACE providers, you need to see if the colleges you're looking at for your MPAS would accept ACE credit. These are courses that you may have to take from an RA college.

Second that. On top of that, some MPAS programs have the admission requirement that "no online courses will be accepted to fulfill science prerequisites.". That is, courses such as General Chemistry I with lab, General Chemistry II with lab, Human Anatomy and Physiology I with lab, Human Anatomy and Physiology II with lab, Microbiology with lab, Organic Chemistry I with lab, and Organic Chemistry II with lab must ALL be taken in-person, not online. Others require labs to be in-person but lectures can be online.

[Jonathan Whatley]

There are now enough PA schools open to online prerequisites that circa 2023 Harvard Extension School launched a pre-PA track in its Premedical Program. The pre-PA track can be completed online (or on-campus), unlike the pre-doctoral track which must be completed on-campus.

But there’s a vast vast difference between a Harvard Extension premed course and a Sophia course. I’ve taken both successfully. Both have their place. Different places.

[Maltus]

Just one Question out of topic:
Why do people in the US seek to be a PA and not a MD? I guess it is no big difference in Workload if you do a MPaS or medical school? So what's the motivation?

[Jonathan Whatley]

Just one Question out of topic:
Why do people in the US seek to be a PA and not a MD? I guess it is no big difference in Workload if you do a MPaS or medical school? So what's the motivation?

PA school prerequisite courses are generally fewer. For example, Physics I and II with labs is required by most medical schools, almost no PA schools.

PA schools traditionally use the GRE General Exam, which is a general grad-school exam not a subject test. Some are now using the PA-specific PA-CAT multi-subject test. Medical schools require the tough MCAT multi-subject test.

Some medical schools strongly favor applicants with specialized research backgrounds and career paths.

Older adult applicants above a certain age can expect a cold shoulder in general in medical school admissions, but a warm welcome from PA schools.

PA school is 2 years and almost always in one geographic area. Medical school is 4 years, and in some programs for years 3 and 4 you may need to completely move your home and/or live out of a suitcase, traveling between different hospitals for clinical rotations.

Graduate from PA school and pass the license exam at that stage, and you’re immediately eligible for a regular PA license. A PA can choose their job like a normal person.

By contrast, graduate from medical school having passed the Step 1 and 2 license exams, and you only get a restricted license to work as a trainee in a residency program. You then have to enter a national annual residency match. If you don’t get a residency in a specialty and geographic area you’d prefer, you either have to have ranked and been selected by a “safety” residency, or you have to enter the hectic “scramble” to get an unfilled residency position independently, or you have to do something else and try again in one year, and there may be a stigma against you then.

Next you’ll be in a student/apprentice position several more years: a resident for three years or more in your specialty, sometimes then a fellow in a subspecialty.

What if a US applicant doesn’t get in to a US MD or DO school, so decides to drop down to a foreign medical school? This is often high risk. The better medical schools for this are often very expensive. Then they often “weed out” students with aggressively difficulty internal exams. The Caribbean schools in this market usually send students back to the US to do the live out of a suitcase thing for Years 3 and 4. Then International Medical Graduates are in a tougher competition for the fewer US residency seats available to them.

PAs can fairly easily switch jobs between different specialties in medicine. Once having trained in a residency, an MD/DO is almost permanently attached to that specialty, unless they do a whole nother residency.

[Mint Berry Crunch]

Just one Question out of topic:
Why do people in the US seek to be a PA and not a MD? I guess it is no big difference in Workload if you do a MPaS or medical school? So what's the motivation?

PA school prerequisite courses are generally fewer. For example, Physics I and II with labs is required by most medical schools, almost no PA schools.

PA schools traditionally use the GRE General Exam, which is a general grad-school exam not a subject test. Some are now using the PA-specific PA-CAT multi-subject test. Medical schools require the tough MCAT multi-subject test.

Some medical schools strongly favor applicants with specialized research backgrounds and career paths.

Older adult applicants above a certain age can expect a cold shoulder in general in medical school admissions, but a warm welcome from PA schools.

PA school is 2 years and almost always in one geographic area. Medical school is 4 years, and in some programs for years 3 and 4 you may need to completely move your home and/or live out of a suitcase, traveling between different hospitals for clinical rotations.

Graduate from PA school and pass the license exam at that stage, and you’re immediately eligible for a regular PA license. A PA can choose their job like a normal person.

By contrast, graduate from medical school having passed the Step 1 and 2 license exams, and you only get a restricted license to work as a trainee in a residency program. You then have to enter a national annual residency match. If you don’t get a residency in a specialty and geographic area you’d prefer, you either have to have ranked and been selected by a “safety” residency, or you have to enter the hectic “scramble” to get an unfilled residency position independently, or you have to do something else and try again in one year, and there may be a stigma against you then.

Next you’ll be in a student/apprentice position several more years: a resident for three years or more in your specialty, sometimes then a fellow in a subspecialty.

What if a US applicant doesn’t get in to a US MD or DO school, so decides to drop down to a foreign medical school? This is often high risk. The better medical schools for this are often very expensive. Then they often “weed out” students with aggressively difficulty internal exams. The Caribbean schools in this market usually send students back to the US to do the live out of a suitcase thing for Years 3 and 4. Then International Medical Graduates are in a tougher competition for the fewer US residency seats available to them.

PAs can fairly easily switch jobs between different specialties in medicine. Once having trained in a residency, an MD/DO is almost permanently attached to that specialty, unless they do a whole nother residency.

Damn. If you're ever looking for THE Answer, Jonathan always happens to have it.