University of New England

Prior to physician assistant school I spent 14 years working as a cardiovascular technician, first in a hospital setting and then in a large private cardiology practice.

It was during this time of my career that I learned what it was like to work side by side with physicians. I loved my job but realized that I wanted to do more and would need to go back to school in order to take a different role on the healthcare team.

Both campuses of the University of New England are small and intimate. You are made to feel like a unique and individual person and not just a number. After a tough gross anatomy exam there is nothing like walking down to the water’s edge on a beautiful Maine summer day and escaping from the stress of the moment.

The program was rigorous and yet so rewarding despite the nearly complete withdrawal from any life outside of PA school for those two years. The faculty and staff of the program are very approachable and care about each student as individuals. They become highly invested in our education and want to see that each and every one of us succeeds.

The faculty is constantly looking to improve the program and often elicits input from current students in this process. Current students and alumni are actively involved in many functions of the PA program as mentors, teachers, and preceptors, and they are participants during the admissions process and on committees.

I did clinical rotations all over the state of Maine, in Cambridge, Mass., and in New Hampshire. I lived with people in the community when not near enough to commute from my home. The housing situation was easy as UNE partners with AHEC to help place students in clinical rotations and housing in the rural areas.

Beginning in the last few months of the clinical year, I applied for jobs. In fact, I was offered four different jobs while doing my clinical rotations. I interviewed for several, was offered more than one, and finally decided to accept a position in emergency medicine.

It has been a great year since graduation. I am constantly challenged and spend many hours per week reading and studying as I am continually presented with new clinical problems. I still wake up in the morning many days and can’t believe my dream of practicing medicine has come true and that I am actually getting paid to do it!

As for the future, I would eventually like to teach and precept PA students. I feel it is critical to give back to the profession by mentoring PA students and be sure that our profession maintains the integrity that it has worked so hard to achieve.

I feel that my education at the University of New England prepared me well for my new role as a practicing PA. UNE provided me with the skills to continue my learning as well as the basic fund of medical knowledge to get started. Sure there is plenty that I did not learn at school, but that is why medicine is a profession that one must be dedicated to lifelong learning. Even seasoned PAs and physicians consult with outside resources on a daily basis because they don’t know it all. In the meantime I constantly look things up!