Weigh Becoming a Physician Assistant Instead of a Medical Doctor

College students with an interest in medicine and who excel in biochemistry often see one path open to them: medical school. But pursuing an M.D. or a D.O. typically requires seven or more years of schooling and intense hands-on training -- a strenuous path for most.

Becoming a physician assistant, though, can still allow someone to do much of what a physician does, and get the degree and skills in less time than it takes to become a fully trained doctor.

"There's a lot of similarity between what physicians do and what PAs do," says John McGinnity, president of the American Academy of Physician Assistants.

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Physician assistants can examine patients, prescribe medicine, order diagnostic tests and perform a host of other duties that doctors also do, experts say. And this profession may become more popular.

"Employment of physician assistants is projected to grow 38 percent from 2012 to 2022, much faster than the average for all occupations," according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Physicians and surgeons are only expected to see an 18 percent employment growth.

In the 1990s, there were a little more than 50 physician assistant programs. Now there are 187 accredited programs, McGinnity says. "The demand has really taken off."

Some believe there may be a doctor shortage, says Steve Howe, an associate professor and medical director of the physician assistant program at Marietta College in Ohio. Jobs like physician assistants may "fill a void for the health care industry," he says.

While a physician assistant's day-to-day duties may closely resemble those of a doctor's, there are some differences between the two professions. Prospective graduate students who are considering becoming physician assistants should consider the following aspects of this field.

-- Schooling and training: A physician assistant student finishes graduate school and receives training in just a quarter of the time that a medical student and resident will.

Most programs take two or three years to complete, says Chris Hanifin, chairman of the physician assistant program at Seton Hall University in New Jersey. "There tends to be a year of more of basic science training," he says. During this period students may study subjects such as pharmacology, anatomy and physiology. Medical students, he says, study basic sciences for two years.

Once the basic classroom work is complete, physician assistant students then have clinical rotations, just as medical students would. Rotations can last one or two months, Hanifin says. Students are immersed in a medical specialty, such as pediatrics or emergency medicine, and interact with patients.

After graduation, students become nationally certified and obtain a license that permits them to work.

[Consider going to school online to become a physician assistant.]

-- Career flexibility: Doctors usually have more options when deciding how many people they'd like as coworkers.

"A physician can basically work independently," Hanifin says. "A physician assistant will always work in a collaborative relationship with a physician."

What this relationship entails can vary from state to state. In New Jersey, for example, a physician must sign off on most of what a physician assistant puts in a patient's chart, Hanifin says.

"It doesn't mean that your physician is there in the room with you," says McGinnity, who also teaches in the physician assistant program at Wayne State University in Michigan. In some instances, a physician may check in once a week with the physician assistant, he says.

Physician assistants may have limited independence, but it's easier for them to make a change within their career, experts say.

"Once you have your PA license, that basically affords you an opportunity to work in any medical specialty," Hanifin says. For example: A physician assistant can go from working in internal medicine to obstetrics and gynecology without getting additional training.

But once medical school graduates complete residency -- and sometimes additional training -- in a specialty, switching to another form of medicine could require another few years of training.

Physician assistants may also have more flexible work days, says Howe. "They just pretty much work in the office, and then go home."

Howe, who is also a doctor, says physicians, in contrast, are more likely to be on on-call after hours and deal with the managerial side of a medical practice. "We're always looking at the bottom line," he says, which can include examining a practice's revenue and expenses.

[Understand why physician assistant school may be right for you.]

-- Pay: Physician assistants often take home a hefty salary. "New grads tend to make $80,000 in primary care," Hanifin says. An October report from the American Academy of Physician Assistants says salaries are often higher than that. The nationwide median compensation is $90,000.

In a specialty such as dermatology, compensation can be as high as $117,000.

But this compensation is still meager when compared to a doctor's.

In 2012, doctors working in primary care had a median compensation of $220,942 while those working in a specialty had a median of $396,233, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Choosing between becoming a doctor or a physician assistant may likely require students to weigh more than just their potential salary. For McGinnity, he didn't want to lead or run a medical practice by himself. "I like the team environment," he says. The collaborative nature of the work and the opportunity to only focus on patients are some of the best aspects of the job for him.

About 60 percent of Wayne State grads serve in medically underserved areas, he says. And for him, helping people with limited health care resources is part of the nature of being a physician assistant.

"For me it's truly about access," he says.

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Delece Smith-Barrow is an education reporter at U.S. News, covering graduate schools. You can follow her on Twitter or email her at dsmithbarrow@usnews.com.