Jennifer is a single mom, an Army veteran, and a PA student. She's proof that the timeline you think you need doesn't actually exist.

She originally looked at nursing before landing on PA, and we talk about how she made that call. Then we get into the part everyone wants to know: how she does it. Her answer isn't a productivity hack. It's a support system. Family, classmates, childcare, people who will pick up her kid when a rotation runs long.

She's honest that it's hard. She's also clear that it's doable, and that having kids is not a reason to write this off. Plan for it, ask for help, and stop waiting for a version of your life where nothing else is going on.

What we talk about:

• Choosing PA over nursing
• Applying and starting school as a single parent
• Building a support system that actually holds
• Studying around a kid's schedule
• Serving in the Army and how that shaped her
• Her advice for parents thinking about PA school

Resources:

Free application timeline: https://www.thepaplatform.com/services/free-application-timeline

PA Program Map: https://www.thepaplatform.com/pa-platform-map

Pre-PA counseling: https://www.thepaplatform.com/services/pre-pa-counseling

Free personal statement worksheet: https://www.thepaplatform.com/services/free-personal-statement-worksheet-download

Today in episode 70, I have a really special interview with Jennifer from the PA Cafe about how she handles being a mom and a PA student.

Welcome to the Pre PA Club podcast.

If you want to learn how to become a physician assistant, you're in the right place.

I'm your host, Savannah Perry.

Let's get to it.

Hey, guys, if we haven't met before, I'm Savannah.

I'm the creator of the Pre PA Club podcast and the PA Platform.

Now, I'm really excited that we are getting back into interviews, and I have the one today and some really exciting ones coming up with practicing PAs, PA students, people who just got accepted to PA school, some really, really cool stuff.

Stuff.

And so I'm excited about today's episode.

Before we jump in, I wanted to mention my PA Resource, who is sponsoring this podcast and also offering a service to help you make sure that your personal statement for PA School is perfect.

We want to make sure that you get that interview because the interview is what gets you accepted.

And so the best way to do that and make yourself stand out is by having a really great personal statement.

At MYPA Resource, they only use PA editors.

I am one of them.

And you can use the code prepaclub for a discount on editing to make sure that your content, grammar, flow, everything is exactly how it needs to be for the admissions committee to take a second look at you and want you as part of their class.

If you have any questions, reach out to my PA Resource.

And yeah, I think it's a great thing.

Obviously, I'm an editor.

I think I do a great job, and I know that other editors do, too.

All right, let's jump in and meet Jennifer.

I'm so excited for this.

All right, my name is Jennifer.

I'm an army veteran and a single mom in PA school.

I've always heard of PAs, but I've never understood what they were.

I worked in a hospital for many years, and it just never clicked for me.

The first time I met a pa, I was in to go see my regular doctor, and they had me see a physician assistant.

I was confused.

I was like, well, if you're the physician assistant, when does the physician come in?

Like, I don't get it.

Are you a nurse?

What are you?

So that went on for a while.

My daughter started a nurse practitioner.

I didn't understand what that was either.

So it was just a lot of confusion.

And finally, when I came back to civilian life, after I left the military, I signed up for I was going to go to nursing school at South University.

I was completing all my prereqs.

I had already applied, I had got in, but nursing was never really what I wanted to do.

I was always drawn to the medical field.

Even in the military.

I was in the medical field, but that's not what I.

Nursing wasn't my thing.

So you have to place like a $500 placement to hold your spot.

I didn't want to do it because I really didn't want the spot.

Like, I didn't know what I wanted to do.

And finally I sat down with a friend.

She was like, hey, Jennifer, you need to figure out what you're doing.

Get your life together.

Figure it out.

So I delved a little deeper into what a PA was and really just grasped it, you know, really try to understand what it was.

And I was like, that's it.

That's what I'm going to do.

So I called, I declined my spot, and then I started completing all my prereqs for PA school.

I did most of it at South University, and the last few classes I did at fau, whatever they didn't offer at the time.

And then I applied, and here I am today.

That's awesome.

I think when you're kind of listing out the things about you, it's like you need to add, I don't know, superwoman or something.

That's crazy how you're able to do so much stuff.

So you went from kind of being in the Army.

What was your role there?

I was 68 kilo, which is a medical lab specialist.

That's a MLT in the civilian world.

Okay, cool.

Do you feel like having that vet status helped you get into PA school?

Absolutely.

Yeah.

I mean, they're veteran.

They're like, oh, really?

When are you planning on applying?

So that I think the fact that I'm a veteran, and I think my essay was pretty dope, too.

Is that on your website?

Yeah, no, my essay was really good.

I'm tooting my own horn right now.

Yeah.

Wait, is it on your website?

Can we go read it?

No, it's not on my website, but I may post it one day.

Yeah, you should share it.

Well, that's something that I know a lot of schools do put focus on military experience, veteran status.

And so I was just curious because there are some that look at that.

And I think.

I think schools like the discipline that you guys come in with, and they know that you are dedicated and kind of a solid, solid candidate for that reason.

Were you starting from scratch or were you.

Did you already have a bachelor's degree?

What kind of.

What point were you at when you decided that?

No, I didn't have a bachelor's degree yet.

I was.

I had just completed all the pre works for nursing school, so I had a bit done.

And while I was in the military, part of that training, you get an associate's degree in clinical laboratory science.

So I had a good deal of my courses already done, but things like orgo to.

No.

Organic chemistry, gen chem 2 stuff.

Chemistry stuff.

Yeah.

Other stuff.

Yeah.

So just a few more prereqs to hand, get out of the way and.

And complete my bachelor's degree.

Okay.

And so did your experience as a lab tech, did that count for your healthcare patient care experience, or did you do something else?

Absolutely.

I had a lot of experience in the lab as well as phlebotomy.

I got to sit on a few autopsies and bone marrows.

Yeah.

So I got to see a lot.

Okay, cool.

Going into kind of your application process, was there anything else that you feel like made you stand out on your application?

My grades are all right, but I really feel it was mostly my experience in health care in the military, and my essay.

Okay, let's talk a little bit about the mom aspect.

Did you.

Were you already a mom when you applied to PA school?

Yes.

Did you talk about that at all in your essay, application, or interview?

I touched on it.

It's definitely a big part of my story.

I had such a long gap in between, you know, school, leaving the military, working, and then going back to school.

So I mentioned it.

Okay.

Did you at any time feel like that was a negative thing or that anyone felt like that was negative?

It's funny that you should say that.

I was in the pre PA club at fau and some of my, you know, my peers thought you shouldn't mention it and not.

Not mention that, you know.

Right.

Part of me and my story and who I am.

So I'm like, hey, they either gonna love it or they're gonna hate it.

Either way, it's getting mentioned.

So I now that looking back on it, I think you would do yourself a great disservice.

Not to mention it.

Being a mom and being able to tackle all of that stuff that just.

That's better.

That's better for you on your application.

It shows that you can handle a lot of things and that you're very resilient.

That was.

That is a perfect answer.

I. I am with you.

That's something.

Because I edit statements and a lot get a lot of questions and people always are hesitant to share their personal things they talk about.

Well, they don't.

They shouldn't be able to ask me about that.

Blah, blah.

But exactly.

Like, I want to echo what you said.

If it's part of your life and a big part of your life, it's kind of weird not to mention it if you're trying to show them who you are as a person and what has kind of shaped you and what your life is like.

And like you said, if they don't want you for that reason, you probably don't want them either.

So.

Yeah, I love.

That was your perspective and that you shared it.

I'm in the camp that you shouldn't feel like you have to hold that back.

And I mean, obviously you want to talk about in a way that is very positive and shows those strengths like you mentioned, and not make sure that they're confident that it's not going to be an issue in PA school or a huge barrier to you being able to complete the program.

And there's ways to do that.

But definitely, definitely worth mentioning, was there a part of the application process that you found to be difficult?

Not difficult, annoying.

Classes.

Every single course that I've taken.

And then, you know, what you did in the military, though, you have to enter all of that individually as well.

That frustrated me.

It really did.

But no, it wasn't difficult.

It was just tedious.

Yeah.

That's what these people who think they're going to submit their application the first day CASPA opens.

I'm like, no, you're not.

It took me a few months, actually.

Yeah.

Every time I started classes, I was.

Like, oh, yeah, it takes time.

So you ended up getting accepted and starting PA school.

How many schools did you apply to?

Three total.

Okay.

What were the outcomes there as far as interviews, acceptances?

Well, one of them, they.

They were in the process of applying to get accredited, so I guess they never got their accreditation, so I never heard back from them.

Okay.

The other school, you know, they sent me an email.

To this day, I still haven't opened it.

Just because the school that I wanted to go to, I got accepted, so I didn't really care.

Oh, no.

Like, so you don't even know if it's like an interview invite or a rejection or anything?

Listen, I was like, this is a school I wanted to go to anyway.

I just put those there just in case So I really don't care.

That's so funny.

I could.

I do not have the self control to do that.

I'm way too nosy.

Okay, so what, what, what's the word?

Where are you at in PA school right now?

Where am I at?

I'm in my second year, rotation four.

Okay, so you're on rotations.

I wasn't sure if you had jumped into that yet since the last time we talked.

Okay, what rotations have you done so far?

Family medicine, pediatrics.

I'm on internal medicine right now.

And I did an elective in neuropsychiatry.

Oh, interesting.

Cool.

Thinking back to.

Let's start with didactic here.

What did you find most difficult about PA school or most surprising?

I think balancing it all, just staying on top of everything.

I mean, car repairs, house falling apart, keeping up with your kids schedule, their homework, their projects, your schoolwork.

Just staying on top of everything as an adult, as a mom, as a student.

It's a lot.

It's a lot.

Yeah.

How are there any other moms in your class?

There are seven moms total.

That's awesome.

Okay, and just how is that?

I mean, I again get questions about this a lot, but I. I'm a mom now and honestly, I cannot imagine either being pregnant during PA school or having a child.

I actually think it would be harder to be pregnant during PA school.

But I mean, what have you found works for helping you handle it and helping you balance everything.

You know, that's different for every mom.

But I would say the number one thing is a solid support system.

Okay, I mean, I'll say that again and again, and you hear me say that a lot in my blog.

Without a support system, I personally don't see how you can get it done.

You need somebody to call and, you know, cry and whine about how hard it is.

You need somebody to pick up your kid for you when they're sick at school.

You need somebody, you know, hey, can you stop by the grocery store, grab me X, Y and Z, whatever the case may be you need.

No.

You're going to legal.

Yep.

Cannot do it alone.

Yeah, that would be.

Be really tough.

And I don't know, I'm sure every program is different.

I will say my program, which we didn't have anyone with, I think our, the people who are parents in our programs were either dads and like their wife was taking care of the kids or their kids were a little bit older and, and more like, like middle school.

Like no one had little kids, which is what I Have experience with now.

But I think being a mom and working, like, I've just learned that you're never gonna have a perfect balance either.

Like, I think I had this idea that I could just balance things 50 50.

And that's not how it works.

I mean, there's times when I feel like I'm doing a better job at work and times when I feel like I'm doing a better job being a mom.

And like, it's just kind of a balance of being okay with it not being equal all the time.

Exactly.

And that's something to learn.

You know, you're not.

You're not going to be perfect in all areas.

And if you are, something is lacking.

Yeah.

A matter of being comfortable with the fact that you just have to be good enough in certain areas and find out which area is most important to you and focus more, a little more attention there.

But you're just gonna have to be good enough.

Yeah.

And be okay with that.

Which is my problem.

And I know, like, and again, my program, they were maybe not the most understanding if things came up.

And so I think that would have been tough for like you said, those emergency type things where a baby sick, a kid sick, gotta figure out what to do.

And even now working.

Luckily I have family around, but I don't know from some of my friends who don't like how they would do it with.

I mean, it's tough.

Get creative.

Yeah.

Get creative in how you manage things.

But I went in with the mindset that they weren't going to be understanding.

My faculty's pretty cool, but I just went in with that mindset.

Nobody asked me to be here.

Nobody asked me to apply.

You knew what you were getting into.

Have plan A, B, C, D and E ready to go.

I love that.

And with that mindset.

Yeah.

Yeah.

That's awesome.

I was a mom all through undergrad, so I kind of had that planted into my head.

Like nobody cares.

You figure it out.

Yeah.

That's awesome.

And I think that probably helped you to be able to like that attitude.

Is the attitude, like I was saying, that you've got to give them confidence that I've got this covered, not an issue, I can handle it type thing.

Has that been easier or more difficult?

Being on rotations versus didactic care as far as being a mom and balancing.

Everything, I mean, so far rotations have been easier, but I haven't gone through my surgery rotation yet or emergency med.

Okay.

So I'm interested.

I think that's going to be interesting.

Yeah.

I Felt like clinicals were a little more.

Less intense than didactic year and more fun.

Let's see.

So as of right now, you have, what, less than a year left?

Light at the end of the tunnel.

August.

That's awesome.

What?

I mean, is there something you've fallen in love with?

What do you kind of see yourself leaning towards?

You know, I'm still feeling things out.

I already knew that I wasn't interested in pediatrics, and I'm still not interested in pediatrics.

Okay.

But I don't know.

We'll see.

So far, I like internal medicine.

I really took to neuropsychiatry a lot, but we'll see.

What.

What is that?

Were you with a PA in neuropsychiatry?

No, I was with the doctor.

With a doctor.

What.

I'm just.

What does that entail?

Just neurology and psychiatry together.

Together.

Okay.

Interesting.

Yeah, we.

It was.

Okay.

Cool.

So you're finishing in August.

And how.

Just another question.

How do you have.

How many kids do you have?

That's what I thought, but you said their homework, and I was like, oh, maybe she doesn't want one.

Let me.

Let me backtrack.

I was married before, and my ex husband has a son.

He is now 16.

We were married for.

We were together about 10 years.

So I knew him since he was like, five, five, six years old.

So I.

He still calls me mom.

I still call him my son, and he's usually here in the afternoons.

Gotcha.

Yeah.

So is that kind of fun that y' all can all do homework together?

Yeah.

I'm studying.

You're studying.

Well, how.

How have the kids handled it?

I mean, was it.

I mean, I guess, then seeing you go through undergrad was helpful, but has it been an adjustment or have they kind of rolled with the punches pretty well?

They rolled with it pretty well.

I mean, initially, you know, it was a big change for everybody.

She had just started VPK at that school.

Yeah.

So, I mean, it was a little bit of an adjustment for her, but everything was fun.

That's good.

I'm sure she's excited for you to be.

Be done.

And I guess, yeah, she tells me.

I study too much.

You're always studying.

You're always on the computer.

Yeah.

I mean, and that's something again, as a working mom, like, I don't know.

Do you ever have mom guilt?

No.

You don't?

Oh, gosh, sometimes, I guess I have a baby, so sometimes I'm like, oh, my gosh, I'm gonna miss something, or she's gonna Want me to be there.

Which to be honest, she's so little, she doesn't know if I'm not there.

But I mean, I think I've had to take the perspective of also, like, she's seen me work and work hard and help people.

And so I think at the end of the day, like, I hope that rubs off on her.

My mom worked.

My mom was a teacher and I always saw that.

And she was great about making time for us, but also I could tell that she loved her students and they loved her.

So it's kind of trying to be that example to them as well.

And I think that that's a good thing to do.

No, I mean, mom, that's actually pretty common with all moms in the class.

But I think because I had gone through entire, my entire undergrad as a mom and I had already been working, all of that was out of my system already.

Like, look, kid, like you already know it is.

You're fine.

You have everything that you need?

Yeah.

That's awesome.

Yeah, I need to take a page out of your book.

Well, on top of everything that you're doing being a mom and MPA school, you start a blog and you just had your one year birthday anniversary, whatever you want to call it.

Where can we find you?

And what inspired you to start the PA Cafe?

What inspired me?

I started this journey with a couple other moms who also wanted to go to PA school and they quit along the way.

They said it was so difficult, there was no way that they could do it.

They didn't see how they were going to manage it all.

And I remember trying to find resources or somebody's story, you know, to help me out, like, what do I do?

How do I prepare?

I get it about the grades and the experience and stuff.

But what do I do as a mom?

I know there's something I might be missing and I wanted to make sure I cover all my bases.

And I didn't really find those.

I mean, I saw one or two articles, you know, that some people may have written, but I didn't find anything in depth, you know, so I wanted to start it for a while, but I just never got around to it.

And you know, certain events happen that really made me just gave me a real kick in the pants, like, all right, Jen, it's time.

Let's just, let's launch this thing.

Let's get this started.

So I just wanted other women to know, like, it's possible.

It sucks, it's hard, it's a lot of work.

But, you know, it can be done if you really want.

And you're a mom now.

You know, there's something about becoming a mom that just really lights a fire in you and make you.

If you want to get it done, you'll get it done.

Yeah.

Yeah, It's.

It's true.

That's what everyone before I had my baby would say.

Like, you should appreciate all the time you have now.

And, like, you'll never know, like, what you do with your free time once you have a baby.

And I mean, it's kind of true, but it's weird too, because it's.

It's almost like she was never not here.

Like, it just shifted and I'm like, I don't really remember when you weren't.

Weren't here with me, you know?

Yeah.

And like, the.

The time I think back to that, I regret the most and to everyone listening, if you were in college, you will never have that much time again in your life.

Like, when I was in college, I went to class like four hours a day.

What.

What did I do all day?

I have no idea.

Yeah.

So enjoy that while it lasts.

Because it's not how it is in PA school.

That's definitely not how it is in the real world when you're working and definitely not as a mom.

So I think we take our.

Our time for granted a little bit.

But tell us where everyone can find you and follow you and hear more.

Okay.

Www.thepacafe.com and I'm also on Instagram and Facebook at the PA Cafe.

Awesome.

And I will.

I'll link to everything and I'll link to your blog post you did for me, which was awesome.

That was a while ago now, but I'm thankful for that.

So any.

Any other tips?

What would your advice be to someone who is unsure?

They usually say if they're unsure if they want to become a pa, let's change it.

Let's say, what is your advice to someone who's a mom who is unsure if they can make it?

If they can do all the stuff that it takes to get there and then complete PA school, you can do it.

It's going to require some planning.

You're going to have to get all your ducks in a row because this is not a game.

You have to have, you know, things in order before you get there.

But it can, can be done.

You just got to plan for it.

Don't let you know your responsibility as a mom or wife ever.

The career you can.

We can have it all.

We really can't.

You just have to plan for it.

You got to be ready for whatever comes your way.

I love it.

Thank you.

It was nice talking to you.

Yeah.

Sam.