The PA School Application “Waiting Period”
Waiting period...after application submission
You likely have spent a lot of time and energy preparing to apply to PA school. You likely spent a lot of effort filling out your applications. Finally, you submit. And then….*crickets*. You now have entered the waiting period. This can feel weird and be anxiety provoking. You should look at this as a time of rest and accomplishment. You are done with what you needed to do, and you should feel proud.
Waiting period…after the interview
You finally hear back and maybe you got an interview! You prepare for the interview, potentially traveling for it too. You finish and return home. Little did you know, you have now entered waiting period #2.
This one is usually a little more structured, oftentimes schools will tell you around when you should expect to hear back. See if you can get an estimate of this. Again, this should be seen as another time of accomplishment. Even if the interview didn’t go as great as you’d hoped, it is still quality practice for future ones.
Mindset matters
You can and should be confident in yourself, but try not to approach the application year with any expectations. I went into my application year with the mindset of I am going to try my best, but it is very common to need a second cycle, so I will just assume I’ll need a second one, and if I do get in this one, then that’s awesome too! But no expectations, so that way it can only go up from there.
Better yourself
You should be continually bettering yourself during the application year even after you have submitted your applications. Assume you may need a second cycle, and they ask what you changed from one year to the next – this is the time to contribute to that. Add on more patient care hours, volunteer, acquire a new certification.
This will not only help a second cycle, but is also useful during the present cycle to mention what you are doing during your interview. You can even check MyPAbox to see if you end up qualifying for new schools with the new hours etc. you acquire.
Stay positive
I know I said to keep expectations in check, but you also want to do that in a positive way. This can be a crazy and often stressful process, so stay as positive as possible. The fact that you are even where you are now is a step in the right direction. Even if you get waitlisted there is hope, staying positive will make the waiting period be less agonizing and more enjoyable!
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