Undergraduate education: University of Southern California
Overall GPA: 3.57
Science GPA: 3.58
GRE: 314
PA-CAT: Did not take
Total PCE hours: 3,120; I gained my patient care experience by working as a medical assistant in three different offices over the course of my undergraduate education and throughout my gap year. I worked in a cosmetic dermatology office in Los Angeles, CA (I discovered this position through the Pre-PA club at USC), a medical dermatology office at home in NH, and finally an internal medicine office in St. Louis, MO (where I am currently living with my boyfriend, until we move to our next destination for PA school)! I highly recommend obtaining hours as a medical assistant, as I have acquired and sharpened skills ranging from taking a manual BP, to assisting in sterile excisions, administering an ECG, giving IM and subcutaneous injections, venipuncture, and so much more.
Total HCE hours: I believe I had about 500 healthcare experience hours. I gained this experience during my time as a medical assistant, when helping out in the front office: taking phone calls, scheduling patients, completing prior authorizations on prescriptions, etc. I also worked at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles as a clinical research assistant during the early part of my undergraduate education, and this helped to contribute to those hours as well.
Shadowing hours: I had 120 hours of shadowing experience. This was acquired over several summers of going to stay with family in South Florida and shadowing at a Level I Trauma Center where my aunt is a trauma nurse.
Volunteer hours: 1,230; I focused a lot on service throughout high school and college. These hours are a conglomeration of experiences: serving as a campus ambassador for Gift of Life, volunteering for philanthropic events for my sorority Alpha Delta Pi, serving as Chaplain for my sorority, teaching science for a semester in an underserved elementary school in LA through USC JEP program, as well as volunteer work at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles during my time as a research assistant.
How many times did you apply?: 1
Age: 23
Gender: Female
How many programs did you apply to? 11
How many programs did you interview with and what were the outcomes? Out of the eleven programs I applied to, I have received four interview invites. I interviewed with three programs and declined the fourth invite, because at that point I had already received an acceptance. From the three interviews, I have been accepted to one program, waitlisted at one program, and I am still waiting to hear from the third.
Where will you be attending? My acceptance is to South College in Nashville, TN!
Were there any helpful resources (books, websites, webinars, etc) you used to get through prerequisites courses, the application or interview process? Savanna's PA Platform Interview Guide was key for strong interview preparation.
Any advice for other pre-PA students? Be yourself in your interview (while remaining professional, of course). I found that sharing stories of my experiences with patients helped to put me at ease during the interviews, and also allowed me to highlight my strengths and personality.
Where can we find you? (Instagram, TikTok, Website, etc) - @oliviasanderson32 on Instagram
