Is Nursing or RN a Good Path into the PA Profession?

When it comes to choosing a major for PA school, it really doesn't matter what you pick. Programs mainly want to see that you've completed the required prerequisites, which is why my class had students from tons of different majors. I was a biology major, but if I could go back I'd probably choose something different, maybe marketing or design, since I love website work and podcasting now. Pick something you're genuinely interested in, because you have to earn that bachelor's degree, and you can always get the prerequisite coursework in other ways.

A science major can make it a little easier to knock out prerequisites at the same time, but not always. At UGA, my biology major actually didn't include anatomy and physiology, and I couldn't even get into those classes because they were reserved for other majors. I had to take them elsewhere over the summer, where they only counted as electives. I also ended up taking extra classes like organic chemistry 2, which most PA programs don't even require, and those hurt my GPA without helping my application. Look closely at how your major lines up with what PA programs actually want.

Let's talk about nursing. Nursing experience is great for PA school when it comes to getting your patient care hours, which is one of the biggest pieces of a competitive application. Working as a nurse puts you in direct contact with patients and builds exactly the kind of hands-on experience programs want to see.

The degree and training side is more complicated. A lot of PA programs want upper-level science coursework that isn't always required for a BSN, so the nursing curriculum alone may not check every prerequisite box. That doesn't make nursing a bad choice, it just means you can't assume the degree automatically covers everything PA schools expect. You'll want to compare the specific classes in a nursing program against the prerequisites at your target PA programs.

Before you commit to nursing as a path to PA, do your homework so you don't waste time and money. Look at the classes you'd take and check directly with PA programs to confirm those credits will count toward their prerequisites. You don't want to finish a nursing degree and an RN license only to discover the science courses don't satisfy your target schools.

You also need to be able to explain why you're choosing the PA route. If you're trained in the nursing model, admissions committees will ask the obvious question: why not become a nurse practitioner? Have a real, thoughtful answer ready. And plan to actually work as a nurse for a while after earning your BSN and RN, so it's clear you pursued nursing for genuine reasons and not just as a quick checkbox on the way to PA school.

Nursing can be a strong entry point into the PA profession, but only if you go in with eyes open about prerequisites and your reasons for choosing PA. Verify the coursework, get real patient care experience, and prepare your why PA answer. If you want help mapping out your specific path, a counseling session can save you a lot of guesswork.