I recently got accepted to PA school and have $20k savings (4.5% HYSA). I have contributed 10% of the max to my 2024 ROTH IRA. Should I continue maxing out my ROTH before PA school or build on my HYSA to have a larger nest egg for emergency fund, living expenses, vacations before school starts.

I know there are a lot of students who need some guidance and advice through didactic year. I am finishing up my clinical and year and wanted to share some resources.

Sorry, this will be a long post :)

• For my commuters, record yourself reading the lectures and listen to it in the car or just record yourself as you are teaching a class. This will help so much.

  • Organize your notes in class so when you go home, you can relax. I studied mainly on the weekends.

• You DON'T need to engage in group study. You can study by yourself or just with one person and pass PA school.

• Know what type of learner are you[Kinesthetic, audio, visual, reading/writing]. I realized i'm more visual, during my exams, I can see my notes pop up in my brain.

• YOU DON'T NEED TO ACE EVERYTHING, YOU ONLY NEED TO PASS!

• PLEASE RELY ON YOUR FACULTY'S PPTs. Attempt to cut down 200 slides to 60-90.

• Resources I swear by for DIDACTIC:

  • Make CHARTS from your PPTs when you get to clin medicine.
    • Use illustrations Medcomics or Rosh. For example, type in “Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia Rosh” and past it on to your charts.
  • Make ANKI of PPTs!
    • Instead of writing notes in class, just copy and paste the notes on to ANKI or Quizlet while in class.
    • I was stubborn to not use Anki sooner. It saves so much time!!!!!

• OSCE Prep: I hate to tell you but you have to read BATES. It's a good book and this is how faculty will grade you. Read BATES entirely. I kept pushing it off but it is a valuable book.

  • Youtube: Geeky Medics, Bates exams

• Youtube IS YOUR BEST FRIEND!!!!!! * For Patho: NINJA NERD***, Medicosis Perfectionalis and Lecturio * Cram the Pance * Paul Bolin[ He is an MD who goes over everything in short videos. I recommend watching him after you gotta good grasp on the patho] * Katy Blair Conner * Zero to Finals * Laura Conklin (THE BEST OBGYN REVIEW)

  • PPP
  • Lange question book(Yellow cover) This is necessary for your clin med courses. You can search for the free PDF.
  • Paid for a subscription but NOT necessary for didactic: Lecturio (Was not necessary for a question bank because didactic questions are stupid. Just follow your faculty’s powerpoints....BUT you can just sign up and read the 3 notes for free each month. This site has every medical condition known to man.)

If you are anything like me, for any clin med condition you don't understand, go on youtube and search it. I would get confused on the different types of seizures until I watched actors acting it out on "Epilepsy Action" on YT.

DO NOT PURCHASE ANY SUBSCRIPTIONS IN DIDACTIC! DON'T DO IT! DON'T DO IT!

DON'T DO IT!!!!!!!!!!! Wait until clinical year to blow your money. Enjoy the freebies for now.

took my surgery EOR today & was soo nervous bc everyone said the new version was really hard. my hours at the rotation (5:30am - 7:30pm) made studying very difficult since i was always absolutely exhausted. after taking it, i felt i was likely right on the border of failing & thought it could’ve gone either way. but i passed & did well actually!! im a very average student & this was a much needed boost of confidence. just wanted to give some hope to others who might also be freaking out about surgery. if i can do it, so can you!!

How many questions is it?

Is it difficult to get a 1400?

Anyone know if I should get the V4 or V5 is there a lot of difference I’m debating using getting a used V4 or can get a new V5?

As the title states… 🫠 I start PA school in January and for some reason I’ve caught an extreme case of imposter syndrome. I’ve always struggle with confidence and social anxiety. There’s 70 people in my cohort and I’ve met all of them, thanks to the program putting a little get together/mini orientation before the program starts. Everyone seems pretty nice but I’m still not comfortable. I’m 29, covered in tattoos and look noticeably different than everyone else. I will say that the program itself seems very supportive and inclusive. They’ve been around for a while and previous cohorts speak highly of the professors and staff. Any advice going into PA school in regard to imposter syndrome and low self esteem (I think that’s also an issue of mine)? I want to connect with my cohort and actually make friends but l feel like there’s so many mental health barriers in the way.

Today I was officially dismissed from my PA program. It’s been a really tough day. I haven’t been doing the greatest in my exams but have been putting in the work. I had a meeting today and I thought I would get decelerated for next year but not dismissed. They claimed they didn’t think I could handle it and didn’t think I could pass the PANCE. I just started the program this semester so I don’t understand why I couldn’t give it a try again next year? My program is new and they are honestly all over the place and we don’t have resources for tutoring or academic support nothing…I had to seek a tutor outside of school and have been working wit this tutor now but no one from school. It’s quite hurtful, my dean was like well maybe you should go into something else or become an EMT? I was like 👍🏽 I worked for 5 years as a MA and was underpaid and I want to do more with my life and grow! And she mentioned there was an appeal so that I can appeal for an option…wondering if anyone has been in my shoes or knows anything about these things. Or also what are the odds of getting accepted into another program?

I currently have a 4.0 in PA school. But i feel like my whole life is revolving around school

I know I NEED to relax and take it easy, but I'm like obsessed with doing the best I possibly can. I don't feel stressed or anything, but i also feel like I'm not being social. But then when I got out with classmates, I feel guilty like i should be studying because I want an A.

I've done some reflecting. I had a really difficult journey getting to PA school so I feel like I'm out to prove the whole world wrong about how much everyone doubted me by being the perfect student. I just don't think I can keep this up for another 6 months, y'know?

Hi all, currently in my first semester, thankfully doing pretty well in all classes, except anatomy. I have scored extremely low in the two tests we've had so far and there are only two exams left. (including final) i dont know what im doing wrong. i have studied very hard amd feel my scores are not reflecting. i cry everyday in fear of not passing this one class and being potentially held back. my program only allows remediation of 1 exam. so i am under a lot of pressure to score exceptionally well on the next two tests. any advice? please!!! this is my dream come true and i am trying my hardest to merely pass this courss

I've accounted for about 4 months of rent/living expenses, plus:

• PANCE scheduling costs
• state-specific licensing
• DEA licensing
• school specific graduation expenses
• some extra cash for graduation pics, a dress, a nice dinner afterwards, etc.

What other expenses did you need or did anything surprise you about costs post-graduation?

I'm trying to budget how much to take out for my last semester of school and I really need to budget well, as I won't have another opportunity to get any more money between now and when I start working.

I do terrible with sticking to a study schedule and am an visual + auditory learner (have to have both) so just reading over all the practice question books and flashcards do nothing for me. Those Cram the PANCE videos are a GEM with the mnemonics/buzzwords/"watch out for this" type of content but he doesn't have all the systems/conditions covered on the PANCE. I tried Sketchy but I can't focus because of their style.

While I still plan to do practice questions to familiarize myself with exam style questions, I would do much better with a series of crash course videos or a guided "prep course" similar to that where they go system by system with signs/diagnosis/treatment to refresh/re-learn before I start trying to tackle practice questions.

Does that exist?

Hi everyone, I am helping a student prep for a recent PANCE retake. She just found out her score was 266 she took it last Wednesday and found out this week. I know it is on the lower end of the curve. I already suggested to her to get test accommodations. SHe used Uworld, PPP, and Rosh Review. Is there anything else I should recommend to her? She scored 400s on her EORs average and average on EOC. She scored low on PACKRAT I and PACKRAT II.

I personally feel she needs more time to prep content but could also be test anxiety. Anything else to recommend? Thanks in advance!

im going to take the EOC in a week and I'm averaging 56% on most 60 question exams I make on UWorld.... how specific/detailed did you think the EOC was? I'm overwhelmed with small details about every dx to remember. Every antibiotic name for infectious dz, most have multiple options that can be used. I'm struggling with remembering what lab results will look like for a disease too other than the big high yield ones.

how did you feel about the eoc, what were you averaging on uworld? was it easier?

i don't know what else to do other than the question bank and reviewing my wrong answers

When should I start studying for PANCE? I take Jan 2. I am on my FM rotation right now but

Prior stats are: WH 466, IM 448, psych 449, gen surgery 437, EM 452, Peds 499 (no idea how that happened), Packrat 1: 175 (haven’t taken post clinical one yet), EOC 1636.

Honestly wasn’t gonna start studying until 2 weeks before and kind of counted on FM getting me started looking at broad stuff when studying for the EOR but not actually do PANCE studying until 2 weeks before. But now I am starting to see some people started studying for it months ago that take it the same date.

Any advice would be helpful! Thank you so much. Just don’t want to risk not studying enough for it and then not passing

What did you do to get approved? Any tips you could give me? I'm currently getting out of the Army with a disability.

I just found out I failed the pance for the 2nd time. I did improve 270 to 314. I changed from using rosh to uworld and started studying from my own notes. I have a lot of family things going on. Feel like I wasted so much time.

Uworld I was getting 60% with 60% used. I wish I used it earlier. I changed from tutor mode to test mode and used mixed categories which I found more helpful. Can anyone provide an other advice or insight?

I'm upset at myself. I'm more determined to pass this next time.

Hi all! I keep seeing that people say PANCE has experimental questions on it. I haven’t been able to find that on anywhere to verify it. I was wondering if this is true and roughly how many there are and if they are scattered throughout or there is a section that’s experimental? Thanks!

Also, any advice for calming nerves for pance? I take it Friday and have been so anxious (normal I know) but don’t want that to interfere with me the day of. Thanks all for your support : )

Anyone have good recommendations that's helped you study for the prep/peri/post op section in the German surgery EOR (old version). I'm getting frustrated trying to find info between Smarty Pance, Rosh and barely any in PPP.

Thank you!!!!

Hi everyone! So I am looking back at my IM EOR performance report, and it shows my data for the Content Category and Task. However, when I click on Keyword there is no data. It says "There are no report result to show." Has anyone else had this problem? I definitely did not make a perfect score, so there must be keywords right?

for the PANCE do you guys study all the tuberculosis regimens for RIPE, including duration of treatment or focus more on medication s/e? Don’t know if I should go into the weeds or focus more on big picture. Thank you

Is it normal not to do very “well” on exams? I mean I am passing but not with a bunch of As. I might even end up with a C and Bs. But I cant help but feel like a failure.

This is my second semester, I did ok in the first semester, no Cs mostly As &Bs. I have one left until clinical year.

I’m halfway through my first semester of didactic and am struggling. I have done well on my exams until doing poorly on one recently and have been down in the dumps ever since.

I am also one of the oldest in my cohort (late 20s) and am one of the only ones married. Lately things have just felt very lonely and I’ve begun to dislike my program and wished I had gone elsewhere. Many students in my cohort are right out of undergrad and it just feels very hard to go through this alone (besides having my husband/family) and being at a different stage of life.

I knew PA school would be hard and am so grateful to be in a program but did not expect the social/emotional aspect to be like this

Any advice or anyone in the same boat?

I don’t feel much of a sense of camaraderie between myself and other students, and I feel like it’s because of the diversity of backgrounds in my class. I guess I’m intimidated by others, but idk why. I’m doing well. I don’t see these people as competition, and I’d like to have some friendships but I HATE the feeling of trying to force any type of relationship just because I feel like it should be there.

Just feeling drained and lonely I guess. My gut instinct is to be indifferent to other students, but I don’t want to come off as rude. Anyone else feel this way?

Hi all! Firstly, I know that there is many resources on this sub already of studying for the PANCE, but I'm struggling with studying. Taking the exam mid-January and started studying ~2 weeks ago. Using PPP V5 to go over topics and realizing it's not heedful to me - maybe I'm a visual learner but I feel like there's almost too much he writes for each topic? Everyone raves about PPP but II'm finding it really hard to concentrate & learn from. Otherwise, Im doing uWorld after each topic on weekends and then once all topics are finished, I will redo a mash up of uWorld questions. Any advice? TYIA

Has anyone used the new platform Rosh has switched to?

I’m looking at ordering the PANCE QBank; has anyone used it?

Hi guys! As of today, I am a PA-C!! I am so happy and grateful for the results. I had started PA school once before but had to pause school for reasons I do not want to disclose. Anyway, I came back and focused on PA school. PA school was hard for me because of the amount of material and the speed at which it was delivered. Also, I didn't make lifelong friends in PA school, but I honestly didn't care because I was there to get my degree.

Anyway, here are my stats:

PACKRAT pre-clinical: 115 (I had a horrible HA so that I couldn't study for it. Plus, my PA program said not to study for it)

PACKRAT post-clinical: 159 (I had to study to prove my facility and myself that the first PACKRAT didn't determine my success)

EORs: (this is in the order which I took it) Gen Surgery: 390 (I was sooooo sick that day) OBGYN: 402 Peds: 418 EM: 423 Family Med: 424 IM: 407 Psych: 402

For the PANCE: I used the PPP and the question book that the PPP author created. In addition, I completed 82% of the world questions with 72% accuracy. I did 60-question blocks in tutor mode but only spent a minute a question. I didn't want to take the NCCPA practice test, but I was so anxious as the exam date approached… so I did test B. I scored low on the green. It helped with my nerves. I didn't take test A practice test. Although the NCCPA practice test score results helped with my nerves, I would not be so worried about scraping money for it because I will not tell you which is the right answer and why. I used Rosh, too….However, do not overwhelm yourself with too many q banks or resources. I did some Rosh because I studied for 7 weeks. I would not recommend 7 weeks or more because I was exhausted. As the exam got closer, my anxiety was so high, but on the day of the exam, I was unusually calm. After four business days, I got my score-> 464. As long as you study and put in the work, you will pass! Good luck, everyone!!

i am the most anxious person i know and this decision to try medication has been a long time coming

i’m starting PA school in January and i truly believe that i should start anxiety meds since i know that it’ll be an anxiety inducing experience lol

just kind of worried about trying to come off two years after being on it, are there withdrawals or severe rebound anxiety that people typically experience?

Hey yall, fingers crossed, i am supposed to be graduating in December. In between graduation and getting a job, I obviously need to take the PANCE but after, I need a job in between. For those of yall that got a job like an MA or an EMT, when you submitted your resume, did you list that you graduated from PA school or did you leave that out?

Thanks

Hi, I am currently in didactic year of PA school and my past medical experience was all outpatient. I have never really worked in a hospital but I am interested in the environment, as it seems fast faced and team oriented in an exciting way. However, I am definitely intimated by the hospital's complexities, as it seems to be a tight run system with so many moving parts that fit together. I have basically zero experience with super acute patients or even medical equipment like IVs (I was a medical assistant in primary care pediatrics), and was wondering if anyone had advice about working in a hospital without prior experience? What was your experience like learning everything while trying not to make a mistake?

Hi guys! I found out that I passed the PANCE.

IM 387

FM 384

EM 413

Psych 410

OBGYN 409

Pediatrics 412

Surgery 390

EOC # 1: 1459 and EOC # 2: 1497

I had to wait 60 days before retaking.

uWorld: 68% with 100% finished

PANCE: 474