Physician Assistant

Physician Assistants, or PAs, work as part of a healthcare team under the close supervision of a doctor. A PA must be compassionate, self-motivated and able to make decisions quickly. To become a Physician Assistant, an individual must complete a PA educational program, which usually takes two years. Every state requires a PA to pass the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination in order to become certified to work in the state. To remain certified, every two years Physician Assistants must complete a minimum of 100 hours of continuing education. A PA can expect to earn between $65,000 and $100,000 per year. Future job opportunities will continue to be good for PAs in both private and public practice.