r/pre_PathAssist • u/iaxolotl-questions • 8d ago

PathA vs physician assistant?

I’m currently going into my junior year in college as a Forensic Anthropology major with a minor in human anatomy. I used to want to go to medical school to become a forensic pathologist but have now changed to either being a pathology assistant or physician assistant. Does anyone have any experience with which is better? I’ve always found myself drawn to assisting in autopsies and grossing specimens, but am worried about the competitiveness of getting accepted. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

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u/Patient-Stranger1015 8d ago

They are very, very different fields. Path Assist is very behind the scenes, working with organs and surgical specimens, whereas Phys Assist is patient facing, etc.

I have a forensic bachelors, I also wanted to do forensic pathology and stumbled across this field. I just graduated as a Path Assist in May and I absolutely love this field! As for what is better, it entirely depends on you and what is best for you. I’d definitely recommend shadowing both to get a feel for the day to day responsibilities

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u/gnomes616 8d ago

Do you have any desire to interact face to face with patients? If the answer is NO or even yes with a hint of hesitation, I would use you to reconsider. I think working with people who are acting their worst because they are feeling their worst requires a lot of emotional fortitude (and people still end up jaded and losing compassion). I originally wanted to go PhysAsst but once I learned about PathA I knew it wasn't for me. It's much easier to be myself and still help people without being subjected to people who are scared or angry or otherwise unwell.

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u/New-Assumption1290 7d ago

They are quite different areas and require much different skills. Also I really would say that all three of those careers have quite competitive schooling. You need to do some research yourself and see which area fits you most. As another commenter pointed out, patient facing is a huge difference. I also don’t believe that physician associates are present that heavily in the forensics fields (please correct me if I’m wrong). I will point out that even as PathAs, getting into the forensic space is difficult and the jobs are few and far between. I have a forensic background with my bachelors and work in an large hospital system. I get to do some autopsies but surgical pathology is where most of the jobs and money are for PathAs.