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About Me

Hello!

Thanks for reading my blog. My name is Olivia, and I am a non-traditional, distance PA student in Wisconsin. As a distance student, I am completing my didactic education over two years instead of one, and then will have one year of clinicals. I watch my lectures online and have my exams proctored at a local public library. Because I am a "part-time" PA student right now (but, technically a full-time grad student!), I am able to keep working. I work 24-32 hours a week as a clinical dietitian at a local hospital. Needless to say, I am quite busy! In fact, you can read about my daily routine here.



I've written a few posts about my pre-PA story, so check those out to learn about what I did to get into PA school, how I chose what schools to apply to, and mistakes I made along the way.

What else can I say about myself? I'm in my 30s, I own a home and have an adorable dog named Milo who is the best study buddy. I'm an extrovert and I love squeezing in time in my busy schedule to meet friends for tacos, go for a hike, grab a drink, or walk to the farmers market. When I'm taking breaks from studying, you can probably find me taking Milo for a long walk while listening to a true crime podcast!



I originally had a career in the marketing and advertising industry as a copywriter and social media specialist, but then went back to school to get my certificate in dietetics. Originally, I thought I would be a private practice dietitian and have a strong online presence (given my background in social media), but I fell in love with clinical nutrition and working in a hospital. And while I still enjoy being a dietitian, I can't wait for this next challenge and career!


You'll see that one of my focuses on this blog is related to budget. While I am certainly no expert on the matter, it's important for me to be as financially savvy as possible and to try and keep my student loan debt as small as possible (a laughable task given that I've put myself through college three times!). According to ThePALife.com, "the average anticipated debt load from PA school is at $112,500." A staggering number. I can't imagine I'm the only PA student stressing over how to pay for this adventure, so I hope you can learn something along with me!

Oh, and I should mention you can follow me on Instagram, too!

Thanks so much for reading,
Olivia


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