What’s It Like Working with a PANCE Tutor?
Related Articles
As we all know, getting through PA school is no easy task. From multiple exams a week to balancing clinical year and PANCE prep, it takes a lot of time, dedication, and resilience to succeed.
After I graduated in May 2021, I was inspired to help future PAs achieve their dreams, so I started with Blueprint Prep as a PA tutor. Since then, I’ve been able to help many students reach their fullest potential and thrive! If you’re wondering whether reaching out for extra help is the right move for you, here are some top FAQs about working with a PANCE tutor.
1. When is the best time to work with a PANCE tutor?
One mistake I see a lot of PA students make is waiting too long to get help. I always say, “The earlier, the better” when it comes to getting a tutor.
While we’re definitely able to work with you at any time, helping students as soon as they start to struggle can keep them from falling too far behind. If you’re thinking about pursuing tutoring, I’m here to encourage you to take the jump!
2. How do I know if I need a PANCE tutor?
Not all PA students that get a tutor do so because they’re not performing well. For example, I’ve tutored students that have done very well in didactic year, but were looking for guidance when it came to balancing clinical year and PANCE prep. This is one of the busiest times of your life, and having someone to help structure your studies is very beneficial.
Other reasons you may benefit from a tutor include test anxiety and poor test-taking habits. As we all know, test taking is a skill of its own and it’s important to master it during these years of multiple important examinations. Just like any skill, it takes practice and guidance to fully master.
You can find a full list of factors to help you decide whether you’d benefit from a PA tutor in my other blog post, Would You Benefit From a PA School Tutor?
3. How do I get started with a PANCE tutor?
To start working with a PANCE tutor, you can schedule a free consultation on Blueprint’s website (Rosh Review’s parent company).
All PA tutoring packages include access to Rosh Review question banks tailored to your area of focus, as well as the free PA study planner.
After signing up, you’ll fill out a brief questionnaire about your availability, what exactly you’re looking for in a tutor, and your personal timeline. This also includes questions about your current study habits and testing history.
Your response is then sent out to potential tutor matches, and after thorough review, the tutor that’s best equipped to meet your needs will be assigned to you.
4. What does my first session look like?
Your first tutor session is typically two hours long, discounted to the price of one hour. This allows you to get to know your tutor and ensure a good fit, receive at least one hour of specialty curated content, review your current study habits, and spend some time planning next steps.
During this time, your tutor will get to know you and collaborate on a schedule and timeline that works best for you. From there, you’ll be able to schedule sessions directly with your tutor.
5. How often should I meet with my PANCE tutor?
I’ve had some students that like to meet weekly, while others like monthly check-ins for broad PANCE content review. Some students prefer one-hour sessions, while others like to do less frequent two-hour meetings. This depends on your specific needs, timeline, and where exactly you are in your PA education process.
One great thing about this is that tutoring can be as flexible as you need it to be. For example, when working with students in a clinical year setting, we’re constantly changing our meeting times as their clinical rotation schedule changes. Or, if you’re studying for your PANRE, tutors can adapt to changes a full-time work schedule can entail.
The point is Blueprint has many PA tutors that are able to accommodate any schedule. Overall, how long and how often you’ll meet is something you’ll talk about during your first session and adjustments can be made based on your needs.
6. What does a typical tutoring session look like?
Most of the students I work with like to meet once per week for an hour-long session. Personally, I like to utilize my one-hour sessions for content review. Therefore, scheduling and session planning are done outside of this time (typically through email).
To go into more detail about what a typical session looks like, let’s use a student during their clinical year preparing for the PANCE as our example:
My typical tutoring session…
We’ll start by focusing on topics the student needs help with. This can be determined by Packrat scores, prior end-of-rotation exam scores, Rosh Review question analysis, or even the student’s own opinion on what they need help with. Of note, all Blueprint tutors use the NCCPA blueprint to ensure the material we’re reviewing is applicable to the upcoming exam.
The way I host my sessions is very interactive. I often have question prompts to make sure the student is engaged throughout. You’ve already learned this material, so doing this helps promote recall and active studying! This also ensures that if a student has a good understanding of a topic, we’re able to breeze through it and focus our attention on areas that need it more.
Given the importance of test-taking skills, I like to add some time at the end of the session to review questions on the material. We spend a moment talking about goals until the next session, and the hope is students leave the session feeling confident in the material they reviewed that day.
Further Reading
It’s been a privilege helping students succeed over the last two years with Blueprint. For me, it’s always bittersweet when students I’ve grown so close to succeed on their PANCE exam, as that’s the end of my time with them! More importantly, it brings me such joy receiving the “I passed!” email and knowing that exceptional PAs are becoming a part of the workforce.
In closing, I’d like to say that If you’re thinking about working with a PANCE tutor, please reach out. The sooner the better, so we can get to work and see to it you achieve your dreams. The PANCE is a tough exam, but you can do it. And we’re here to help!
Looking for more (free!) content to help you pass the PANCE? Check out these other posts on the Rosh Review blog:
- PANCE Pass Rates Are Down To 92%. Here’s How to Pass in 2024
- Take A Look Inside the Live PANCE/PANRE Review Course
- Top PANCE FAQs: Everything You Need to Know for Exam Day
Rosh Review is a Blueprint Test Prep company. To get matched with a PA tutor that fits your unique needs, schedule a free consultation with one of Blueprint’s PA school tutors today!
Comments (0)