Nathaniel Alston Student Achievement Scholarship Award
Scholarship Sponsored by Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants
Dear PA Students,
Would you like $2,000 to help cover education expenses? Want formal recognition for your achievements and to inspire your classmates? If so, consider applying for the Nathaniel Alston Student Achievement Award, sponsored by the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants (PSPA). Each year the PSPA honors student winners at its Annual Fall CME Conference; three students will each receive a $2,000 honorarium.
Overview
The Nathaniel Alston Student Achievement Award celebrates PA students who exemplify the highest standards of the PA profession and who promote goodwill, public recognition, and professional growth for PAs. Applicants will be evaluated competitively by the PSPA Awards Committee. Students compete alongside applicants from other Pennsylvania PA programs; more than one winner may come from the same program. Winners will be announced and presented their awards during the Student Challenge Bowl at the PSPA Annual Fall CME Conference and should plan to attend the banquet to accept the award in person.
Eligibility (must be true both at time of application and at award presentation)
- Be a member of the PSPA.
- Provide documentation from your PA program confirming you are in good standing and meeting the program’s academic and progress requirements.
- Be a graduate PA student or in the professional (graduate) phase of your PA program; the essay must describe an experience that occurred during this graduate/professional phase.
- Essay: maximum 750 words, typed, double-spaced, and submitted in Microsoft Word format.
- Protect patient confidentiality: identify patients only by initials; quotes or excerpts from written materials may be used but must be properly attributed.
- A student may submit an entry a second time (in a subsequent year) while still in the graduate/professional portion of the program; the new essay must address a different prompt than the prior submission. A student may win the award only once.
Essay Topics (choose one)
1) Describe the role of community service in medicine in advancing the PA profession. If you refer to a personal experience, it must have occurred during your PA training.
2) Describe a specific experience from your PA education (for example, a patient interaction, a project, or a teaching/learning event) and explain how it will shape your future practice as a PA.
3) Describe a patient encounter from your PA training that involved a moral or ethical dilemma and explain how you would approach that issue.
Submission instructions
- Email your essay (Microsoft Word) to hiserman88@gmail.com.
- In the body of the email include: full name, mailing address, personal email, PSPA membership number, PA program name, and anticipated graduation date.
- Applications are being accepted NOW through June 30.
Selection and award
- Essays will be reviewed and scored by the PSPA Awards Committee.
- Three winners will be selected; each will receive a $2,000 honorarium.
- Winners will be recognized at the PSPA Annual Fall CME Conference Student Challenge Bowl and must attend the banquet to receive their award in person.
Good luck to everyone who applies!
Sincerely,
Helen O. Hiserman, MHP, PA-C
Awards Chair
“Everything is out there waiting for you. Everything you want also wants you. But you have to take action to get it.” — Pierre-Jules Renard