Meet Inspira Advantage’s PA School Admissions Experts

Sierra graduated from Indiana University before attending the Touro University’s PA program, specializing in cardiothoracic surgery. Before PA school, she worked as a clinical research coordinator for a retinal surgeon and the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University. She has also interned for the Infection Disease Clinic at the University of Chicago.

Savannah is a physician assistant at Infectious Diseases Associates in Sarasota, FL. She graduated from the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine with an MS in physician assistant studies. Her journey in healthcare began during her undergraduate studies at USF, where she majored in biology with a minor in psychology, earning the prestigious Outstanding Biology Student Award.

Before attending the University of Southern California’s PA program, Cindy graduated from the University of California, Irvine. She has six years of mentorship experience and has served on USC Keck School of Medicine’s PA admissions committee as an interviewer. Her healthcare experience includes research in radiation oncology, clinical work in ophthalmology, pulmonology, dentistry, and pain management, and a medical mission trip to Vietnam.

Shaleen brings over 12 years of admissions and mentoring experience to her role as a counselor. She has worked as a Professor of Pharmacology at Midwestern University for 15 years, served on the Midwestern University Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine Admissions committee for 10 years, and currently sits on the school’s PA admissions committee—she has interviewed and evaluated applications from thousands of PA and medical candidates.

Ana graduated with an MMSc degree from the Yale School of Medicine’s prestigious Physician Associate Program. Before that, she graduated as Salutatorian from the University of Maine with a Bachelor of Science in biology, concentrating in pre-medical studies and minoring in psychology and neuroscience. Ana is a member of Physician Associates for Latino Health (PALH) and served as House Delegate for the Student Academy within the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA).

Nick is a physician assistant currently working in trauma surgery at Trident Hospital. He studied at Charleston Southern University, graduating with a Master of physician assistant studies. He founded the Student Ambassador Program at CSU to assist prospective students, drawing on his experience conducting tours and discussions with applicants since high school and during his undergraduate years.

Sarah is a radiation oncology physician assistant at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, who has assisted countless pre-PA, PA, and MD/DO students with shadowing and clinical rotations. She also holds a second Master’s degree in medical sciences and anatomy from the University of South Florida.

Joann graduated summa cum laude from the University of Maryland with a degree in public health sciences before studying at Yale School of Medicine's PA program, earning an MS in physician assistant studies. At Yale, Joann acted as the Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. She is now a family medicine PA working at Chase Brexton Health Care.

Gianna is a physician assistant specializing in international pain management at the University at Buffalo Neurosurgery and holds privileges as a medical PA for anesthesiology at Kenmore Mercy Hospital. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in rehabilitation science and completed her PA education at Stony Brook University.

Johanna graduated from Seton Hill University with an MBA in healthcare administration and a Master's in physician assistant studies. She works as a PA in cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Presbyterian, providing acute care, caring for pre- and postoperative patients, and spending time in the operating room. Johanna has over five years of mentoring experience.