2019 PA Negotiation Worksheet
Along with application season for PA school and PA student scholarships, many students are finishing PA programs and looking for a job. Part of the job search is finding one that fits your desires, as well as negotiating offers. If you want to maximize your salary you can check out some of the best paying cities, but just because you move to one of these cities does not mean you won’t have to negotiate. By preparing beforehand you can be confident in anything you might want to ask.
You might be wondering when is the best time to start applying for jobs. The answer is easy – anytime you’re ready. Of course you can’t start working until you have the “C” behind your name, but that doesn’t mean you can’t start applying for jobs before. If interviews and searching for jobs will distract you from studying and passing the PANCE, than it’s best to start the job search once you’re certified. If you feel like you have your studies under control, you can start applying before.
I had many classmates who were able to get job offers prior to completing school. It does take time to get credentialed and licensed, and that varies by state. I had multiple job offers within a month of passing the PANCE.
Preparing for PA Job Negotiation
If this is your first time looking for a job and negotiating a contract it is important to be prepared. Know what you’re worth and an expected salary for a new graduate. Also, it is important to know what you’re looking for in a first job, as you have less leverage to negotiate. Is it important to have the highest salary, so you can pay off your student loans quickly? Are the overall benefits more important than salary? Do you want student loan repayment? Is location the most important?
I recommend writing out all these factors and then numbering them in order of importance, and as you get job offers you can rank the offers based off what is important to you. Once you know what is important to you, than you can use a worksheet to help in your negotiations.
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As a new graduate you might not have much experience in negotiating a job offer. If you want to negotiate, the first step is to prepare. By researching, you’re able to have data that clearly demonstrates why you are asking for something. Also, it gives you realistic expectations for what to ask.
Creating Leverage for PA Job Negotiation
Leverage is important in negotiating. If you’re currently working as a PA you can use your current job as leverage. You might currently be earning $110,000 base salary, and you can go to a potential employer with this. If you’re a new graduate you don’t have a current salary to use for leverage; instead you have to create leverage by having multiple job offers.
As a new graduate your full time job is the job search. That means you should apply to as many jobs as you can find. By applying to many positions it increases your chances of having multiple offers. Also, it allows you to hone your interviewing skills. As you go to the interviews, remember that this is your time to evaluate the employers. By researching different places it allows you to have a better understanding of what you’re looking for in a position and employer.
Use the PA negotiation worksheet to help in your research. It lists average salaries for PAs in 2018. If you’re looking at a specific specialty you can look at the individual reports to see the salaries in your specialty. If you’re currently employed use job 1 as your current job, and job 2 as the job you’re applying. If you’re not currently employed, use job 1 as your first offer and job 2 as your second offer.
As a PA gains experience different things are important when looking at a position. If you’re trying to pay back student loans, salary might be the most important. Later in a career, health coverage might be more important. If you’ve done your research and know what is important to you, you can be confidant to go into any negotiation to ask for what you want and also to know what you’re willing to give up. Preparation is the most important in negotiation and using a worksheet like the one above can help.
Is there anything else you would add to the worksheet? Have you been successful in negotiation? Please comment below the original post, sign up to receive future posts by email and share with your friends!
