Story by Cheri Ghan, ghanc@health.missouri.edu

The journey from high school to a rewarding career is rarely a straight line.

For 2018 Health Science graduate Taylor Lintner, it took a couple of major detours — one by accident and one by design — to reach her goal of becoming a licensed physician assistant.

It was during a fateful 2012 trip from Chicago to visit relatives in Springfield, Missouri, that dense fog forced Lintner and her family to make an overnight stay in Mexico, Missouri. With Columbia and the University of Missouri only 40 miles away, the family decided to swing by for an impromptu visit to campus the next day.

That foggy detour helped Lintner find her college home and begin to get a clear vision for how she would achieve her career goals. She wanted to become a physician assistant, and she felt the Health Science major would best prepare her for the challenges of PA school.

“With a more traditional science major, I would not have learned about how insurance works or how to appropriately approach an ethics-related topic,” she said. “There is more than science behind treating a patient, and a major in Health Science really allowed me to get the full picture.”

Taking a pit stop

After beginning her studies at the College of Health Sciences, Lintner developed a reputation as an engaged and inquisitive student.

Robin Bowman, an assistant teaching professor in the College of Health Sciences at the time, met Lintner while teaching classes on health care in the U.S. and clinical ethics. Bowman said she was impressed with Lintner’s enthusiasm, diligence and strong work ethic.

“Taylor is a focused, hard-working young woman,” Bowman said. “She took her time, researched, constantly asked questions and never turned things in until she was totally satisfied with the product.”

This attention to detail and passion for perfection made Lintner’s subsequent detour even more challenging: She opted to take a year off from her studies after graduation before applying to graduate school. While this “gap” or “bridge” year would enable her to gain additional clinical experience and PA observation hours, she knew this investment in her professional growth would require extra patience.

“As someone who is very career-driven, it was difficult to be in this sort of holding period,” Lintner said. “It can be hard when friends who graduated at the same time as you are progressing within their own companies. Additionally, explaining the concept of a gap year to others, especially those unfamiliar with health care education, could be difficult.”

In addition to discussing her plans with Bowman, Lintner worked with Sarah Anthony, who was her academic advisor. Anthony said it’s helpful for students to reframe the idea of a bridge year as a chance to learn and grow.

“It’s an opportunity to take or retake courses for intended programs and to expand or deepen involvement experiences, such as in work, volunteering, service, and more,” Anthony said. “If they anticipate specific barriers to returning after a year or two, they should identify those and make a plan to address them. For instance, if the intended graduate/professional program requires a standardized test such as the GRE, I sometimes recommend that my students take the GRE during their senior year or shortly after graduation, when academics are still fresh and so it’s one less thing to return to after a break.”

Clear roads ahead

Lintner ultimately had a roughly two-year gap between graduating with her Health Science degree and entering PA school.

During that time, she took a full-time position with the Mizzou Quick Care Clinics in Columbia and routinely worked with PAs, nurse practitioners and physicians. She then moved back to the Chicago area and worked as a tech for an ophthalmology practice while continuing to research PA school requirements, fill holes in her curriculum vitae and focus on personal growth.

“I continued to discover an unwavering strength within myself to keep going as I encountered hurdles, including getting rejected on my first PA school application cycle,” Lintner said. “I always was a determined individual, but I never fully understood the sort of tenacity this entailed until I was actively pushing myself through it by staying committed to the profession over a span of years.”

In January 2021, Lintner began work on a master’s degree in Physician Assistant Studies at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois. With classes in the first year and clinical rotations in 10 different disciplines during the second year of her program, Lintner developed a well-rounded knowledge of care. After graduating in December 2022, passed her board examinations in the summer of 2023 and holds memberships in the Illinois Academy of Physician Assistants and the American Academy of Physician Assistants.

Lintner recently started her first position as a certified physician assistant with Wyse Eyecare in the Chicago suburb of Northbrook, Illinois — the same practice where she worked before PA school. Her responsibilities include preoperative clearance evaluations, performing eye exams and serving as a provider for a new aesthetics practice. Aesthetics uses cosmetic treatments to improve the appearance of the eyes and facial area.

“It was a very cool moment for me to see my name and credentials on the door to our office and bio on the Wyse Eyecare website,” Lintner said. “It’s kind of surreal at times. Patients have been extremely accepting of my care and grateful for it, too. It’s extremely rewarding, I am excited to see what the future brings.”

Lintner is grateful for the experiences she had during her bridge time, and she encourages others to consider how an intentional break in their studies could benefit them in the long run.

“If there’s one piece of advice I would give, it would be to consciously push yourself outside of your comfort zone to involve yourself where your feet are — whether that be on campus or in the real world,” she said.