As a first-generation college student back in the 1980s, all Jodi Cahalan knew that she wanted to pursue a career as a physician assistant. Without the luxury of the internet or online college websites, she began researching the profession and what it took to be a competitive applicant. She didn’t want to waste time or money in making a path to her chosen career and strategically chose courses that would meet the prerequisites and make her a competitive candidate.

While not impossible at the time when most PA schools were at the baccalaureate level, she was fortunate enough to be accepted into PA school directly after completing her associate’s degree. Afterward, her first clinical position was providing primary care at an internal medicine practice. She endeavored to bring a bit of patient education to each patient visit. When returning to her PA program to take boards a few months after graduation, her faculty saw her passion for teaching and education and recruited her to join the faculty. While this had not been her original plan, she loved the opportunity to teach new PAs while also maintaining a clinical practice.

Over the years, she went from faculty member to program director to college dean, a position she held for fourteen years until deciding to retire in 2020. Throughout her tenure, she was often also a student earning two master’s degrees before going on to earn a Ph.D. in higher education leadership.

Along the way, she and her husband raised two daughters. With her assistance (but their hard work and determination) each was able to complete her undergraduate degrees in four years. Through that work, she realized that her role as dean had taken her away from getting to directly advise and work with students—something she truly loved. She recognized that her assistance was appreciated (and needed) by some of their friends and sorority sisters and realized her expertise may be valuable to others, too. While each student has a college advisor, it is critical in today’s competitive and expensive higher education environment to also have someone who is paying close attention to a student’s progress no matter where they are in the process and providing personalized recommendations based on decades of experience in higher education.