Gerontology Degrees in Pennsylvania - PA

If you’re interested in earning a gerontology degree in Pennsylvania, your first step should be to start looking into schools.  Gerontology degrees, in Pennsylvania, are typically earned at either colleges or universities, or through any number of flexible online schools. Both offer their own advantages, with campus-based schools supplying a more traditional education, while online schools are fast becoming the norm for this degree with their range of educational opportunities and convenience.

Depending on what aspect of gerontology, and what career within it, you want to pursue, your educational path could take many shapes. Those studying gerontology in Pennsylvania go through year-long simple certification programs for certain jobs, or work towards associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees, each level opening up a whole new world of career opportunities.

Though obviously the depth and scope of your education will change depending on what level of degree you go for, you’re curriculum will probably follow the same general guidelines. You’ll likely spend some time working on a well-rounded education, studying subjects like science, math, literature, and the humanities. The liberal arts will soon give way to your real education, where you’ll study the effects of ageing on everything from the human body, its health systems, and proper nutrition, to how age affects the brain, cognition, emotions, to even the sociological effects and impacts of ageing populations. 

Depending on the career you’re going for, some programs in Pennsylvania will emphasize different areas. A caregiver, for example, will mostly study how to treat, diagnose, and maintain the health of an elderly patient, while a social worker going into administration will focus more on law, communication, and how to advocate for those whom time may have robbed of their voice.

In terms of internships, you can expect them to be emphasized more if you’re going to be working directly with patients in Alabama, and to be almost completely absent in the shorter programs, and the ones geared towards those wanting to work in a more administrative or policy-orientated field.