PA Licensing in GA and how to answer on Indeed?

[ptokki]

Hey guys! 

Not sure if this applies to PAs in other states, but in the state of Georgia as a new-grad PA you cannot receive your license until your employer submits paperwork to the Georgia Medical Board (and they only meet every 4-6 weeks to look over your application and approve it). Even if you have already passed the PANCE. As you can imagine, this makes it difficult seeking employment opportunities as you would need to find an employer/physician who is willing to take the time to submit all the paperwork on top of training you as a new-grad. 

I'm currently applying for jobs on Indeed and really confused by some of the prompts it asks. It will ask "Do you have a PA-license" or "Are you a licensed-PA?" 

I will then select no, and then the prompt changes to something along the lines of "not a certified PA" or something along those lines. Or the job description will say they are willing to hire new-grads but also will include "PA License Required" in the job description. OR the job description will just say "Must be a licensed NP or Physician Assistants must be certified by the NCCPA" and will make no mention of PA licensure required on the job description - but the Indeed prompt will still show up and ask whether I am a licensed PA.

I guess it's all semantics but I'm just confused as to whether I should answer "yes" or "no" for the prompt asking about licensure. It's especially confusing when they say they hire new grads but then the description requires licensure. And there is no room on the job application to elaborate the circumstances. For the first few applications I put down "yes" for licensure and when I got a job interview I explained the situation and they were understanding and willing to proceed with the interview. I am not sure if I should just keep selecting "yes" and then clarifying upon interview request, or if I should just select "no" from the get-go. I don't want to waste anyone's time if they don't want to hire a new-grad but I don't want my application to just automatically go to the reject pile - especially when I'm seeing conflicting options/requirements on Indeed's prompts and the posted job description. 

Any advice? I have asked my classmates but I am late to the job search compared to them, and they don't remember what option they put when they were applying. Thanks in advance! 

Edited May 16 by ptokki
clarification

[Reality Check 2]

Any employer in Georgia should know this.

Somewhere on your CV or a cover letter, put in a phrase about "Per Georgia practice law (cite the code), Physician Assistants cannot complete their license application until they have a secured employer who submits paperwork to the Georgia Medical Board".

I have never applied for a job on Indeed............. times have changed a lot.

But employers should know this.

Georgia needs to figure things out and create a Pending License category................

sigh 

[SedRate]

I would select "yes" as you have your PA national certification. If they follow up with you, you can clarify. 

[ptokki]

Agreed! I wish GA would have a pending license category too or at least "license eligible" category, I feel like it would make things easier. Thanks so much for the advice, will definitely be mentioning that in my CV/cover letter.