Physician Assistant Studies, Master of Science
Five-year Program
The five-year program consists of two distinct phases: The Pre-Professional Phase (years 1-3), and the Professional Phase (years 4 -5). The curriculum for the Professional phase is further divided into a Didactic and Clinical period.
The Pre-Professional Phase
During this phase of the program students undertake a period of study to meet the liberal arts core requirements and the science requirements to prepare for admittance to the Professional phase of the program. A description of this program can be found in the undergraduate catalog.
The Professional Phase
This consists of 24 months of continuous study in the clinical sciences. The first 12 months are didactic and include classroom and laboratory work in basic and applied medical science. The final 12 months are clinical rotations. These are performed at local, regional, and national clinical sites such as hospitals and medical offices, providing experiences in the areas of family practice, internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, psychiatry, emergency room medicine, and an elective. During this phase students will be required to complete a Professional Contribution paper/project or Thesis.
Clinical Concentration/Specialty Track Options
In the fifth year of the program, eligible students will be able to apply for specialty tracks to focus their clinical exposure and acumen. These tracks are General Medicine (Primary Care), Hospitalist (In-patient Medicine), Pediatrics, General Surgery, Addiction Medicine, and Emergency Medicine. Students will have to apply to the Specialty track of interest, and enrollment will be limited. The tracks serve to allow students an opportunity to refine their clinical abilities within an area of specialization. These tracks do not make a student a specialist. No certification is conferred beyond that of the M.S. in PA Studies.
The Professional Phase Requirements
The successful completion of the Pre-Professional Phase at Marywood University or a bachelor’s degree from another college or university.
- A minimum overall QPA of 3.00
- A minimum overall QPA of 3.00 in the following required science courses:
- 2 semesters of General Chemistry with labs
- 2 semesters of General Biology with labs
- 1 semester of Microbiology with lab
- 1 semester of Immunology with lab (if Immunology is unavailable, another 300/400 level science course may be substituted at the discretion of the Program Director)
- 2 semesters of Anatomy and Physiology with labs
- 2 semesters of Organic Chemistry with labs
- Medical Terminology course
- In most cases these courses must have been completed within the last seven years
- GRE scores
- Three letters of recommendation, with one letter from a PA-C
- A minimum of 500 documented direct patient care hours
- A minimum of 50 hours shadowing a PA is required
- Completion of Technical Standards (upon acceptance to the program)
- Submission of an application through CASPA (Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants). The application deadline is October 1.
- Successful interview by the Physician Assistant Selection Committee. Final acceptance to the Professional Phase is ultimately based not only on performance in the prerequisite sciences and overall academic performance but also on the student’s desire for and understanding of the profession, clinical experience, demonstration of maturity, self-confidence, and good interpersonal skills.
- Marywood University currently does not accept transfer credits from other Professional PA Programs nor does Marywood offer advanced placement or credit for experiential learning.
- Due to Affiliation Agreements with clinical sites, several background checks and screenings are required.
Degree Conferral and Certification
Those students entering the program as undergraduates will be awarded the B.S. in Biology/Pre-Physician Assistant Studies upon successful completion of the PA curriculum through Summer & Fall semesters of year four. Students successfully completing the Professional Phase (years four and five) of the PA Program are awarded the Master of Science degree in Physician Assistant Studies and are eligible to take the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) administered by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. Once a candidate passes the examination, he/she is certified to perform a broad range of diagnostic and therapeutic services under the supervision of a licensed physician.
Accreditation and Memberships
Marywood University’s Physician Assistant Program is fully accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA). We are institutional members of the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) and The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), the only national organization that represents physician assistants in all specialties and all employment settings.
Year 4 – PA Didactic Phase
Summer
| PA 510 | Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis I | 2 |
| PA 540 | Medical Microbiology | 1 |
| PA 503 | Culturally Competent Medicine and?Underserved Populations | 2 |
| PA 542 | Laboratory Medicine I | 1 |
| PA 530 | Clinical Medicine I | 3 |
| PA 554 | Medical Nutrition | 1 |
| PA 506 | Human Gross Anatomy | 2 |
| PA 507 | Human Physiology | 1 |
Fall
Spring
Year 5 – PA Clinical Phase
Summer
Fall
Spring