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Physician Assistant Education Requirements: Everything You Need to Know

Table of Contents

  • Like most medical professions, the road to becoming a physician assistant is long and requires a significant amount of specialized education. It's also an in-demand and desirable career, ranked among the best healthcare jobs by U.S. News and World Report, with a strong outlook and ample job openings for those seeking a sustainable, recession-proof career. Just what education do you need to take advantage of these opportunities? Read on to learn what degrees and skills you'll need to thrive as a physician assistant.

  • Prerequisites for admission into a degree program

  • Physician assistant education is a rigorous Master's degree program. Some schools offer an extended physician assistant program that includes both undergraduate and graduate coursework. These programs are often open to recent high school graduates as well as those with some college experience, and typically take 4-6 years to complete, depending on whether you have any college credits before you start the program. With the exception of these extended programs, however, typical physician assistant programs will require applicants to earn a Bachelor's degree before they're eligible for PA training. While you don't need to hold a specific undergraduate degree, you will need to have taken certain specific courses. The prerequisite courses for a typical PA program include:

    • Anatomy
    • Biochemistry
    • Biology
    • Chemistry
    • Genetics
    • Medical terminology
    • Microbiology
    • Physiology
    • Psychology
    Many Bachelor's degrees in the sciences will include these required prerequisites. According to the 2020 PAEA Student Report, the most common majors for accepted PA students are biology (41.5%), health sciences (14.8%), and exercise science (8.8%), so those are good degree programs for aspiring PAs to target in their undergraduate studies.

    Required experience for PA programs

    In addition to a Bachelor's degree, most physician assistant schools look for students to have some healthcare experience before they start their graduate program. Typically, students have about three years of work experience in healthcare settings, though the specific number of health care work hours varies depending on the university. Schools look for PA applicants to have hands-on patient care experience. This can be in a variety of roles, including work as a paramedic, EMT, lab assistant, surgical tech, or phlebotomist. Nurse practitioners and registered nurses also qualify for PA studies, as do those who served as medics or medical corpsman in the armed services.

    Other requirements for a PA degree program

    PA programs don't just want to see that applicants earned a Bachelor's degree--they want students who excelled in their studies. Because of this, many schools have a minimum GPA requirement, normally of 3.0 or higher. Like other Master of Science programs, most physician assistant programs will also require applicants to take a standardized test prior to entry. Many PA schools require candidates to take the GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) general test. Others require candidates to take the PA-CAT (Physician Assistant College Admission Test) in addition to or in lieu of the GRE.

  • Choosing and applying to ARC-PA programs

  • The most important thing to look for in a PA school is that they're accredited by the ARC-PA (the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant). This is an independent agency that defines the standards for physician assistant education and evaluation, in cooperation with other medical organizations like the Physician Assistant Education Association and the American Academy of Physician Assistants. There are currently around 300 accredited PA programs in the United States. You can find a full list of these institutions on the ARC-PA's website if you want to check the accreditation status of a school you're considering. The education for a physician assistant is fairly standard across programs. However, the length of the degree program can vary depending on how the school structures its academic year. Some schools may also offer flexible options like online classes, though there are no fully-online PA programs since you'll at least need to be in person for your clinical rotations. Because of this, choosing the right PA school often comes down to practical considerations like its location, cost, and financial aid availability. Perusing the list of ARC-PA accredited programs can give you a sense of your options and help you hone in on institutions that will be a good fit for you.

    Application steps and timeline

    The application process for physician assistant programs takes nearly a full year from when you submit your application. This means that many students start thinking about universities and preparing materials nearly two years before they plan to start. Here are the major steps in the application process and a rough timeline for when they'll happen.

    Step 1: Research the requirements and choose schools to apply to.

    Timeline: November-December (1.5+ years before your first semester) Knowing the exact application requirements of the schools you're applying for will ensure you're preparing the right materials and taking the right tests. A good rule of thumb is to apply to 5-6 programs. Physician assistant programs tend to be both selective and competitive, so you'll want to apply to a few just in case you don't get accepted at your top choice.

    Step 2: Prepare application materials and take any required tests.

    Timeline: January-March (year prior to your first semester) For schools that require the GRE, it's standard to take the exam in the early spring. PA-CAT scores are valid for two years from the date of your test, so early spring is a good time to take that if you need to, as well. Many institutions will also ask for letters of recommendation along with your application. While you can't submit these yet, it's smart to request those letters as early as possible. This is especially true for students who plan to ask their professors for recommendations. Many academic professionals are inundated with these requests each spring, and can only commit to a certain number. The earlier you ask, the less chance your professor of choice will have already met their yearly quota.

    Step 3: Submit your application through CASPA.

    Timeline: April-May Most PA programs use a shared admission portal, the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (or CASPA for short). This portal opens on the last Thursday in April, and you should aim to submit your application by the end of May. The cost to submit applications is $135 for the first school, and $45 for each additional school.

    Step 4: Submit supplemental applications and take additional assessments.

    Timeline: June-August CASPA only collects your school transcripts and letters of recommendation. Many universities have additional requirements and will send you a supplemental application once they've received your CASPA materials. This is also a good time to retake your GRE if you weren't happy with your scores. Some schools also ask students to take a personality or behavior assessment, like the situational judgment exam Casper. If required, you'll want to take this test in early summer so the school gets their results on time.

    Step 5: Attend interviews and visit schools.

    Timeline: September-April Some schools start interviews in the summer after receiving applications, but for most, they'll start during the fall. These interviews may be one-on-one or in a group setting, and you'll often go through multiple rounds before the school makes final candidate decisions. Communicate with the specific schools you're applying to about their interview process so you know what to expect. After your interview day, stay in contact with the schools where you've been waitlisted. Most PA programs start in May-August, though some will start as early as January. When acceptance letters are sent out will vary accordingly, but in most cases you'll know whether you've been accepted by February of the program's starting year. If you don't get accepted to any programs on your first attempt, don't get discouraged. Physician assistant programs are highly competitive and most only have space for 18-60 people in each class. It's not uncommon to go through 3-4 application cycles before gaining admission to a program. Continue to gain healthcare experience and hone your skills to improve your odds of being accepted when you try again next cycle.

  • Typical curriculum of ARC-PA programs

  • Most PA programs are 27 months (three academic years) in length, including both classroom instruction and hands-on clinical rotations. The first year tends to focus on general areas of medical knowledge, including courses like human anatomy, pharmacology, biology of disease, patient evaluation and diagnosis, and basic psychiatry. Other subjects typically covered in the classroom learning of a PA master's program include:

    • Behavioral science
    • Biochemistry
    • Clinical laboratory science
    • Clinical therapeutics
    • Emergency medicine and critical care
    • Healthcare delivery
    • Medical ethics
    • Microbiology
    • Neurology
    • Orthopedics
    • Pediatrics
    • Physiology
    • Pathophysiology
    There are typically three semesters of coursework in a classroom, which may be completed in a single academic year taking advantage of the summer semester. In addition to time in class, students normally devote 2-4 hours a night to studying and homework, plus 4-8 hours of studying on a typical weekend, so it is definitely a full-time commitment. The second year of a PA program largely consists of clinical rotations in hospitals, clinics, and other real-world healthcare settings. Students will typically spend about a month in each role, building a comprehensive understanding of medical principles in practice. During rotations, students will work with patients under the supervision of a doctor or nurse, assisting with tasks like diagnosing injuries, illnesses and diseases, setting bones, giving vaccinations, prescribing or giving medications, developing treatment plans, and assisting with other aspects of the patient experience. These rotations often include both general medicine and specialty areas such as:
    • Ambulatory medicine
    • Cardiology
    • Emergency medicine
    • Family medicine
    • Inpatient medicine
    • Internal medicine
    • Obstetrics and gynecology
    • Pediatrics
    • Psychiatry and behavioral medicine
    • Surgery
    By graduation, PA students will have completed more than 2,000 hours of clinical rotations. Like the classroom instruction, clinical rotations typically last a full academic year, which may be completed in a single year using the summer semester.

  • Becoming certified

  • Once individuals have completed their Master’s in Physician Assistant Studies, they have all the knowledge they need to find employment in the field. That knowledge still needs to be verified, however, and that's accomplished through PA-C certification. This credential is obtained by passing a national certifying examination, the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE). The PANCE exam takes five hours to complete and includes 300 multiple choice questions. The majority of these are on medical topics, though there are other questions about related tasks like formulating diagnoses and taking patient histories. The AAPA has several study resources available for free to help students with their exam preparation. Registering for the PANCE costs $550. Scores range from 200-800, and you need to score at least a 350 to pass. If you don't, you'll need to wait at least 90 days before you retake the exam. Individuals can take the PANCE up to three times in a single year, and a maximum of six times within the six year period after graduation from an ARC-PA program. If you still haven't passed the exam after six years or six attempts, your eligibility is void and you must complete another PA program to try again. Once you pass the PANCE, you'll have PA-C certification for two years. There is still one more step before you can legally practice medicine, however, and that is to obtain a license from your state. All states require graduation from an ARC-PA program, as well as a passing grade on the PANCE, to obtain a license, and some states also have additional requirements.

  • Ongoing education for physician assistants

  • Once you have PA-C credentials, those need to be maintained in order to continue practicing medicine. Toward this end, physician assistants need to complete 100 Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits every two years. These must be submitted through the NCCPA's online portal by December 31st of the year in which your certification expires along with a $180 certification maintenance fee. In addition to the ongoing education, PAs need to take a recertification exam every 10 years. There are two options for this: the Physician Assistant National Recertifying Exam (PANRE), or the PANRE-LA (Longitudinal Assessment). Both options cost $350 to register and test the same information, though in different timelines and formats. The PANRE is a single five-hour exam with 240 multiple choice questions, administered at Pearson VUE test centers across the United States. The PANRE-LA is spread over a three-year period, with 25 questions administered every quarter. Passing grades are required for eight quarters to recertify, meaning you can complete the process in two years instead of three if you pass every time.

    Advancement and specialization options for PAs

    The specializations available for physician assistants are as wide as those for surgeons, doctors, and nurses. Just about every institution in the healthcare industry has a need for PAs. Most PA programs include elective requirements for both classes and clinical rotations, so if you know what specialty you want to focus on, you can target that aspect of healthcare during your studies. This isn't limited to patient-facing roles, either. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies also hire PAs to assist with clinical trials and research, for example. Universities also need trained PAs for their healthcare faculty. Advancement opportunities for PAs often start with moving into a supervisor or administrative role. Those interested in these kinds of leadership roles will often get an additional degree, often an MBA or a Master's in Health Informatics or Health Care Delivery, to supplement their medical training. Organizations like the AAPA also offer courses in leadership and management for those interested in Lead PA or Chief PA positions.

  • FAQs

  • How competitive are physician assistant programs?

    While this answer varies depending on which program you're applying for, every PA program gets more applicants in a year than it has spots available. According to data from the PAEA, only about 20% of PA program candidates are accepted in any given year. Highly sought-after programs often have acceptance rates of 5% or lower.

    What are the best physician assistant programs in the United States?

    According to rankings from U.S. News, based on surveys of active PA faculty, the top programs are:

    What undergraduate GPA is required for admission into a physician assistant program?

    A 3.0 GPA is typically the minimum requirement for admission, and many schools will consider applicants with at least a 2.7 GPA. However, more competitive schools often look for a GPA of 3.5 or higher. Even in schools with a lower requirement, a higher GPA will increase your likelihood of being accepted.

    How can I improve my chances for acceptance into a PA program?

    PA programs don't only look at academic performance. Healthcare experience is as least as important. Those with limited hands-on work in healthcare can greatly improve their acceptance odds by bolstering their experience. You can do this by working in hospitals, nursing homes, and other facilities, by shadowing a PA or supervising physician, or through internships and volunteer opportunities. Having clinical hours in multiple settings can be an advantage, as well.

Carlos da Silva

Author Bio

Carlos da Silva is a highly skilled and compassionate physician assistant with over a decade of experience in the healthcare industry. He has a passion for providing exceptional patient care and staying up-to-date on the latest medical advancements. In his free time, Carlos enjoys hiking, cooking, and spending time with his family.

Like most medical professions, the road to becoming a physician assistant is long and requires a significant amount of specialized education. It’s also an in-demand and desirable career, ranked among the best healthcare jobs by U.S. News and World Report, with a strong outlook and ample job openings for those seeking a sustainable, recession-proof career.

Just what education do you need to take advantage of these opportunities? Read on to learn what degrees and skills you’ll need to thrive as a physician assistant.

Prerequisites for admission into a degree program

Physician assistant education is a rigorous Master’s degree program. Some schools offer an extended physician assistant program that includes both undergraduate and graduate coursework. These programs are often open to recent high school graduates as well as those with some college experience, and typically take 4-6 years to complete, depending on whether you have any college credits before you start the program.

With the exception of these extended programs, however, typical physician assistant programs will require applicants to earn a Bachelor’s degree before they’re eligible for PA training. While you don’t need to hold a specific undergraduate degree, you will need to have taken certain specific courses. The prerequisite courses for a typical PA program include:

  • Anatomy
  • Biochemistry
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Genetics
  • Medical terminology
  • Microbiology
  • Physiology
  • Psychology

Many Bachelor’s degrees in the sciences will include these required prerequisites. According to the 2020 PAEA Student Report, the most common majors for accepted PA students are biology (41.5%), health sciences (14.8%), and exercise science (8.8%), so those are good degree programs for aspiring PAs to target in their undergraduate studies.

Required experience for PA programs

In addition to a Bachelor’s degree, most physician assistant schools look for students to have some healthcare experience before they start their graduate program. Typically, students have about three years of work experience in healthcare settings, though the specific number of health care work hours varies depending on the university.

Schools look for PA applicants to have hands-on patient care experience. This can be in a variety of roles, including work as a paramedic, EMT, lab assistant, surgical tech, or phlebotomist. Nurse practitioners and registered nurses also qualify for PA studies, as do those who served as medics or medical corpsman in the armed services.

Other requirements for a PA degree program

PA programs don’t just want to see that applicants earned a Bachelor’s degree–they want students who excelled in their studies. Because of this, many schools have a minimum GPA requirement, normally of 3.0 or higher.

Like other Master of Science programs, most physician assistant programs will also require applicants to take a standardized test prior to entry. Many PA schools require candidates to take the GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) general test. Others require candidates to take the PA-CAT (Physician Assistant College Admission Test) in addition to or in lieu of the GRE.

Choosing and applying to ARC-PA programs

The most important thing to look for in a PA school is that they’re accredited by the ARC-PA (the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant). This is an independent agency that defines the standards for physician assistant education and evaluation, in cooperation with other medical organizations like the Physician Assistant Education Association and the American Academy of Physician Assistants.

There are currently around 300 accredited PA programs in the United States. You can find a full list of these institutions on the ARC-PA’s website if you want to check the accreditation status of a school you’re considering.

The education for a physician assistant is fairly standard across programs. However, the length of the degree program can vary depending on how the school structures its academic year. Some schools may also offer flexible options like online classes, though there are no fully-online PA programs since you’ll at least need to be in person for your clinical rotations.

Because of this, choosing the right PA school often comes down to practical considerations like its location, cost, and financial aid availability. Perusing the list of ARC-PA accredited programs can give you a sense of your options and help you hone in on institutions that will be a good fit for you.

Application steps and timeline

The application process for physician assistant programs takes nearly a full year from when you submit your application. This means that many students start thinking about universities and preparing materials nearly two years before they plan to start. Here are the major steps in the application process and a rough timeline for when they’ll happen.

Step 1: Research the requirements and choose schools to apply to.

Timeline: November-December (1.5+ years before your first semester)

Knowing the exact application requirements of the schools you’re applying for will ensure you’re preparing the right materials and taking the right tests. A good rule of thumb is to apply to 5-6 programs. Physician assistant programs tend to be both selective and competitive, so you’ll want to apply to a few just in case you don’t get accepted at your top choice.

Step 2: Prepare application materials and take any required tests.

Timeline: January-March (year prior to your first semester)

For schools that require the GRE, it’s standard to take the exam in the early spring. PA-CAT scores are valid for two years from the date of your test, so early spring is a good time to take that if you need to, as well. Many institutions will also ask for letters of recommendation along with your application. While you can’t submit these yet, it’s smart to request those letters as early as possible. This is especially true for students who plan to ask their professors for recommendations. Many academic professionals are inundated with these requests each spring, and can only commit to a certain number. The earlier you ask, the less chance your professor of choice will have already met their yearly quota.

Step 3: Submit your application through CASPA.

Timeline: April-May

Most PA programs use a shared admission portal, the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (or CASPA for short). This portal opens on the last Thursday in April, and you should aim to submit your application by the end of May. The cost to submit applications is $135 for the first school, and $45 for each additional school.

Step 4: Submit supplemental applications and take additional assessments.

Timeline: June-August

CASPA only collects your school transcripts and letters of recommendation. Many universities have additional requirements and will send you a supplemental application once they’ve received your CASPA materials. This is also a good time to retake your GRE if you weren’t happy with your scores. Some schools also ask students to take a personality or behavior assessment, like the situational judgment exam Casper. If required, you’ll want to take this test in early summer so the school gets their results on time.

Step 5: Attend interviews and visit schools.

Timeline: September-April

Some schools start interviews in the summer after receiving applications, but for most, they’ll start during the fall. These interviews may be one-on-one or in a group setting, and you’ll often go through multiple rounds before the school makes final candidate decisions. Communicate with the specific schools you’re applying to about their interview process so you know what to expect.

After your interview day, stay in contact with the schools where you’ve been waitlisted. Most PA programs start in May-August, though some will start as early as January. When acceptance letters are sent out will vary accordingly, but in most cases you’ll know whether you’ve been accepted by February of the program’s starting year.

If you don’t get accepted to any programs on your first attempt, don’t get discouraged. Physician assistant programs are highly competitive and most only have space for 18-60 people in each class. It’s not uncommon to go through 3-4 application cycles before gaining admission to a program. Continue to gain healthcare experience and hone your skills to improve your odds of being accepted when you try again next cycle.

Typical curriculum of ARC-PA programs

Most PA programs are 27 months (three academic years) in length, including both classroom instruction and hands-on clinical rotations. The first year tends to focus on general areas of medical knowledge, including courses like human anatomy, pharmacology, biology of disease, patient evaluation and diagnosis, and basic psychiatry. Other subjects typically covered in the classroom learning of a PA master’s program include:

  • Behavioral science
  • Biochemistry
  • Clinical laboratory science
  • Clinical therapeutics
  • Emergency medicine and critical care
  • Healthcare delivery
  • Medical ethics
  • Microbiology
  • Neurology
  • Orthopedics
  • Pediatrics
  • Physiology
  • Pathophysiology

There are typically three semesters of coursework in a classroom, which may be completed in a single academic year taking advantage of the summer semester. In addition to time in class, students normally devote 2-4 hours a night to studying and homework, plus 4-8 hours of studying on a typical weekend, so it is definitely a full-time commitment.

The second year of a PA program largely consists of clinical rotations in hospitals, clinics, and other real-world healthcare settings. Students will typically spend about a month in each role, building a comprehensive understanding of medical principles in practice. During rotations, students will work with patients under the supervision of a doctor or nurse, assisting with tasks like diagnosing injuries, illnesses and diseases, setting bones, giving vaccinations, prescribing or giving medications, developing treatment plans, and assisting with other aspects of the patient experience. These rotations often include both general medicine and specialty areas such as:

  • Ambulatory medicine
  • Cardiology
  • Emergency medicine
  • Family medicine
  • Inpatient medicine
  • Internal medicine
  • Obstetrics and gynecology
  • Pediatrics
  • Psychiatry and behavioral medicine
  • Surgery

By graduation, PA students will have completed more than 2,000 hours of clinical rotations. Like the classroom instruction, clinical rotations typically last a full academic year, which may be completed in a single year using the summer semester.

Becoming certified

Once individuals have completed their Master’s in Physician Assistant Studies, they have all the knowledge they need to find employment in the field. That knowledge still needs to be verified, however, and that’s accomplished through PA-C certification. This credential is obtained by passing a national certifying examination, the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE).

The PANCE exam takes five hours to complete and includes 300 multiple choice questions. The majority of these are on medical topics, though there are other questions about related tasks like formulating diagnoses and taking patient histories. The AAPA has several study resources available for free to help students with their exam preparation.

Registering for the PANCE costs $550. Scores range from 200-800, and you need to score at least a 350 to pass. If you don’t, you’ll need to wait at least 90 days before you retake the exam. Individuals can take the PANCE up to three times in a single year, and a maximum of six times within the six year period after graduation from an ARC-PA program. If you still haven’t passed the exam after six years or six attempts, your eligibility is void and you must complete another PA program to try again.

Once you pass the PANCE, you’ll have PA-C certification for two years. There is still one more step before you can legally practice medicine, however, and that is to obtain a license from your state. All states require graduation from an ARC-PA program, as well as a passing grade on the PANCE, to obtain a license, and some states also have additional requirements.

Ongoing education for physician assistants

Once you have PA-C credentials, those need to be maintained in order to continue practicing medicine. Toward this end, physician assistants need to complete 100 Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits every two years. These must be submitted through the NCCPA’s online portal by December 31st of the year in which your certification expires along with a $180 certification maintenance fee.

In addition to the ongoing education, PAs need to take a recertification exam every 10 years. There are two options for this: the Physician Assistant National Recertifying Exam (PANRE), or the PANRE-LA (Longitudinal Assessment). Both options cost $350 to register and test the same information, though in different timelines and formats.

The PANRE is a single five-hour exam with 240 multiple choice questions, administered at Pearson VUE test centers across the United States. The PANRE-LA is spread over a three-year period, with 25 questions administered every quarter. Passing grades are required for eight quarters to recertify, meaning you can complete the process in two years instead of three if you pass every time.

Advancement and specialization options for PAs

The specializations available for physician assistants are as wide as those for surgeons, doctors, and nurses. Just about every institution in the healthcare industry has a need for PAs. Most PA programs include elective requirements for both classes and clinical rotations, so if you know what specialty you want to focus on, you can target that aspect of healthcare during your studies.

This isn’t limited to patient-facing roles, either. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies also hire PAs to assist with clinical trials and research, for example. Universities also need trained PAs for their healthcare faculty.

Advancement opportunities for PAs often start with moving into a supervisor or administrative role. Those interested in these kinds of leadership roles will often get an additional degree, often an MBA or a Master’s in Health Informatics or Health Care Delivery, to supplement their medical training. Organizations like the AAPA also offer courses in leadership and management for those interested in Lead PA or Chief PA positions.

FAQs

How competitive are physician assistant programs?

While this answer varies depending on which program you’re applying for, every PA program gets more applicants in a year than it has spots available. According to data from the PAEA, only about 20% of PA program candidates are accepted in any given year. Highly sought-after programs often have acceptance rates of 5% or lower.

What are the best physician assistant programs in the United States?

According to rankings from U.S. News, based on surveys of active PA faculty, the top programs are:

What undergraduate GPA is required for admission into a physician assistant program?

A 3.0 GPA is typically the minimum requirement for admission, and many schools will consider applicants with at least a 2.7 GPA. However, more competitive schools often look for a GPA of 3.5 or higher. Even in schools with a lower requirement, a higher GPA will increase your likelihood of being accepted.

How can I improve my chances for acceptance into a PA program?

PA programs don’t only look at academic performance. Healthcare experience is as least as important. Those with limited hands-on work in healthcare can greatly improve their acceptance odds by bolstering their experience. You can do this by working in hospitals, nursing homes, and other facilities, by shadowing a PA or supervising physician, or through internships and volunteer opportunities. Having clinical hours in multiple settings can be an advantage, as well.