Physican Assistant MHS

Degree Awarded: Master of Health Sciences (MHS)
Minimum Required Credits: 98.0
Co-op Option: None
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 51.0912
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 29-1071

About the Program

The Drexel University Physician Assistant program is committed to excellence in educating competent physician assistants, with an emphasis on integrity, respect for varied backgrounds, collaboration, patient advocacy and service to the community. The Drexel University Physician Assistant program provides graduates with a Master of Health Science degree. After successful completion of the program, graduates are eligible to take the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE). A physician assistant (PA) is a primary health care provider who, when graduated from an accredited program, and nationally certified and state-licensed, is eligible to practice medicine with the collaboration of a physician.

PAs perform many duties including, but not limited to, physical examinations, diagnosis and treatment of illnesses, ordering and interpretation of lab tests, assisting in surgery, performing procedures, performing hospital rounds, prescribing medicines and providing patient education. The primary goal of the PA Program is to develop graduates who are competent, caring physician assistants, possessing the skills of life-long learning needed to incorporate new knowledge and methods into their practices and to adapt to a changing medical environment.

The mission of the Drexel University Physician Assistant (PA) Program is to educate competent PAs who will deliver equitable, patient-centered primary healthcare with a focus on under-resourced communities; to promote interprofessional collaboration and advocacy of the PA profession; and to foster a culture of dignity and respect for everyone.

Additional Information

For more information about this program, please contact the College of Nursing and Health Professions 

Admission Requirements

The Drexel University Physician Assistant program utilizes the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA).

https://caspa.liaisoncas.com/applicant-ux/#/login

All applicants must complete the CASPA application process and the application must be verified by CASPA no later than September 1 of the application year. Applicants may not apply directly to the Drexel University Physician Assistant Program. Applications made directly to the Office of Enrollment Management (Admissions) of Drexel University will not be processed.

• All applications must be verified by CASPA no later than September 1 of the application year. Accepted applicants matriculate the following August.
• All prerequisites must be completed by the end of the fall term, or no later than December 31, of the application year. NOTE: A maximum of two (2) prerequisite courses may be in progress or outstanding at the time of application submission.

Application Prerequisites
• A bachelor's degree obtained from a regionally accredited US institution or English-speaking Canadian institution by the end of the spring term prior to fall matriculation, or no later than June 30 of the matriculation year, is required. The equivalency of a bachelor's degree from a foreign institution is acceptable if verified on the WES evaluation.
• A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 is required for the following categories: overall total GPA and overall science GPA. Applications will not be reviewed unless the applicant has attained these minimum requirements at the time of application.
• Meet the technical standards for admission, progression and graduation from the Physician Assistant program. Each applicant is expected to review completely the “Technical Standards for PA Program” PDF on the program webpage. Individuals unable to meet these technical standards, with or without reasonable accommodation, are counseled to pursue alternate careers.
• Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended sent directly to CASPA.
• Non-United States-based educational institutional transcripts must be evaluated by the World Education Service (WES). Evaluation fees are the responsibility of the applicant. Evaluations must be sent directly to CASPA.
• A minimum of two and maximum of five completed reference forms with accompanying letters of recommendation submitted as part of the official CASPA application. Preferred references are from individuals who have interacted with the applicant in a supervisory capacity in a clinical setting or academic instructors who have personal knowledge of the applicant. Submission of references from friends, relatives, personal physicians or instructors who do not possess personal, supervisory knowledge of the applicants is discouraged.
• A personal statement recorded as part of the CASPA application.
• An applicant whose native language is not English must submit scores from the TOEFL iBT examination unless the applicant has earned or will earn by the deadline a bachelor's degree obtained from a regionally accredited US institution or English-speaking Canadian institution. The minimum required overall score for the iBT (Internet Based Testing) is 5.5 (previously 105), and a minimum score of 5.5 (previously 26) is required for the speaking component. Find more detailed information at http://www.toeflgoanywhere.org/. Scores must be submitted directly to CASPA.
• Meet the minimum prerequisite coursework as detailed in the “Admissions" tab of the program webpage. All prerequisite courses must be completed within 10 years of matriculation.
• A minimum of 500 hours of clearly documented volunteer or paid direct hands-on patient care experience accrued by the time of application and recorded as part of the official CASPA application is required. Ensure that all hours are accurately reported. Applicants may list the same position in multiple sections to account for multiple experiences (patient contact, related health care, research, shadowing, etc.) accrued in the same position if each hour is not reported in more than one experience category. Please review the "Admissions" tab of the program webpage for more information regarding acceptable forms of patient care experience.
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores are not required or considered.
• The Physician Assistant program does not grant advanced standing.

Additional Information

For more information about this program, please contact the College of Nursing and Health Professions 

Degree Requirements

¹

The sequencing of clinical rotations will vary for individual students, but all students must complete all nine (9) clinical rotations.

²

Courses PA 5810 and PA 5910 are provisional courses designed to assess student skills upon return from leave of absence or other matriculation pause in a student's academic career. PA 6810 is a provisional course only for students who need remediation of the summative evaluation process.

Program Learning Outcomes