2019-2020 Undergraduate & Graduate Catalog
Physician Assistant Studies - Program Description
For additional information about opportunities your college offers, please refer to the College of Health Professions section in this catalog.
Website: www.gvsu.edu/pas
Degree Offered
Master's in physician assistant studies
Physician assistants (PAs) are valued members of the health care team. PAs are currently certified and licensed in the United States by delegation or regulatory authority. Working in collaboration with doctors of allopathic medicine and/or doctors of osteopathic medicine, PAs obtain medical histories, perform physical examinations, establish diagnoses, treat illnesses, provide patient education, counsel patients, assist in surgery, dictate proper treatment orders, and interpret laboratory/diagnostic studies. In all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia and Guam, laws are in place that authorize PAs to prescribe medications or transmit orders for dispensing medication, including controlled substances. Educated in the medical model, PAs have close working relationships with physicians and the other members of the health care team. PAs see many of the same types of patients and perform many of the same tasks as physicians. The responsibilities of PAs depend upon a number of factors, including state laws and regulations, years of experience and training, and the setting in which the PA practices. These factors all comprise a PA's scope of practice.
Grand Valley Physician Assistant Studies
Grand Valley State University established its physician assistant studies (PAS) program in the 1990s, accepting its first class for entry in 1995 and graduating the inaugural class into the profession in 1998. The program awards a Master of Physician Assistant Studies degree following completion of a 28-month (seven semesters) curriculum of professional studies.
Applicants to the PAS program must possess or be in the process of completing a baccalaureate degree from either GVSU or another institution of higher learning. All applicants must complete prerequisite courses, minimum health care experience hours, GRE, and submit recommendation rubrics. Please see application procedures as follows or at www.gvsu.edu/pas for further details.
Students begin the professional curriculum after they have been admitted to the program (see Application Procedures). During the PAS didactic curriculum, students take coursework in human anatomy, medical physiology, clinical applications, clinical medicine, pathophysiology, practical therapeutics, PA professional issues, hospital community experiences, clinical problem solving, and evidence-based medicine. The curriculum combines traditional classroom sessions with Web-based instruction, case studies, laboratory, and problem-based learning (PBL) to provide students with the knowledge and clinical acumen to sit for their national certification examination and practice medicine competently upon graduation. Students spend the final three semesters completing rotations in various clinical specialties, by working in clinics, emergency departments, and hospitals throughout Michigan, out-of-state communities, and potentially international communities.
Accreditation Statement
The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA) has granted Accreditation-Continued status to the Grand Valley State University Physician Assistant Program sponsored by Grand Valley State University. Accreditation-Continued is an accreditation status granted when a currently accredited program is in compliance with the ARC-PA Standards.
Accreditation remains in effect until the program closes or withdraws from the accreditation process or until accreditation is withdrawn for failure to comply with the Standards. The approximate date for the next validation review of the program by the ARC-PA will be September 2024. The review date is contingent upon continued compliance with the Accreditation Standards and ARC-PA policy.
Application Procedures
Admission to the PAS program is competitive. Please visit www.gvsu.edu/pas for detailed application requirements. Applicants may contact the PAS program at (616) 331-5700 to address additional questions. The PAS program utilizes the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA) for processing applications.
Selected prerequisite courses, health care experience hours, GRE, and recommendation rubrics must be completed by the application deadline unless a rare extension has been granted by appeal to the PAS Admissions Committee (see as follows for details). All application criteria and completion of undergraduate degree requirements must be completed by the month of May before starting the professional program.
High school seniors interested in a PAS degree must complete an undergraduate application to GVSU. During their freshman year, students will begin their preprofessional studies and declare a major. The most common majors for students admitted to the program from GVSU are biomedical sciences (BMS) and allied health sciences (AHS) but students may elect to choose a different major. The College of Health Professions Student Services academic advisors can assist students with the selection of a major.
Transfer students (from community or four-year colleges) must complete an undergraduate application to Grand Valley State University. We strongly encourage students to transfer to GVSU by the beginning of their junior year to ensure completion of their undergraduate degree and preprofessional requirements. Transfer students are encouraged to consult with an academic advisor from the Grand Valley College of Health Professions before entering Grand Valley or very soon thereafter, in addition to their assigned undergraduate faculty/advisor based upon the major declared.
The application deadline is September 1for the admission cycle of the calendar year preceding the year the student wishes to begin the professional curriculum. CASPA applications must be COMPLETE by September 1, 2019. An application is considered complete after the online application is completed and all supporting documents have been received by CASPA. The PAS Admissions Committee will then review completed applications and grant interviews after mid-October. Once interviews are complete, the PAS Admissions Committee will offer positions in the program to the most qualified applicants.
Admission to the Master of Physician Assistant Studies Program
- Transcripts: Applicants must submit official transcripts for all colleges and/or universities attended directly to CASPA.
- Academic achievement: Applicants must demonstrate a minimum 3.0 GPA overall prerequisite courses, and the last 60 hours of coursework to be considered for admission.
- Prerequisite coursework: Please see www.gvsu.edu/pas for a complete list of prerequisite coursework. A minimum grade of C must be attained in each prerequisite course. Please see www.gvsu.edu/pas for a description of how GPAs are calculated.
- Human anatomy, human physiology, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and microbiology must be completed prior to application. All prerequisite coursework and a bachelor's degree must be completed by the month of May prior to fall semester before beginning the process.
- The following prerequisite courses must be completed within five calendar years preceding and including the year of application: human anatomy, human physiology, microbiology, and biochemistry.
- GRE: GRE test scores are valid for five years after the testing year. See the GRE website for additional details www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/scores/.The GRE code for GVSU on CASPA is 252.
- Recommendations: A minimum of two recommendation rubrics must be submitted. Recommendation rubrics will be emailed by CASPA to references at the time of application submission. At least one recommendation rubric must be completed by a health care professional. The other recommendation rubric may be completed by either a second health care professional or a professor. Separate letters of references are not acceptable substitutes for the recommendation rubrics.
- Health care experience: Applicants must show evidence of 500 hours of significant volunteer, work, and/or observational experience in a health care environment. This experience is highly encouraged to include hands-on patient care activities. Health care experiences will be documented on the CASPA application. Further information about health care experience requirements can be found at the PAS website: www.gvsu.edu/pas under prospective students.
- International students: Students whose first language is not English should be able to speak and write in fluent English and submit the following materials.
- Official TOEFL, IELTS, or MELAB score reports. The minimum TOEFL score is 80 Internet-based, the minimum IELTS score is 6.5, and the minimum MELAB score is 77. Only original score reports will be accepted.
- Students who completed higher education studies outside of the U.S. must also submit:
- Original or certified original transcripts.
- Official transcript credential information (e.g. WES, ECE).
- Transcripts demonstrating 30 hours of higher education coursework taken at an established and accredited U.S. institution.
- Note: If there are students who think they have highly unusual circumstances that impact their ability to meet the previously listed criteria, they may appeal in writing to the PAS Admissions Committee by submitting an Academic Request Form (ARF). An ARF only needs to be filled out if a student does NOT meet all application requirements and has extenuating circumstances that have either mitigated the necessary requirements (as in a five-year course waiver) or prevented the completion of a course (as in a course extension). An ARF expires after the completion of the cycle in which the student applies. All ARFs are due on or before July 15 in the year of application. No late ARF forms will be accepted.
Selection Factors
Grand Valley State University is an affirmative action/equal opportunity institution. It encourages diversity and provides equal opportunity in education, employment, all of its programs, and the use of its facilities. Applicants are considered without regard to age, color, disability, familial status, height, marital status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex/gender, sexual orientation, veteran status, or weight.
Factors used to select applicants for interview may include any or all of the following: GPA, GRE, recommendation rubrics, and health care experience hours. Motivational factors, life experiences, patient care experience, maturity, and personal characteristics are evaluated during the interview day. Applicants must meet health and technical standards that demonstrate their capacity to function as a physician assistant. Copies of these standards may be obtained from the PAS program office or from the PAS website: www.gvsu.edu/pas/.
Degree Requirements
Demonstration of completion of the 103 credits in the professional curriculum is required for the student to be granted the M.P.A.S. degree. General graduate academic policies and regulations can be found elsewhere in this catalog or in the GVSU graduate bulletin.
In addition, each PAS course or discrete unit of instruction within the professional curriculum has a minimum proficiency level established. A minimum of a grade B is required for passing all PAS courses. Additionally, the student's overall GPA must not fall below 3.0 in any semester or the student may be placed on academic probation, remediated, or dismissed from the PAS program.
Professional Conduct
Interpersonal skills, communication skills, responsibility, and professionalism, among others, are identified as being crucial for success in the profession. Advancement in skill and behavior applicable to such abilities is expected during the professional curriculum. A complete copy of these abilities is available from the program and may also be viewed on the program website under Core Competencies at www.gvsu.edu/pas/.
All students in the program are expected to comply with the ethical principles that embody the practice of medicine and the physician assistant profession. A complete copy of the PA profession's code of ethics are available from the program and may also be viewed under the PA profession tab at www.gvsu.edu/pas/.
Criminal background checks and/or drug screens are required prior to admission into the PA studies program. After enrollment, certain clinical placements during the clinical phase of the program, or state licensing requirements after graduation require criminal background checks and drug screens. Positive findings for either the criminal background check and/or drug screen may negatively impact the educational process at GVSU or future licensure as a physician assistant. The costs of these evaluations or any other required clinical placement evaluations are the responsibility of the applicant or student.
The following program is available: