Physician Assistant Studies (MS)

Curriculum & Coursework Requirements

View the curriculum and coursework requirements for the PA program. 

Key Policies

• Academic Appeals policy
• Academic Integrity policy
• Withdrawal policies:
  • Withdrawal policy regarding tuition and financial aid
  • Leave of Absence/Withdrawal for International Students policy
  • Involuntary Medical Withdrawal policy
  • Voluntary Medical Withdrawal policy
• Due to lock-step design of the curriculum, the program does not offer advanced placement or part-time options.
• Students are not required to solicit clinical sites or preceptors. Students may inquire about a clinical site and obtain contact information for the director of clinical education to follow up and confirm the rotation for the student.

Handbooks

• Student Handbook

• Preceptor Orientation Handbook

• Clinical Year Handbook

Program Mission

The MS program at Widener University will graduate excellent health care professionals to meet the growing need for patients to have access to medicine both locally and globally. The MS program will educate highly effective health care professionals equipped to provide patient-centered medical care to diverse populations across the life span. Students will learn to be competent clinicians, culturally sensitive, socially conscious health care providers able to work in collaboration with other members of the health care team.  

Program Vision

The physician assistant program at Widener University will be the leader in physician assistant education by providing experiential and collaborative learning, and interprofessional experiences through community and civic engagement, developing leaders in health care, and ultimately improving the lives of the patients they serve.

Core Values

1. Excellence in teaching
2. Commitment to service
3. Diversity and inclusion
4. Professionalism
5. Scholarship
6. Collaboration
7. Kindness and compassion 

Widener University PA Program Goals

For goal success metrics and other data, please view the Program Outcomes & PANCE Rate section.

1. Accept students with strong academic and clinical experience who are underrepresented in the physician assistant profession

a. Criteria 1—Students with strong academic and clinical experience

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Undergraduate cum GPA/ >3.0 average for the entering cohort
   2. Undergraduate science GPA/ > 3.0 average for the entering cohort
   3. Direct patient care/ > 500 average for the entering cohort

b. Criteria 2—Students who are under-represented in the Physician Assistant Profession

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Racial/ethnic diversity > 20% for the entering cohort
   2. Male gender > 20% for the entering cohort

2. Foster a student commitment to service

a. Criteria 1—Student involvement with community service

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Average number of hours of student community service by cohort/ >20 hours

3. Successfully prepare student for entry level practice.

a. Criteria 1—Student Summative Exam performance.

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Student Summative Exam/ >80% average by cohort

b. Criteria 2—Student PANCE performance

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Student first-time taker PANCE pass rates at or above national average

4. Emphasize a commitment to evidence-based medicine.

a. Criteria 1—Evidence-based medicine

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Preceptor evaluation of students (EBM)/ >3.5 avg. for cohort
   2. Faculty evaluation of curriculum (student EBM preparation)/ >3.5 avg. for cohort
   3. Student graduate exit survey (EBM preparation)/ >3.5 avg. for cohort

5. Prepare students to practice patient-centered care

a. Criteria 1—Patient-centered care

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Preceptor Evaluation of Students (Patient-centered care)/ >3.5 ave for cohort
   2. Faculty Eval of Course (Student Patient-centered care Preparation)/ >3.5 ave for cohort
   3. Student Exit Survey (Patient-centered care Preparation)/ >3.5 ave for cohort

6. Prepare student for interprofessional collaboration in their practice

a. Criteria 1—Interprofessional Collaboration 

1. Measures/Benchmarks
   1. Preceptor evaluation of students (interprofessional collaboration)/ >3.5 avg. for cohort
   2. Faculty evaluation of curriculum (student interprofessional collaboration preparation)/ >3.5 avg. for cohort
   3. Student graduate exit survey (interprofessional collaboration preparation)/ >3.5 avg. for cohort

Widener University PA Program Competencies

The Widener University Institute for Physician Assistant competencies represent the requisite medical knowledge, interpersonal skills, clinical and technical skills, professional behaviors, and clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills required for each student to satisfactory demonstrate in order to graduate from the Widener Physician Assistant Program.  

1. Medical Knowledge 

• a) Recognize healthy and ill patients at different stages of illness, including acute,  emergent, and chronic. 
• b) Synthesize the pathophysiology, etiology, and patient presentation to deliver high-quality patient-centered care. 
• c) Apply evidence-based medicine in clinical practice 
• d) Synthesize the history, physical exam, and diagnostic studies to formulate a differential diagnosis.   
• e) Differentiate pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment strategies, including patient education and counseling for patients with various medical conditions. 
• f) Understand health promotion and preventative medicine 

2. Interpersonal Communication Skills 

• a) Demonstrate an ability to communicate with patients as partners and use shared decision-making to involve patients in their medical care.  
• b) Recognize any barriers to communication or comprehension and work to correct them.  
• c) Recognize the significance of health literacy in the patient population they serve. 
• d) Understand that a patient’s community, culture, religion, sexual orientation, or other individual characteristics affect their health and strive to understand them.  
• e) Recognize and understand the effect of a patient’s community on their health and vis versa

3. Clinical and Technical Skills 

• a) Demonstrate medical, behavioral, clinical, and technical skills needed to promote health, evaluation, and management of patient presentations across the lifespan.
• b) Conduct effective, patient-centered history and physical examination for comprehensive and problem-focused patient visits
• c) Perform procedural and clinical skills considered essential for PA practice
• d) Counsel and educate patients and their families with consideration for diverse backgrounds to empower shared decision-making.

4. Professional Behaviors 

• a) Demonstrate integrity, honesty, beneficence, and professionalism in practice. 
• b) Recognize and adhere to standards of care in the role of the PA in the healthcare team.
• c) Recognize personal biases, work to overcome them, and do not allow them to affect the delivery of quality patient care. 
• d) Demonstrate cultural humility and responsiveness to diverse populations.  

5. Clinical Reasoning and Problem-Solving

• a) Demonstrate an ability to use the latest scientific evidence to inform clinical reasoning and problem-solving. 
• b) Understand the effect that social determinants of health and health disparities can have on patient care and work to minimize these effects when engaged in clinical decision making
• c) Demonstrate investigative and critical thinking in the clinical setting.

This section will capture the outcomes data of our graduates as students move through the master's of physician assistant studies (MPAS) program. 

PANCE Pass Rates

Physician Assistant National Certification Examination
Exam Performance Summary Report 

Program Name: 
Program Number: 
Test Taker Status: All Test Takers 

ARC-PA Student Attrition

Program Goal Measurements

1. Accept students who are underrepresented in the PA field.

2. Foster a student commitment to service-learning.

3. Successfully prepare student for entry level practice.

4. Emphasize a commitment to evidence-based medicine and life-long learning.

5. Prepare students to be patient-centered and practice interprofessional collaboration.

The Widener University physician assistant program is dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We, as a university, program, faculty, and staff, desire to embrace students of all different cultures, backgrounds, and identities. We are committed to the development and delivery of a curriculum that is anti-racist, anti-oppressive, and reflects and respects our professional values. We seek to create an intentionally diverse educational community in which students, staff, and faculty perspectives are valued and meaningfully incorporated into our daily experience.

• Review Widener's Equal Opportunity, Harassment, and Nondiscrimination Policy

Upon the program's receipt of accreditation from ARC-PA, all graduating PA students will be eligible to sit for the NCCPA (National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants) PANCE (Physician Assistant National Certification Examination) upon graduation. A passing score on this examination allows graduates to obtain licensure to practice medicine as a physician assistant in all states and territories. For more information, review PANCE eligibility.

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university.
• Minimum overall GPA of 3.0 and overall science GPA of 3.0, at the time of application. Applications will not be reviewed unless these minimum requirements are met.  
• Official transcripts from all colleges and universities must be sent directly to CASPA.
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores are not required for consideration. 
• Pre-requisite course requirements must be met as described below.
• Letters of reference—one must be from a physician assistant.
• Personal statement
• Proof of patient contact experience hours (see tab below)

Pre-requisite Courses

• General biology or zoology - 3 credits with lab
• Microbiology - 3 credits
• Other biology courses recommended: genetics, cell biology, molecular biology, embryology, histology, or immunology - 3 credits
• Anatomy and physiology (completed within 5 years of attending MS program) - 8 credits with lab
• General chemistry - 4 credits with lab
• Organic chemistry - 4 credits
• General psychology or behavioral psychology - 3 credits
• Statistics - 1-2 credits
• Medical terminology (can be taken online) - 1 credit or certificate of completion

Additional Requirements

• Technical Skills: 
  Candidates for the physician assistant program must be able to independently, with or without reasonable accommodations, meet the following technical standards for admission, progression, and graduation from the program. The student must possess the minimal physical, emotional and social abilities to be a successful student.  Candidates must have motor function capabilities, physical and emotional endurance the meet the demands of the program. If the student requires assistance in meeting the technical standards, they should make early contact with the Widener University Student Accessibility Office or call (610)499-1266.

• Observation: 
  The candidate must be able to synthesize material as it is presented in lecture style, small group discussions, and laboratory discussions. Candidates must be able to obtain and interpret information as obtained from comprehensive assessments of patients, interpret the data, evaluate a patient’s condition, and responses, and develop a diagnostic plan. The use of the senses of touch, hearing, and vision is required to accomplish these tasks.  

• Communication: 
  Candidates must exhibit interpersonal skills to allow for more effective communication and interactions with patients and family members, faculty, ancillary health care providers, colleagues, and fellow students. The candidate be able to communicate effectively in English, in person, and in writing when documents patient encounters. Candidates must be able to accurately interpret verbal and non-verbal communications while accurately and clearly recording information.  

• Motor Function: 
  The candidate must be able to perform gross and fine motor movements in order to complete physical examinations using inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation. Candidates must be able to perform complex, and sometimes intricate procedures, treatments, administration of medication, and utilization of medical equipment. The candidate must have sufficient postural, motor, and neurologic, and hand eye coordination. Candidates must have the stamina to sustain extended periods of standing, sitting, and physical exertion in the classroom, laboratory, and clinical settings. 

• Intellectual, Conceptual, Integrative, Quantitative Abilities: 
  Candidates must be able to assimilate, effectively interpret, and understand complex information with in the physician assistant program, and professional environment through patient encounters, formal lectures, interactions with students, patients, family members, ancillary staff and health care providers, small group discussions, medical literature, academic and clinical learning environments. Critical thinking and problem-solving are integral components of the physician assistant profession. A candidate must be able to reason, calculate, measure, analyze, and synthesize critical data. The candidate must be able to test hypotheses in order to effectively diagnose and treat patients.
   
• Behavior and Social Skills: 
  The candidate must have the emotional health, maturity, and self-discipline to fulfill the responsibilities of the physician assistant program and professional career. The expectations for the physician assistant program candidate are that they will exercise academic integrity, professionalism, honesty, compassion, kindness, and teamwork. Candidates must be able to approach patient encounters with compassion, understanding, and cultural competence. The candidate must be able to adapt to changing environments and display flexibility while in the program and in their professional lives. 

Students are required to complete a minimum of 500 hours of direct patient/client care. This can be done through employment or volunteer experiences.  It is recommended that the student complete at least 40 hours of shadowing with a PA.  

The following is a sample list of acceptable areas for experiential healthcare patient/client contact hours:  

We are not currently accepting applications for this program. Applications will open pending accreditation approval.

All applications will be completed through the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA) site. Upon completion and verification of the application, students may be asked to visit campus for an interview.

View the physician assistant admissions rubric for a detailed look at how applications are reviewed. 

The Widener University physician assistant program is dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Special considerations for admission to the program will be given to applicants from under-represented populations in the physician assistant field, U.S. uniformed services personnel, residents of Chester, and Widener graduates.  

The physician assistant cost per credit is $1,025.

View the 2024-2025 tuition and fees guide for a complete breakdown of estimated program costs.