Admission Requirements

Admission Requirements Summary

• A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited university in the United States
• Minimum overall GPA of 3.0
• Minimum overall science GPA of 3.0
• Prerequisite courses must have a combined cumulative GPA of 3.0
• All prerequisite coursework must be completed with a grade of 2.0 (C) or higher
• Prerequisite courses must be completed within the last 10 years
• We recommended anatomy be completed within the last seven years
• 500 hours of direct-patient care work experience (paid or volunteer)
• A minimum of 16 hours shadowing a physician assistant
• Three letters of recommendation
• US citizen or US legal permanent resident

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Bachelor’s Degree

• A bachelor’s degree is required from a US regionally accredited college or university for admission into the program and must be completed by June 1st in the year of matriculation.
• The program DOES NOT accept the following course work or degrees
  • Prerequisite coursework completed at a nationally accredited college or university.
  • Any degrees (bachelors, masters, doctorates, or professional degrees) or coursework completed outside of the United States. This includes the WES transcript.

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Healthcare Experience

A minimum of 500 hours of direct patient care experience is required and must be completed on your application.  On CASPA, enter your hours under Supporting Information -> Experience -> Add Experience -> Patient Care Experience.

Applicants should have direct (hands-on) patient care in a clinical setting to be competitive.

• Direct Patient Care Examples: CNA, medical assistant, LPN, RN, PT, PTA, OT, OTA, military corpsman, EMT, paramedic, respiratory therapist, speech therapist, surgical technician, phlebotomist, radiology technician, athletic trainer, medical scribe

The experience can be traditional paid employment, volunteer, or research experience. Hours obtained as a student (for credit or for certification) will not be counted toward the 500-hour minimum.

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Shadowing

A minimum of 16 hours shadowing a physician assistant(s) is required.

• Shadowing may include observing a PA in your place of work or at an arranged observation at another clinical setting.

On CASPA, enter your shadowing hours under Supporting Information -> Experience -> Add Experience ->Shadowing.  

What do we expect from your shadowing experience?  We want to see you shadow a physician assistant to learn about their daily work life, settings in which they work, how a PA differs from other healthcare professionals, and their educational experience to become a PA.

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Letters of Recommendation

Three letters of recommendation must be submitted to CASPA. References should highlight your qualities that will make you an excellent physician assistant and enable you to handle the rigors of physician assistant school.

Who should write your letters of recommendation?

• At least one letter from a physician assistant who can highlight the qualities that will make you an excellent physician assistant. (preferred): Please note that shadowing experiences of less than 16 hours are not sufficient for a letter of recommendation.
• We recommend that one letter be from a physician, NP, or an individual who supervised you in a paid or volunteer clinical position.
• We recommend that one letter be from a professor, academic advisor, or research mentor who can attest to your academic potential.

*Letters from immediate family members or friends will not be accepted.

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Program Technical Standards

The Drury University Physician Assistant Program is a rigorous and intense program that places specific requirements and demands on all students enrolled in the program. The minimum technical standards establish the essential qualities considered necessary for students admitted to this program to achieve the knowledge, skills, and competencies of an entry-level physician assistant. In the event an applicant is unable to fulfill these technical standards before or any time after admission, with or without reasonable accommodation, the student will not be allowed to enter or progress within the program. Candidates for admission and students within the physician assistant program must possess the aptitude, ability, and skills in the following areas:

• Observation
• Communication
• Motor skills
• Intellectual, Conceptual, Integrative, and Quantitative Abilities
• Behavioral and Social Attributes

A detailed description of this list can be found in Technical Standards