The Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies (MSPA) coursework provides students with the graduate level education necessary to qualify them to sit for the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE) in order to become certified and eligible to practice as a physician assistant (PA) in the United States. The curriculum is comprised of courses meeting the national standards for PA education as set out by the profession’s accrediting body, the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA). Courses include basic sciences, clinical medicine topics, and training in critical thinking and professional development.
The MSPA Program is a 2-year professional program divided into a 12-month didactic phase followed by a 12-month clinical phase in the form of on-site supervised clinical practice experiences. This program serves as an extension of the 3-year Valparaiso University undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Health Science (BSHS) program and is the culminating phase of the 5-Year Physician Assistant Program (3+2). Students entering the MSPA Program from the BSHS program are prepared with a prescribed academic sequence consisting of liberal arts, preparatory science courses, and courses related to healthcare. Students admitted directly into the MSPA degree program who have met or exceeded the progression and retention criteria for the BSHS degree are directly admitted into the professional MSPA segment, the professional accredited component of Physician Assistant (PA) preparation. The MSPA curriculum is delivered sequentially. Students take courses as a cohort in a series as described below.
Purpose and Objectives
The purpose of the MSPA degree is to prepare graduates who are qualified to sit for the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) and to practice medicine as a PA within varied healthcare environments.
The mission of the Valparaiso University Physician Assistant Program is to prepare competent graduates who think critically and work collaboratively to provide excellent evidence-based patient care in dynamic healthcare environments and promote the health and well-being of persons and communities through interprofessional education, scholarship, service, and leadership.
Upon completion of the MSPA degree, students will be able to demonstrate:
- An investigative and analytical approach to patient care incorporating core medical knowledge and critical thinking skills.
- Interpersonal communication skills to develop therapeutic, culturally sensitive, and ethically sound relationships with patients, their families, and other members of the healthcare team.
- Patient-centered care that incorporates medical knowledge, procedural skills, team-based care, and the active involvement of patients and families in their own healthcare across the lifespan.
- Positive values and ideals consistent with an ethical and professional approach to patient care, including the acknowledgement of professional and personal limitations.
- Practice and systems-based analysis to insure patient safety and improve outcomes through continuous quality improvement.
- Appropriate responses to the complexities of the dynamic healthcare system by practicing in a cost effective and socially responsible manner while focused on the interest of the individual patient.
Admission Requirements
Direct Admit Pathway for the 5-Year Program
Students who have been admitted to the direct admit pathway, have successfully met the PA program direct admit progression criteria, and who have successfully completed the BSHS degree program requirements will be admitted directly into the accredited phase of the PA program (the MSPA coursework).
Non-Direct Admit Pathway into MSPA
Students who were not admitted into the PA program via the direct admit pathway will be considered for admission to the PA program once a year in December prior to enrollment in the MSPA Program, pending available seats.
Students currently enrolled in a Valparaiso University degree or those who have earned a Valpo degree are eligible to apply for admission into the Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies (MSPA) Program if they meet all listed requirements.
The program’s published requirements are available on the PA Program website:
https://www.valpo.edu/physician-assistant-program/programs/admission
Students who were not admitted into the 5-Year PA Program direct admit pathway or who were dismissed from the direct admit pathway will be considered for admission to the MSPA Program once a year in December prior to enrollment in the MSPA Program, pending available seats.
To be eligible for admission to the graduate phase of the program, students must meet one of the following requirements:
- Student in good standing within the NSHS program who will complete the BSHS degree prior to the start date for the MSPA Program.
- Student currently enrolled at Valparaiso University who will complete a baccalaureate Valpo degree prior to the start date for the MSPA Program and who has met all admission requirements.
- Alumni of Valparaiso University who has earned at least a baccalaureate Valpo degree and has met all admission requirements.
Applicants from the non-direct entry pool will complete a University application, which includes a personal statement and an interview. Preference will be given to students enrolled in the BSHS degree.
BSHS degree applicants will be evaluated using the following criteria:
- Overall cumulative GPA
- Overall lab science GPA
- Overall health science GPA
- Interview
- Three letters of reference
- At least one letter of reference must be from a healthcare professional who can comment on the applicant’s abilities and performance in a clinical setting.
- Maturity, leadership, commitment to a career in healthcare, service to others, and any disciplinary action
Applicants who are not enrolled or have not achieved the BSHS degree must meet (or must demonstrate they will meet) the prerequisite degree, coursework, and pre-admission clinical experience for the MSPA Program.
Application submissions must include:
- Official academic transcripts from Valparaiso University
- Overall cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale
- Overall lab science GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale
- Competitive applicants typically have an Overall GPA and Science GPA of 3.40 or higher.
- Three letters of reference
- At least one letter of reference must be from a healthcare professional who can comment on the applicant’s abilities and performance in a clinical setting.
- Minimum of 132 hours of direct patient care of healthcare experiences documented prior to the start of the MSPA Program
- Direct patient care experiences include both paid and unpaid work in a health field where you are directly responsible for a patient’s care, for example actively working with patients as a nurse, paramedic, EMT, CNA, physical therapist, occupational therapist, etc..
- Healthcare experiences include both paid and unpaid work in a health field where you are not directly responsible for a patient’s care, but still have patient interaction, for example administering food or medication, taking vitals, obtaining record-keeping information, shadowing (PA preferred), working as a scribe, medical assistant, etc.
Coursework prerequisites
-
Official transcripts must show that the following prerequisites have been completed.
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To be considered for admission, all prerequisite coursework must be completed no earlier than 7 years prior to application cycle deadline.
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Prerequisite courses must be completed with a grade of “C” or higher.
| Course Prerequisite |
Minimum Semester Hours |
Additional Details |
| Human Anatomy & Physiology with lab |
8 |
Content may be divided into separate anatomy and physiology courses |
| Microbiology with lab |
4 |
|
| Biology |
7 |
In addition to anatomy and physiology |
| General Chemistry with lab |
8 |
|
| Organic Chemistry I with lab |
4 |
|
| Statistics |
3 |
|
| Behavioral and Social Sciences |
6 |
Psychology, Sociology, or Anthropology |
| Medical terminology |
1 |
|
Applicants are notified of the committee’s decision by letter from the Dean of the College of Nursing and Health Professions. Preference is given to students who demonstrate higher achievement in GPA (overall, science, & health science), maturity, leadership, commitment to a career in health care, and service to others.
Progression
A student must complete the graduate phase of the Program within six (6) consecutive semesters, unless an extended leave of absence is granted. Students must maintain passing status in all required coursework in order to advance towards the MSPA degree. Examinations are administered at the end of each didactic and clinical course, at the completion of the didactic year, and at the end of the curriculum.
During the didactic phase of the program, a student is limited to a maximum of five (5) total exam failures. Exam failure number six (6) will result in dismissal from the Program. In the case of exam failure, a student will be required to repeat the examination. If the student fails the exam retake, they will earn their second exam failure. In this case the student will be required to report for the next scheduled extended learning session (generally at the end of the current term). If a student fails to pass the extended learning session, the student is considered to be in violation of progression standards and is subject to dismissal.
To successfully complete the didactic phase of the program, each student must pass the Didactic Comprehensive Written Examination and Didactic Summative Practicum. Each student must pass both didactic summative assessments prior to entering the clinical phase of the Program. If the student earns below the passing grade, they will be required to sit for a second, comparable examination prior to the start of clinical rotations. If the student fails this second examination, the student is considered to be in violation of progression standards and is subject to dismissal.
Successful completion of the clinical phase requires a Satisfactory grade in every clinical course, as well as a passing score on the Graduate Project. Each student must successfully complete all nine (9) clinical rotation courses, including all graded and non-graded components, before they have successfully completed the clinical phase. At the end of each core rotation, students will take a specialty-specific, standardized, end-of-rotation (EOR) exam. If the student does not attain a passing score for an individual EOR exam, the student will be allowed to repeat the examination. If the student fails the EOR re-examination for that clinical course, the student fails the clinical course, and the rotation must be repeated. The student is allowed only one repeat EOR examination attempt during the clinical year. The second failure of any EOR examination will be considered a failure of the clinical course, and the student will be required to repeat the failed course rotation. Students are limited to a total of one clinical course failure. Failure of the second clinical course results in dismissal from the Program. Failure of two clinical courses is defined as earning a failing grade in two different clinical courses or the same clinical course twice.
To successfully complete PA training, each student must pass the Program End of Curriculum Written Examination and Program Summative Practicum and within the final four months of the Program. The summative assessments correlate with the MSPA Program student learning outcomes and with the didactic and clinical components of the program’s curriculum. These evaluations will be used to determine whether each student has the fundamental knowledge, interpersonal skills, patient care skills, and professionalism necessary to enter clinical PA practice. If the student earns below the passing grade, they will be required to sit for a second, comparable examination. If the student fails this second examination, the student is considered to be in violation of progression standards and is subject to dismissal.
Please refer to the MSPA Program Student Handbook for detailed progression criteria.
Advising
Advising in the MSPA Program is done by the CONHP academic advisor assigned to both the BSHS and MSPA degrees as well as all PA program faculty and the program director.
