College/Department	Healthcare; PA Medicine
Academic Award	Master of Science
Credits Required	133 semester credits
Facutly Lead	Troy Bender
CIP Code	51.0912

 

Admissions Requirement and Procedure	Requirements for Graduation
Technical Standards Required	Program Compenticies/ Outcomes

Admissions Requirement and Procedure

Requirements:

Applicants must meet the minimum admission requirements to be eligible to apply for admission to the PA program. All requirements must be met prior to CASPA application deadline (December 1st 11:59 pm EST).

1. Completed bachelor’s degree.
2. CASPA Minimum Total GPA 3.0 on 4.0 scale
3. CASPA Minimum Total Science GPA 3.0 on 4.0 scale.
4. Completed Academic Prerequisite Coursework.

A minimum grade of B- (2.75) required, at a regionally accredited US institution of higher education, within 10 years of application.

• Microbiology with lab             3 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Mathematics                          3 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Psychology                            3 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Human Anatomy with lab       4 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Human Physiology                 4 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Statistics                                3 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Genetics                                3 semester credits | 5 quarter credits
• Biochemistry                          3 semester credits | 5 quarter credits

5. Documented minimum of 2,000 hours of Patient Care Experience within 10 years of application.
6. Three Letters of Recommendation

Procedure:

The NU School of PA Medicine admissions committee has adopted the use of an inclusive admissions framework that allows trained faculty and staff to capture the experiences, attributes, and metrics (EAMs) of qualified applicants. Although an applicant’s academic record is considered, strong academic performance alone does not ensure acceptance. Experiential factors and attributes are evaluated that help us examine beneficial attributes that focus on viewing each applicant holistically to garner a sense of who each applicant is and how they can contribute to the classroom, program, profession, and community at large.

The Northwest University School of PA Medicine admissions process is highly selective and based on a variety of criteria including an applicant’s comprehensive strengths relative to the applicant pool.

Step 1 – Screening: The initial screening ensures the CASPA application is complete, verified, and all minimum program admission requirements were met at the time of CASPA submission deadline. All applications that satisfy the step one initial screening requirements progress to step two.

Step 2 – Application Evaluation: The applications are evaluated, and a weighted score is calculated on the following criteria: Academic Preparation, Patient Care Experience (PCE).  Program preferences are acknowledged during step two.

• Northwest University (NU) graduates who complete all application materials and meet all minimum admission requirements will be guaranteed an interview during the admission process.
• Qualified veterans who complete all application materials, meet all minimum admission requirements, have served in the military, and are in good standing will be guaranteed an interview during the admission process.

Step 3 – On Campus Interview: The interview consists of evaluation and scoring of the following:

• Applicant Interview (MMI)
• Knowledge of the PA Profession
• Professionalism
• Leadership
• Mission Alignment
• Letters of Recommendation (LORs)

Step 4 – Selection of Candidates: Upon completion of the interview process, PA candidates will be ranked based on the combined results of Steps 1-3. After final review by the admissions committee and the dean of the PA program, formal offers will be extended to the top interviewees for admission to the program.

Applying for admission

All applicants to the NU Physician Assistant program must apply through CASPA (Central Application Service for Physician Assistants). I

Application deadline

Applications are available through CASPA beginning each April. Applicants must submit their completed application on or before Cecember 1. 11:59 EST. All required documents must be received at CASPA by the deadline or the application will be considered incomplete and will be removed from further consideration. 

Technical Standards 

The Physician Assistant Master of Science degree signifies that the holder is prepared for entry into the practice of medicine. It follows that the graduate must have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to function in a broad variety of clinical situations and to render a wide spectrum of patient care. It is essential for good patient care to require minimum standards for the education of the physician assistant. Students admitted in the School of PA Medicine at Northwest University are selected based on their academic, personal, and extracurricular attributes. In addition, students must have the intellectual, physical, and emotional capacities to meet the requirements of the school’s curriculum and of a successful medical career.

The School of PA Medicine admits students of any race, age, sex, color, disability, and national or ethnic origin to all the rights and privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the university. It does not discriminate based on race, age, sex, color, disability, or national or ethnic origin in administering its educational policies, admission policies, employment, promotion and compensation policies, scholarship, and loan programs, and athletic or other University-administered programs.

The School of PA Medicine will consider for admission any applicant who meets its academic and nonacademic criteria and who demonstrates the ability to perform the skills listed in this document, with or without reasonable accommodations, consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act. Candidates and current students who have questions regarding the Technical Standards, or who believe they may need to request reasonable accommodation(s) to meet the Standards are encouraged to review the disability-accommodation guidelines.

Disability Resources

Email: advising@northwestu.edu, testing@northwestu.edu
Phone: 425-889-5227
Office Location: Williams Hall Room 10
Office Hours: Monday–Friday 8am–5pm

PA students are reviewed individually and, on a case-by-case basis, using the factors listed below. In accordance with university policy and as delineated by Federal and Washington law, the university does not discriminate in admissions, educational programs, or employment against any individual on the basis of that individual’s disability and will make good faith efforts at providing reasonable accommodation as required.

Northwest University Physician Assistant students must possess the intellectual ability to learn, integrate, analyze, and synthesize data. They must have functional use of the senses of vision, hearing, equilibrium, and taste. Their exteroceptor (touch, pain, and temperature) and proprioceptor (position, pressure, movement, stereognosis and vibratory) senses must be sufficiently intact to enable them to carry out all the activities required to complete the activities described below. PA students must have sufficient motor function capabilities to meet the demands of the PA program and the demands of the total patient care.

Students in the PA program must possess the ability, aptitude and skills in the following areas: observation, communication, motor function, intellectual-conceptual-integrative, behavioral, social and physical. The PA student must be able to prove adequate and appropriate immunization and titer status. The PA student must be able to meet the requirements and worker attributes of a Physician Assistant as defined by the U.S. Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) – Physician Assistant and the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor/Employment and Training Administration’s Occupational Information Network (O*NET) Handbook – Physician Assistant (updated 2021).

Observation

The PA student must be able to observe and actively participate in demonstrations and experiments in the basic sciences, visual presentations in lectures and laboratories, laboratory diagnostic procedures and microscopic studies of microorganisms and tissues/fluids in normal and pathologic states in the same manner as required in clinical practice. The PA student must be able to observe a patient accurately and completely at a distance and at a close range (within a few feet of the observer). Observation necessitates the functional use of the sense of vision and somatic sensation and is enhanced by a sense of smell.

Communication

The PA student must be able to communicate (includes not only speech but also reading and writing) effectively, sensitively, and efficiently with patients, their families, health care professionals, colleagues, faculty, and staff. They must be able to listen to and understand information and ideas as well as express and exchange ideas. The PA student must be able to acquire the patient’s medical history in a timely manner, interpret non-verbal information, and establish a therapeutic rapport with patients. They are also required to record information accurately and clearly; and communicate effectively and efficiently in English with other health care professionals.

As defined by the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT), the PA student must be able to meet the following general standards. Reading: Read literature, books, scientific and technical journals, abstracts, financial reports, and legal documents. Writing: write editorials, journals, speeches, manuals, and critiques. Speaking: conversant in the theory, principles and methods of effective and persuasive speaking, voice and diction, phonetics and discussion and debate (DOT Language Development Level 05).

Motor Function

The PA student must have sufficient motor function to elicit information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion and other diagnostic maneuvers. The PA student must possess sufficient motor function to be able to document and record information elicited from patients. The PA student must be able to carry out basic laboratory tests (urinalysis, wet mount, gram stain, occult blood card test, rapid culture tests, etc.) carry out diagnostic and therapeutic procedures (venipuncture, arterial blood gas sampling, injections, splinting, casting, IVs and nasogastric tube placement), and read electrocardiograms and diagnostic images (i.e., x-rays, ultrasounds, CT scans, MRI scans etc.). The PA student must have motor function including arm-hand steadiness sufficient to execute motor movements reasonably required to provide general care and emergency treatment for patients. Examples of emergency treatment reasonably required of a physician assistant are cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the administration of intravenous medications, the application of pressure to arrest bleeding, the opening of obstructed airways, suturing of wounds, the application of casts and splints and the performance of obstetrical maneuvers. Such skills require coordination of both gross and fine muscular movements, equilibrium, and functional use of the senses of touch and vision.

Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative and Quantitative Abilities:

These abilities include measurement, calculation, reasoning, analysis and synthesis. Problem identification and problem solving, the critical skills demanded of PA’s require all these abilities. The PA student must possess sufficient intellectual capacity to gather and identify essential information. They must demonstrate the ability to combine evaluation and reasoning with information and data to make decisions and solve problems. They must also be able to tell when something is wrong or likely to go wrong.

The PA student must also demonstrate inductive reasoning. They must be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships of structures. This includes the ability to read and interpret charts and graphs and the ability to use a microscope. The PA student must possess sufficient intellectual capacity and maturity to fulfill the curricular requirements of the various basic medical science and clinical courses. They must demonstrate the ability to collect, synthesize and analyze complex medical, laboratory data, and verbal information to reach logical conclusions. The PA student must demonstrate the ability to read and comprehend technical materials, medical and/or laboratory reports and medical text and journals to define complex problems and prepare solutions. The PA student must be able to use scientific methods to solve problems and apply knowledge of biomedical principles to the process of information gathering. They must possess critical thinking skills that allow them to use logic and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches. They must be able to identify and integrate findings pertinent to the process of problem identification to formulate and implement adequate and appropriate diagnostic and/or therapeutic plans.

As defined by the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT), the PA student must be able to deal with a system of real numbers; linear, quadratic, rational, exponential, logarithmic, angle and circular functions and inverse functions related algebraic solution of equations and inequalities; limits and continuity; and probability and statistical inference. Deductive axiomatic geometry, plane, solid, and rectangular coordinates. Practical application of fractions, percentages, ratios and proportion, measurement, logarithms, practical algebra, geometric construction and essentials of trigonometry (DOT Mathematical Development Level 04).

Behavioral and Social Attributes:

The PA student must possess the emotional and mental health required for full utilization of his/her intellectual abilities, the exercise of good judgment, the prompt completion of all responsibility’s attendant to the diagnosis and care of patients, and the development of mature, sensitive and effective relationships with patients. The PA student must be able to tolerate physically and mentally taxing workloads, effectively carry out responsibilities and to function effectively under stress. They must possess sufficient emotional stability to withstand stress, uncertainties and changing circumstances that characterize the dependent practice of medicine. They must possess social perceptiveness and be aware of other’s reactions and understand why they react the way they do. The PA student must be able to adapt to changing environments, to display flexibility and to learn to function in the face of uncertainty inherent in the clinical problems of many patients. The PA student must possess the physical and mental capacity to meet all the program’s academic standards (classroom and clinical). The PA student must be able to work with and cooperate with faculty, students, staff, preceptors, healthcare professionals, the public and employees at all levels. The PA student must be capable of developing constructive and cooperative working relationship with others. They must be capable of working directly with the public. Compassion, integrity, concern for others, interpersonal skills, interest, and motivation are all personal qualities that are assessed during the PA education process.

Physical Demands:

The U.S. Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) defines the physical demands strength rating as the estimated overall strength requirement of the job. It represents the strength requirements, which are important for average, successful work performance. The strength rating is expressed by one of five terms and the PA profession is considered (L), light work. The PA student must possess the physical ability to learn and implement the various technical skills required by the program. The PA student must possess an adequate range of body motion and mobility, with or without accommodation to perform the following essential functions: prolonged periods of sitting and/or standing, occasional bending and stooping and the ability to lift and carry books and other items such as medical instruments weighing up to ten (10) pounds with or without accommodation. They must be able to exert up to twenty (20) pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly (constantly is defined as an activity or condition that exists 2/3 or more of the time) to lift, carry, push or pull or otherwise move objects including the human body. Physical demand requirements are in excess of those for sedentary work. Light work requires walking or standing to a significant degree but may also involve sitting for prolonged periods of time.

Ability to Practice Medicine:

The U.S. Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) for Physician Assistants defines the general educational development (GED) and strength required of the physician assistant for satisfactory job performance. The PA student must demonstrate the ability to practice medicine. The ability to practice medicine is to be construed to include all of the following:

• The cognitive capacity to make appropriate clinical diagnoses and exercise reasonable medical judgments and to learn and keep abreast of medical developments.

• The ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking, to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Interpret an extensive variety of technical instructions in mathematical or diagrammatic form. Deal with several abstract and concrete variables. (DOT Reasoning Development Level 05);

• The ability to communicate those judgments and medical information to patients and other healthcare providers with or without the use of aids or devices, such as a voice amplifier and;

• The physical and mental capability to fully perform medical tasks such as physical examinations, surgical procedures, laboratory procedures and other technical skills without limitations, with or without the use of simple aids or devices, such as corrective lenses or hearing aids.

Requirements for Graduation:

• Maintain GPA – 3.0 each semester and cumulative.
• Completion of all didactic course work
• Completion of all Supervised Clinical Practice Experiences (required and elective)
• Completion of PA Capstone, summative, scholarly project
• Completion of required patient logging encounters/procedures.
• Completion of all assignments required by the program including any remediation.

Credential awarded: Master of Science – Physician Assistant Studies (MS-PAS)

PA Program Competencies/Outcomes:

The School of PA Medicine has developed six program competency domains that all graduates must demonstrate proficiency at completion of the program. These competencies were developed following the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) Core Competencies for the New Physician Assistant Graduates (Core Competencies for New PA Graduates) and the Competencies for the Physician Assistant Profession developed by the NCCPA, ARC-PA, AAPA, and PAEA (PA Competencies).  The six domains and competencies are tailored to align with the program mission, values, and goals of the PA program at Northwest University. 

Faith Integration:

FI-1    Identify various Biblical principles of the Christian faith that will prepare the PA graduate to carry the call of God through spiritual vitality, academic excellence, and empowered engagement with human need.                               

Medical Knowledge:

MK-1    Demonstrate an understanding of medical, behavioral, and social knowledge to effectively evaluate and manage patients across all ages and diverse patient populations in both primary care and specialty settings. 

Interpersonal and Communication Skills:

ICS-1     Demonstrate the knowledge and application of effective listening, verbal, and written communication necessary to elicit an accurate medical history, explain and document appropriate diagnostics studies and an appropriate patient-centered treatment plan. 

ICS-2     Communicate the findings of a clinical encounter in written and oral forms to all members of the health care team.

ICS-3     Engage with patients and family members to accurately deliver evidence-based patient education.    

Clinical and Technical Skills: 

CTS-1    Demonstrate the ability to perform a detailed focused physical examination relevant to the medical history of the patient.

CTS-2    Obtain informed consent and safely perform advanced clinical procedures common to general medical and surgical practices.

CTS-3    Order the appropriate diagnostic tests that assist in the evaluation of the patient condition and provide an accurate interpretation.

Professionalism and Ethics: 

PE-1      Demonstrate professionalism with strong ethical decision-making principles, sensitivity, and responsiveness to patients, their care teams, and all members of the healthcare team. 

Clinical Reasoning and Problem-Solving:

CRPS-1 Formulate a comprehensive differential diagnosis relevant to the patient condition and provide a detailed medical decision-making model.

CRPS-2 Develop an appropriate therapeutic management plan, either pharmacological or nonpharmacological, based on the patient’s medical history, physical exam, and diagnostic study findings.

CRPS-3 Make appropriately informed clinical decisions based on current evidence-based research and sound clinical judgement.