If you are currently in university, you may be able to obtain
information about accredited Physician Assistant programs in your
area by visiting your school's guidance office. You can also
search online. One place to start your search is by visiting the
web site of the American Academy of Physician Assistants
(www.aapa.org). The web site features a
state-by-state list of all currently accredited PA programs in
the US. Once you identify specific programs of interest, you may
also want to check to see whether the programs have their own web
sites containing information about their curriculum, admissions
process, prerequisites, etc. Because there are so many variations
among programs, and because program requirements may have changed
since the web site was last updated, it is also wise to contact
the PA programs directly by phone, email, or regular mail to
request an applicant information packet. Another good web site to
visit as you begin to explore PA programs is that of the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the
Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) which lists all accredited PA
programs as well as those which are in the process of review for
accreditation.
After examining the information on specific programs, and
deciding which programs you plan to apply to, make separate files
for each program and sequence them by application deadlines so
that you won't inadvertently miss out on applying to any with
earlier due dates.
