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Pfeiffer University offers a 27-month Physician Assistant (PA) program that awards a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies (MS-PAS) degree.
The full-time program offers classes that are held in-person at the university’s new state-of-the-art Center for Health Sciences (CHS) facility in Albemarle, North Carolina. Our mission is to provide a supportive learning environment for our students, with an emphasis on rural medicine, that graduates physician assistants who are prepared to provide patient-centered healthcare.
Campus Location
245 East Main Street Albemarle, NC 28001
Program Overview
Embark on a future of meeting people in their moment of need with excellent healthcare, compassion, and dignity.
27-month academic experience
116 credit hours (includes didactic and clinical phase)
The clinical phase includes behavioral and mental health, emergency medicine, family medicine, general surgery, internal medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, and orthopedics.
Program Highlights
Accreditation
At its September 2024 meeting, the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA) extended Accreditation-Probation status for the Pfeiffer University Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies sponsored by Pfeiffer University until its next review in September 2026.
Probation accreditation is a temporary accreditation status initially of not less than two years. However, that period may be extended by the ARC-PA for up to an additional two years if the ARC-PA finds that the program is making substantial progress toward meeting all applicable standards but requires additional time to come into full compliance. Probation accreditation status is granted, at the sole discretion of the ARC-PA, when a program holding an accreditation status of Accreditation – Provisional or Accreditation – Continued does not, in the judgment of the ARC-PA, meet the Standards or when the capability of the program to provide an acceptable educational experience for its students is threatened.
Once placed on probation, a program that fails to comply with accreditation requirements in a timely manner, as specified by the ARC-PA, may be scheduled for a focused site visit and is subject to having its accreditation withdrawn.
Specific questions regarding the Program and its plans should be directed to the Program Director and/or the appropriate institutional official(s).
The program’s accreditation history can be viewed on the ARC-PA website at https://www.arc-pa.org/accreditation-history-pfeiffer-university/.
Didactic Phase = 71 SH
Clinical Anatomy and Introduction to Diagnostic Imaging (5 SH)
Medical Physiology (2 SH)
Essentials of Medical Genetics (1 SH)
The Physician Assistant: Introduction to Healthcare (1 SH)
Epidemiology and Biostatistics: An Introduction to Clinical Research (1 SH)
Public Health: Principles, Policy, and Advocacy (1 SH)
Pharmacotherapeutics I (2 SH)
Dermatology (1 SH)
Ophthalmology & ENT (2 SH)
History, Physical, and Documentation I (2 SH)
Pathophysiology of Disease I (2 SH)
Clinical Laboratory and Diagnostics I (1 SH)
Evidence Based Medicine I (1 SH)
Ethics, Law, and Social Justice in Medicine (1 SH)
Pharmacotherapeutics II (1 SH)
Cardiology/EKG (2 SH)
Pulmonology (2 SH)
Endocrinology (2 SH)
Infectious Disease (1 SH)
Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine (2 SH)
History, Physical, and Documentation II (2 SH)
Pathophysiology of Disease II (1 SH)
Clinical Laboratory and Diagnostics II (1 SH)
Evidence Based Medicine II (1 SH)
Clinical Skills and Procedures (2 SH)
Pharmacotherapeutics III (1 SH)
Neurology (2 SH)
Gastroenterology (2 SH)
Urology / Nephrology (2 SH)
Women’s Health (2 SH)
Orthopedics and Rheumatology (2 SH)
History, Physical, and Documentation III (2 SH)
Evidence Based Medicine III (1 SH)
Cultural Issues in Healthcare (1 SH)
Pharmacotherapeutics IV (2 SH)
Hematology / Oncology (1 SH)
Geriatrics (1 SH)
Emergency Medicine (2 SH)
Surgery (2 SH)
Pediatrics (2 SH)
History, Physical, and Documentation IV (2 SH)
Pathophysiology of Disease III (1 SH)
Clinical Skills and Procedures II (2 SH)
Clinical Laboratory and Diagnostics III (1 SH)
Clinical Phase = 45 SH (9 rotations)
Behavioral and Mental Health (5 SH)
Emergency Medicine (5 SH)
Family Medicine (5 SH)
General Surgery (5 SH)
Internal Medicine (5 SH)
Pediatrics (5 SH)
Women’s Health (5 SH)
Orthopedics (5 SH)
Elective (Subspecialty Option 2) (5 SH)
Total credits for the program = 116