• A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution will be required prior to matriculation.

• This degree can be from any field and does not need to be a specific science degree or pre-professional degree.

• Applicants who completed coursework from a college or university outside of the U.S. must submit a transcript evaluation from the World Education Services (WES) or Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) to Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA).

Listed below are courses required to be considered as a candidate for admission into the program.*

• Two semesters of Human Anatomy and Physiology with Labs (4 SCH each for a minimum of 8 SCH combined including labs).
  • To meet this requirement take Human Anatomy and Physiology 1 with lab PLUS Human Anatomy and Physiology 2 with lab –OR– take Human Anatomy with lab PLUS Human Physiology. Human Anatomy and Physiology courses must cover all organ systems. Applied Anatomy and Physiology courses that do not, will not be recognized as fulfilling the prerequisite course requirement. Comparative, Survey, Elementary, Mammalian, Vertebrate, and/or Functional Anatomy; Exercise, Applied, Advanced, Survey, Vertebrate, and/or Mammalian Physiology courses may not replace the Human Anatomy and/or Human Physiology requirements. Please contact us to verify a certain course meets our requirements. *Human Anatomy and Physiology courses course must be 5 years old or less.

• Two semesters of Biology, each with labs (4 SCH each for a minimum of 8 SCH combined including labs in addition to the above A&P requirement)

• One semester of Microbiology with lab (3-5 SCH includng lab) - Many of the Clinical, Medical, Introductory or Survey Microbiology courses will not meet our prerequisite requirement. *Microbiology course must be 5 years old or less.

• One semester of Chemistry with lab (4 SCH including lab))

• One semester of Biochemistry with lab or Organic Chemistry with lab (4 SCH including lab in addition to the above chemistry requirement) - Biochemistry preferred

• One semester of Genetics with or without lab (3 SCH in addition to above requirements)

• One semester of Statistics or Biostatistics (3 SCH): Statistics courses within social or natural science departments (e.g., psychology, sociology) are acceptable.

• One semester of Medical Terminology (1 SCH)

NOTE: Up to (3) three of the prerequisite courses can be pending completion by the time of application. At least (1) one Human Anatomy course must be completed at time of application. Applicants must be enrolled in any remaining courses to ensure completion of all course prerequisites must be completed and verified prior to matriculation in May. Beyond the prerequisite courses, applicants can still be completing other courses leading to their bachelor’s degree but must have all courses completed prior to matriculation. Additionally, if accepted conditionally into the program, candidates with outstanding courses must receive a minimum passing grade of “C” or better and a combined cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher for all outstanding courses. If only one course is remaining, that course grade must be a “B” or better to meet the cumulative GPA requirement for outstanding courses. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the SHS and PA Program has amended its policies regarding admissions to accept pass/fail grades for mandatory prerequisites in the Spring, Summer, and Fall of 2020 only. 

Important

• All courses must be completed at a regionally accredited college or university.
• To ensure standardization and fairness among applicants, we are unable to waive any prerequisite course requirement for any applicant.
• Any courses completed at an institution using a quarter credit system must be converted to semester credit hours using the following formula: one semester credit hour (SCH) is equivalent to .67 quarter credit hours; 1 quarter credit hour/1.5 = .67 semester credit hours.
• CLEP or Advanced Placement Courses – CLEP examination or advanced placement credit may not be used to meet any of the School’s requirements. Experiential learning is also not an acceptable substitute for prerequisite requirements.
• It is preferred that prerequisite courses are completed within 5 years of application to the program. Will consider case by case if greater than 5 years, with the exception of Human Anatomy and Physiology, and Microbiology. 
• Although not required, the Program strongly recommends the following courses as preparation:
  • Cell Biology
  • Cell Physiology
  • Epidemiology
  • Immunology
  • Pharmacology
  • Virology
  • Introduction to Psychology/General Psychology
  • Abnormal Psychology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Human Growth & Development
  • Human Sexuality
  • Medical Ethics
  • Sociology and/or Cultural Anthropology
  • Physics
  • Quantitative Analysis
  • Expository Writing
  • English Composition
  • Technical Writing
  • Communications
  • Humanties

• PREREQUISITE COURSE GRADE AND GPA REQUIREMENT:

  All prerequisite courses must be completed with a grade of ‘C’ or higher and all applicants must have a cumulative Prerequisite Course Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher (calculated by CASPA).

• CUMULATIVE OVERALL  SCIENCE GPA REQUIREMENT:

  All applicants must have a cumulative overall Science Course GPA  of 3.0 or higher.  
• The MPAS Program reserves the right to use either the CASPA overall science GPA or BCP GPA calculation. Regardless of which calculation is used, the same calculation will be applied to all applicants of each admission cycle.

• CUMULATIVE OVERALL GPA REQUIREMENT:

  All applicants must have a cumulative overall Grade Point Average of 3.0 or higher for all undergraduate courses (calculated by CASPA). See below for a potential exception to this one requirement.

WHAT IF MY PREREQUISITE AND SCIENCE GPA REQUIREMENTS ARE MET, BUT MY CUMULATIVE TOTAL GPA IS JUST UNDER 3.0?

As a policy, the Emory & Henry College Master of Physician Assistant Studies program does not round-up any grades, including our own course examination scores and course GPAs. This also applies to prospective applicant cumulative science and prerequisite GPAs. However, if your cumulative total GPA is below 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, and specifically only for the cumulative overall undergraduate GPA, we are mindful that some students do poorly in their freshman year but then excel in their remaining undergraduate and graduate years. Here in the PA Program, we view this as a sign of academic and emotional maturity. If you are such a student, and only once your application has been completed and verified by CASPA, you may email our Admissions Committee Chair, Ms. Tracie Rhinehardt (trinehardt@ehc.edu) and request that the Program reevaluate your transcripts. It is important to understand that this is done on a case-by-case basis and the program decision regarding permitting the recalculation and the results of the recalculation are final and not open to consideration for appeal. Regardless of the outcome, all applicants must still have a cumulative prerequisite grade point average of 3.0 or higher and cumulative science grade point average of 3.0 or higher as noted above. 

All candidates must take the CASPer Assessment in order to be considered for an interview.CASPer is an online open-response situational judgment test (SJT) that helps determine behavioral tendencies of applicants pursing people-centered professions. To complete the test, visit acuityinsight.app to create an account and complete the US Professional Health Sciences, CSP-10101 test for Emory & Henry College. There is no minimum CASPer score required.

The GRE test is no longer an admissions requirement.

All applicants must complete a minimum of 500 hours of hands-on direct patient care experience by the time of matriculation.* Applicants may submit an application after completing a minimum of 250 hours of direct patient contact experience but the remaining hours, up to the required 500, must be completed and verified by April 1, prior to student matriculation in May of that calendar year.  Students who fail to complete the required 500 hours of direct patient contact hours by April 1, prior to matriculation in May of that calendar year, will have their invitation for a seat in the program revoked.

• Volunteer and Service-Work experience are acceptable.
• Medical scribe activities and other direct patient care activities (e.g., medical assistant, nursing assistant, dental assistant, radiology technician, mental health counselor) meet this requirement.
• Activities caring for a family member or relative do not meet this requirement.
• Activities caring for a single individual (e.g., personal care attendant) do not meet this requirement.
• Non hands-on direct patient care experience do not fulfill this requirement (e.g., pharmacy tech, unit secretary, administrative positions and shadowing experiences).

*Unfortunately, we are not able to assist students and applicants in obtaining their healthcare-related experiences. 

Click here to learn about our collaboration with the Francis Marion Manor Health & Rehabilitation facility

Applicants must complete a minimum of 16 hours of shadowing with a nationally certified and state licensed PA (PA-C) during direct patient care activities; must be completed by the time of application.

• • A minimum of 100 hours of community service-related volunteer experience must be completed at time of matriculation. Applicants may submit an application after completing a minimum of 50 hours of volunteer experience but the remaining hours, up to the required 100, must be completed and verified by April 1 prior to matriculation in May. Students who fail to complete the required 100 hours of volunteer experience by April 1, prior to matriculation in May of that calendar year, will have their invitation for a seat in the program revoked.
  • Shadowing hours cannot be included as volunteer experience.
  • Rotation/Immersion experiences required as part of a healthcare certificate/degree program cannot be included as volunteer experience

Applicants must provide three letters of reference at the time of their application.

• One letter must be from a PA-C, MD, DO or FNP.
• Two letters must be from a professional reference such as a professor, work supervisor, volunteer supervisor, etc. 
• It is important that the letters of reference be completed by individuals who have first-hand knowledge of your skills, strengths, and weaknesses.
• References from friends, family members and relatives are not appropriate and will not be accepted.
• You will need to inform those writing your letters that they must be submitted with current contact information (email address and telephone number) within the letter,

Applicants must be fully proficient in the use of the English language.

If English is not the applicant’s primary (i.e., native) language, or the applicant did not complete their undergraduate coursework at a traditional (i.e., face-to-face)  college/university in which the primary language was English, the applicant may be required to submit an official score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT) as part of their CASPA application. The minimum total score needed is 90 and the minimum score needed for each TOEFL iBT section is as follows: Reading: 21; Listening: 21; Speaking: 25; Writing: 23

General Information

Along with other Program prerequisites, all candidates must be able to independently, with or without reasonable accommodation, meet our Program specific technical standards of general and specific abilities and behavioral and social attributes, and continue to meet these standards throughout the entirety of their program. The technical standards have been developed in consideration of the demands of didactic and clinical training in graduate health sciences and clinical practice as a physician assistant. 

View the Program Specific Technical Standards

• Candidates and students are responsible for all costs related to the completion and submission of their background checks, comprehensive drug screens, and medical screening exams. 
• A failed background check, drug screen, or medical clearance may preclude participation in the didactic and/or clinical phases of training.
• Background Check & Comprehensive Drug Screen
  • Prior to matriculation, students must successfully pass a national background check and a comprehensive drug screening.
  • Students will be required to complete a national background check and comprehensive drug screen annually throughout the entirety of the program.
  • All background checks and drug screens must be completed through the Program’s vendor, CastleBranch.
  • As many clinical sites require a background check and drug screen within the previous 12 months, students will be required to complete annual national background check and drug screen, until completion of the program.
  • Additionally, some clinical sites may require an additional and site-specific background check and drug screen regardless of checks and screens completed for the Program.
• Medical Clearance to Participate in Program
  • Candidates invited to join the MPAS program must have the Medical Clearance form completed prior to matriculation. 

All students are required to carry their own malpractice insurance for the entirety of their time in the MPAS program with a minimum per incident limit of $1,000,000 and aggregate limit of $3,000,000.

This is now offered at no cost via the AAPA endorsed insurance carrier.

Click here for more details regarding the CM&F Groups free PA student coverage 

Prior to matriculation, students must hold current certification in American Heart Association Basic Life Support (AHA BLS) and must maintain continuous certification throughout the Program (students are responsible for associated costs of securing and maintaining their certification).

Health Insurance

Student health insurance is required of all students in the PA program and must be secured prior to the first day of class and continued throughout the program. 

Students are encouraged to check for competitive health insurance rates via other sites as well. Some useful sites include:

• Healthcare.gov - The federal government’s official ACA website (you may be eligible to enroll out of the typical enrollment period)
• Healthcare.org - a general health insurance marketplace website
• Other vendors

Immunizations (including Covid) and Tb Testing**

For immunizations, the Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS) program adheres to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Recommended Vaccines for Healthcare Workers. As students will begin clinical experiences in their second semester of the Program, all students must provide documentation that the following immunizations and Tb testing has been completed prior to matriculation, and maintain immunizations and complete annual Tb testing throughout their training.

 Per Emory & Henry College policy, all students in the MPAS program must submit proof of Covid-19 immunizations or a letter of medical or religious exemption (religious exemption must be notarized).

For more information visit: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/recommendations/essentialworker.html#vaccinated

For the most up-to-date information on E&H Covid policies including testing procedures, visit: https://www.ehc.edu/live/files/408-202001sr01-college-reopening-plan-v410

*Contraindications to the above will be considered on a case-by-case basis, only with documentation from a medical provider, and must be discussed prior to matriculation. Personal/Religious reasons for declining immunizations will be considered on a case by case basis and must be discussed prior to matriculation.

**COVID-19 TB Test Exception: We will allow, per CDC recommendations, for students to wait 4 weeks after their COVID-19 immunizations to complete this requirement for matriculation. Student’s will not be permitted to participate in any clinical emersions or activities until this is completed.  It is important to understand that participating in some clinical experiences may be prohibited from some institutions/practices without completion of immunization requirements.