Physician Assistant
THIS WEBSITE IS FOR CSU STUDENTS PURSUING CAREERS AS PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS – CSU DOES NOT HAVE A PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT PROGRAM
Overview
Under a physician’s supervision, a Physician Assistant (PA) performs many patient care tasks which were traditionally conducted by physicians. PAs deliver a broad range of medical and surgical services.
Physician Assistants (PA):
- Take medical histories
- Conduct physical examinations
- Order diagnostic tests
- Administer treatments including suturing, casting and minor surgery
- Monitor patients
- Prescribe medications
- Assist in surgery
- Counsel and educate patients
Checkout this website developed by a CSU student who successfully got into PA school – How Tibia PA
Physician Assistant Occupational Outlook from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics
CSU Recommended Coursework
| These courses are provided as GENERAL pre-requisites and may not represent a complete list of requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to check with each professional school in order to determine specific pre-requisites courses and equivalencies for each institution. | |
| Requirement | Recommended CSU Course(s) |
| General Chemistry (2 semesters w/ labs) | CHEM 111/112 and CHEM 113/114 |
| Genetics (1 semester) | BZ 350, SOCR 330 (UC-Denver) or LIFE201B |
| Human Anatomy (1 semester) | BMS 301 |
| Physiology (1 semester) | BMS 300/302 OR BMS 360/302 |
| Upper Division Science (2 semesters) | 300/400 |
| Psychology (2 semesters) | PSY 100, PSY 320 (any PSY course, not HDFS) |
| Humanities (4 semesters) | Courses from prefixes ART, D, E, MU, PHIL, SPCM, TH and Languages (Freshman Composition is not acceptable at UC-Denver) |
| Statistics (1 semester) | STAT301, STAT307 |
| Highly recommended courses | CHEM245/246 or CHEM341/343/344, BC 351, LIFE 205/206 or MIP 300/302, OT 215, ANTH, CO, Spanish |
Programs and Preparation
Accredited Programs:
Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEP) Program Directory
Programs in Colorado:
University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center PA Program
Red Rocks Community College PA Program
Rocky Vista University PA Program
Colorado Mesa University PA Program
Admissions Tests
The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is commonly required
The PA-CAT is the Physician Assistant specific test. It is not required by very many PA schools yet, but may be in the future.