Program Overview

Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS) Program

Educational Objectives

The Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS) program has the following educational objectives:

• Educate physician assistants who are qualified by academic and clinical training to provide patient care services with the appropriate supervision of a licensed physician.
• Provide a course of professional study that will provide graduates with appropriate knowledge of physical and mental function and disease and the skills to accurately and reliably perform the range of health care procedures and duties customarily ascribed to the physician assistant.
• Furnish instruction that stresses the role of the physician assistant in health maintenance and preventive medicine while considering the social, economic, environmental, cultural, and ethical aspects of the people served.
• Develop the intellectual, ethical, and professional attitudes and behaviors that generate trust and respect from the patient population served by the physician assistant.
• Provide educational and clinical experiences that promote understanding of the interdependence of health professionals and that foster the utilization of the interdisciplinary team approach to the delivery of primary health care.
• Provide didactic and clinical educational experiences in order to prepare physician assistants with the knowledge, technical capabilities, and judgment necessary to perform in a highly professional and skilled capacity.
• Provide educational experiences that stimulate active learning in the science and art of medicine and foster an appreciation for "lifelong" learning as a practicing professional.
• Foster development of skills and processes to meet the unique needs of South Texas.
• Instill a desire and prepare students to enter primary care careers in rural or urban medically underserved areas.
• Develop a service orientation to the community, profession, and those whose need is greatest.
• Become the Physician Assistant Program of choice for South Texas citizens.

Educational Goals

The educational goals of the MPAS program are:

• Attract a highly qualified and diverse student body
• Sustain a high first-time Physician Assistant National Certification Exam pass rate
• Cultivate graduates who are competitively marketable as health care providers

Accreditation

The MPAS program is accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA).

Program Schedule

Orientation for new students is typically the first week of June, and classes start the following week.

Class Size

Forty-five candidates are accepted in the San Antonio Campus, and up to 15 at the Laredo extension program once a year.

Program Format

The program is a full-time program, and there are no part-time options.

The University of Texas at San Antonio

School of Health Professions

The University of Texas at San Antonio is an academic health center that includes schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, health professions, graduate biomedical sciences, and public health, and a clinical enterprise called UT Health San Antonio.