Program Overview

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Physician Assistant BS/MS

Overview

RIT's physician assistant program is a five-year, dual degree program where students earn both their bachelor's and master's degrees. The program prepares students to provide compassionate, patient-centered healthcare.

Mission

The program provides a foundation of science and liberal arts, and prepares students to provide compassionate, patient-centered healthcare. The program is committed to developing the ethical values, medical knowledge, professionalism, and interpersonal communication skills essential for inter-professional, team-based, clinical practice.

Program Goals

1. COMPETENT: Ensure students develop the fundamental medical knowledge, skills, and clinical reasoning to deliver high-quality, evidence-based, patient-centered care.
2. COMPASSIONATE: Develop clinicians skilled in patient and inter-professional communication who practice with compassion, professionalism, and integrity.
3. INCLUSIVE: Foster a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion within the faculty, staff, and students to deliver quality care to all patients.
4. MINDFUL: Mentor and support students' holistic well-being and professional growth.
5. ENGAGED: Promote opportunities for student engagement in community service and outreach.

Program Learning Outcomes

• Medical Knowledge: Graduates will demonstrate core medical knowledge of established and evolving biomedical and clinical sciences and apply this knowledge to patient care.
• Interpersonal and Communication Skills: Graduates will demonstrate interpersonal and communication skills that result in effective information exchange with patients, families, physicians, and other members of the healthcare team.
• Patient Care: Graduates will provide effective, safe, high-quality, and equitable patient care in diverse settings and across the life span.
• Professionalism: Graduates will practice with integrity, ethical and legal responsibility, and sensitivity to diverse patient populations.
• Practice-based Learning and Improvement: Graduates will critically analyze their practice experiences with Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) and quality assurance processes to improve patient care.
• Systems-based Practice: Graduates will demonstrate awareness of and responsiveness to healthcare systems while keeping the patient at the center of cost-effective, safe care.

Curriculum

First Year (Pre-professional)

• BIOL-101: General Biology I (General Education)
• BIOL-102: General Biology II (General Education)
• BIOL-103: General Biology I Lab (General Education)
• BIOL-104: General Biology II Lab (General Education)
• CHMG-141: General & Analytical Chemistry I (General Education – Natural Science Inquiry Perspective)
• CHMG-142: General & Analytical Chemistry II (General Education – Scientific Principles Perspective)
• CHMG-145: General & Analytical Chemistry I Lab (General Education – Natural Science Inquiry Perspective)
• CHMG-146: General & Analytical Chemistry II Lab (General Education – Scientific Principles Perspective)
• MATH-161: Applied Calculus (General Education – Mathematical Perspective A)
• YOPS-10: RIT 365: RIT Connections
• General Education – First-Year Writing
• General Education – Elective
• General Education – Ethical Perspective
• General Education – Artistic Perspective
• General Education – Global Perspective

Second Year (Pre-professional)

• CHMB-240: Biochemistry for Health Sciences (General Education)
• MEDS-250: Human Anatomy and Physiology I (General Education)
• MEDS-251: Human Anatomy and Physiology II (General Education)
• MEDS-417: Clinical Microbiology
• STAT-145: Introduction to Statistics I (General Education – Mathematical Perspective B)
• Open Elective
• General Education – Social Perspective
• General Education – Immersions 1,2,3

Third Year (Professional)

• PHYA-401: History & Physical Diagnosis I
• PHYA-402: History & Physical Diagnosis II
• PHYA-405: Pathophysiology I
• PHYA-406: Pathophysiology II
• PHYA-415: Pharmacology I
• PHYA-416: Pharmacology II
• PHYA-419: Advanced Gross Anatomy
• PHYA-420: PA Seminar
• PHYA-422: Clinical Medicine I
• PHYA-423: Clinical Medicine II
• PHYA-430: Clinical Genetics

Fourth Year (Professional)

• PHYA-409: Clinical Lab Medicine
• PHYA-417: Pharmacology III
• PHYA-421: Diagnostic Imaging
• PHYA-424: Clinical Medicine III
• PHYA-440: Society and Behavioral Medicine
• PHYA-510: Hospital Practice
• PHYA-520: Clinical Integration
• PHYA-530: Clinical Research Methods (WI-PR)
• PHYA-550: Procedural Clinical Skills
• PHYA-560: Healthcare Policy & Law
• PHYA-710: Graduate Project I (WI-PR)
• PHYA-750: Pediatrics
• PHYA-751: Internal Medicine
• PHYA-752: Women's Health
• PHYA-761: Professional Practice I
• Open Electives

Fifth Year (Professional)

• PHYA-720: Graduate Project II
• PHYA-753: Emergency Medicine
• PHYA-754: Surgery
• PHYA-755: Orthopedics
• PHYA-757: Behavioral Health
• PHYA-758: Family Medicine
• PHYA-759: Elective Rotation
• PHYA-762: Professional Practice II
• PHYA-763: Professional Practice III

Admissions and Financial Aid

The physician assistant program is highly competitive, with approximately 30-36 students enrolled in each class year. The program requires a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) for admission and maintenance.

Health Care Experience

While health care experience is not an absolute requirement for admission, the program faculty highly suggests that candidates volunteer in hospitals, nursing homes, hospice, and/or health care facilities, as applicable. Shadowing health care professionals (PAs, MDs) in clinical arenas is also highly suggested.

Transfer Admission

Qualified transfer students are accepted into the major on a space-available basis. Prior health care experience and/or shadowing are strongly recommended.

Advanced Placement

In the pre-professional phase, advanced placement (AP) credit for general education courses is evaluated and approved by the academic advisors. AP credit for calculus, statistics, and university electives is awarded, as applicable, within the major. AP credit is not accepted for biology and chemistry as course substitutions.

Accreditation

The RIT physician assistant program is accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA).

Faculty

• Janice Shirley, Director of Physician Assistant Program
• Jennifer Wurz Nicolosi, Lecturer
• Christopher Montanaro, Lecturer

Facilities

• Physician Assistant Lab
• Simulation Lab

Resources

• American Academy of Physician Assistants
• New York State Society of Physician Assistants
• The Rochester Regional Physician Assistant Association
• National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants
• Wallace Library Resources
• Up-to-date Online Database
• Physician Assistant InfoGuide
• Other Medical/Health Databases
• Wallace Library Catalog and Free Services
• Rash, Rashes, and The Art of Skin Diagnosis: A Self-Paced Dermatology Tutorial
• Access Med
• The Medical Letters

Contact

Program Contact: Janice Shirley, Director of Physician Assistant Program, Physician Assistant Program, College of Health Sciences and Technology, 585-475-7404.