Daemen College : Academics & Research : Division of Health & Human Services : Physician Assistant : FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the admission requirements for transfer and graduate students?

For the three-year MS Program:

• Baccalaureate Degree
• Overall GPA of 3.0 or better (average of accepted students generally > 3.5) 
• Math and Science Prerequisite GPA of 3.0 or better (average of accepted students generally > 3.4)
• Complete CASPA application (deadline to submit is Dec. 1st)

The following prerequisite courses complete with a grade of “C” or better

• 8 credits of Biology with lab (e.g., Zoology, Botany, General Biology I and II, A & P I and II)
• 12 credits of Chemistry, including at least 4 credits of Organic Chemistry/Biochemistry with lab
• 4 credits of Microbiology with lab
• 4 credits of Anatomy, 300 level coursework or higher
• 4 credits of Physiology, 300 level coursework or higher
• 3 credits of Calculus
• 6 credits of Psychology
• 6 credits of Sociology or Anthropology
• 120 hours of direct patient contact

Science coursework completed more than 10 years ago, unless directly related to an occupation, must be repeated.

As a transfer student into the BS/MS Program:

• More than 15 college credits
• Overall GPA of 3.0 or better (average of accepted students generally > 3.5)
• Math and Science Prerequisite GPA of 3.0 or better (average of accepted students generally > 3.4)
• Transferable courses completed with a grade of “C” or better
• 120 hours of direct patient contact
• Completed CASPA application. Current full-time Daemen College students may complete a paper application through Marcy Moore in the PA Program.

Amount of course work already completed, and transferable, will determine your standing within the PA Program. Students generally transfer as a sophomore or junior.

What is used to calculate the math and science GPA?

The above listed prerequisite math and science courses only.

Do all prerequisites need to be completed at the time of application?

All course prerequisites should be satisfied by the completion of the spring semester prior to the fall semester that you are applying for entry. The PA Program will consider “In Progress” courses. If an offer of acceptance is made before the conclusion of  the spring semester, it will be conditional upon the successful completion of all “In Progress” courses. The 120 hours of direct patient contact must be completed at the time of application.

What can be considered “direct patient contact”?

The PA Program's definition of “direct patient contact” is fairly straightforward. It can be either paid or volunteer work, including shadowing, in which you were exposed to patients in one way or another. The goal of this prerequisite is to be assured that you have been exposed to both the good and the bad aspects of healthcare, and the PA profession remains something you choose to pursue. Direct patient care with advanced levels of responsibility are encouraged, recommended, and highly valued by the admission's committee.

How do I apply to Daemen College?

The Physician Assistant Program at Daemen College participates in an online application service called CASPA (Central Application Service for Physician Assistants). You will visit www.caspaonline.org and begin an application electronically. All extraneous materials, i.e. reference letters, transcripts, will be sent directly to CASPA in Watertown, MA. CASPA acts almost as a collection agency; once CASPA has received your complete online application, your three letters of reference, and all of your official transcripts, they will then forward an application packet on to each school that you have designated as a recipient.

Please note that the CASPA application process is a lengthy one, and that an application will not be considered complete until all necessary materials are received by CASPA. Once an application is complete, it takes CASPA four to six weeks to process the application and send it to the designated schools. We highly recommend that you submit your application to CASPA by November 1 due to their high volume of applications and necessary processing time.

The submission deadline to CASPA for Daemen College is December 1 of each year. Any completed applications returned to Daemen College from CASPA after January 1 may not be considered for an interview by our Admissions Committee.

Traditional freshmen must apply directly to the Admisions Office of the College.

What happens once I have completed my application?

Once CASPA has processed your application and has sent it to Daemen, your application will be reviewed and considered for an interview. You should receive contact from a member of the program within a week of receiving your application, simply to let you know that your application was in fact received, and what stage of the process it is in. If you have satisfied all the necessary prerequisites, you will be placed in a pool of applicants to be considered for an interview. The PA Department traditionally conducts interviews during the months of November, January, and February. Once you have completed an interview, the time frame for an admission decision varies; an admission decision could come as late as the completion of Daemen College's spring semester, which is the end of May, as the number of open seats will be determined by current students' spring grades.

How competitive is admission into the program as a transfer or graduate student?

The BS/MS and MS programs are highly competitive. In the last admission cycle, we received over 550 CASPA applications, interviewed 50 applicants with only 25 available seats to fill. Most successful applicants possess credentials far in excess of the minimum grade point average of 3.0 and 120 hours of direct patient contact.

The College accepts freshmen directly to the BS/MS Program. Therefore, each year the number of seats available for transfer and graduate students will vary greatly.  Typically, 50% of the seats are available.

What does a typical schedule of classes look like within the PA Program?

Daemen College utilizes both core faculty and highly qualified clinicians (MD, DO, PA) from the local medical community to provide a rewarding, yet extremely rigorous PA education. Due to this fact, PA students do not follow a traditional 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. schedule. More often than not, the classes that the core faculty teach will be in the mornings and afternoons. Local clinicians offer courses in the afternoon and early evening. Schedules vary day to day, week to week, and semester to semester. However, the curriculum is highly synchronized and coordinated. For example, as students learn about myocardial infarctions in clinical medicine, they are introduced to echocardiograms, EKG's, cardiac pharmacology, and smoking cessation in other courses.

Is it acceptable to work while in the PA Program?

How much time you put into your studies outside of the classroom is entirely up to you, and the decision of whether or not you will be able to make time for a job is yours. The Program realizes that it is sometimes necessary to have an added income. However, at certain times in the curriculum, most students find that the rigor and academic load precludes employment. Absence from class or clinical clerkship due to work responsibilities is not permitted. If you must work, the program does request that you submit a copy of your schedule.

How much control will I have over the scheduling of my clerkships?

The PA Department has hundreds of affiliations with clinicians and facilities in Western New York (i.e Buffalo) , as well as surrounding areas. If you have a specific request, or know of a specific clinician you would like to work with, the department will do its best to facilitate that request. Please keep in mind that the scheduling of clerkships does lie in the hands of the PA Department, and without adequate information or notice from a requested site the Department will place you in a clerkship that best suits your situation. The majority of clerkships will be in Western New York with established clinicians and facilities.  Travel to rural areas of New York that provide excellent clinical opportunites (and student housing) should be expected. 

What is the cost of the program?

Graduate students (i.e MS) pay per credit. The three-year program consists of 104 total degree credits. Graduate student are eligible for graduate financial aid packages (i.e loans). Transfer students (i.e. BS/MS) pay per academic semester until the clinical year. All students (i.e. MS and BS/MS) pay per credit during the clinical year. (See our college catalog for tuition and fees). The estimated total graduate tuition and fees for the MS program exceeds $80,000 for 3 years of study. The estimated undergraduate and graduate tuition for the BS/MS program exceeds $112,000 for all 5 years of study. Only students in the BS/MS program are potentially eligible for scholarships. (See financial aid).

What is the structure of the three-year ("professional phase") of the program?

The three-year professional phase for both BS/MS and MS students consists of two years of didactic class work and one year of clinical clerkships.

• Didactic work includes:
  • Advanced Human Anatomy I and II
  • Clinical Microbiology and Immunology
  • Medical Informatics
  • Clinical Laboratory Medicine
  • Pathophysiology
  • Fundamentals of Clinical Medicine I and II
  • Physical Diagnosis I and II
  • Pharmacology I and II
  • Preventive Medicine
  • Medical Professional Issues
  • Cultural and Psychosocial Dynamics of Medicine
  • Clinical Pediatrics
  • Clinical Problem Solving
  • Surgery and Orthopedics
  • Geriatrics
  • Emergency Medicine
  • Research Methodology

 

• Clerkships include:
  • Internal Medicine
  • Pediatrics
  • Women's Health
  • Mental Health
  • Surgery
  • Emergency Medicine
  • Family Medicine
  • Electives
    • Examples include, but are not limited to: ENT Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Oncology, Cardiology, Critical Care, CT Surgery, HIV Medicine, Plastic Surgery, Sports Medicine, Rheumatology, Neurosurgery, Pain Management, Urgent Care, andDermatology

For freshmen and transfer students in the BS/MS program: You will begin the professional phase (years 3, 4, and 5) only after you successfully complete all prerequisite courses, satisfy all Daemen College liberal arts requirements, acquire 120 hours of direct patient contanct, and meet the minimum GPA requirements.

Can any of the Upper Division classes be transferred in from another institution?

All PAS professional phase courses must be taken at Daemen College.  No advance standing is granted, with the exception of Phi 321 Medical Ethics and NSC 310 Biostatistics. Students in the BS/MS program may refer to the Registrar's homepage for details on transfer credit.  Students in the MS program may submit transcripts, course descriptions, and learning objectives to the PA Program Director for consideration of substitution.

When does upper division start?

The professional phase begins every fall (approximately September 1st of each year).