The faculty of the Samuel Merritt University Physician Assistant (PA) program places significant importance on the admission process. We believe that recruiting high-quality candidates who will actively engage in graduate medical education and honor the responsibility placed on a healthcare provider is imperative to the success of our graduates and our institution. To this end, the PA faculty has identified core values that will be evaluated in all candidates for admission to our program. These values, in order of importance to PA faculty, are:

• Interpersonal/Interprofessional Communication
• Teamwork
• Critical Thinking
• Patient Interaction/Professional Exposure
• Responsibility
• Technical Skill
• Medical Knowledge

In our review of your application, we will be looking carefully for evidence demonstrating these values. It is the applicant’s responsibility to use the components of the CASPA application, including personal statements, supplemental essays, and descriptions of previous experiences, to demonstrate the values listed above.

Note: Unless addressed above, all other PA admission requirements apply.

The MPA is an entry-level master’s degree designed for those who have already earned a bachelor’s degree. Your major can be in any field. Approximately 144 candidates are interviewed in a typical admission cycle. The program admits a class of 44 students annually on the University’s Oakland campus. Due to the rigorous nature of the MPA program, being employed outside the University while enrolled is strongly discouraged.

Letters of Reference

Three letters of reference are required. One letter should be from a medical provider (PA, NP, DPM, MD, or DO) who has directly observed you in your patient care role. Competitive applicants will have at least one letter of reference from a PA. Letters from personal friends, family, or patients will not be accepted.

Interviews

From the process described above, we will generate an interview pool of approximately 144 candidates for interviews in a typical year. Communication skills, emotional intelligence, professional practice, academic readiness, ethical orientation, and fit for the program will be assessed during the interview experience. 

The all-day interview is mandatory and includes multiple activities to assess each applicant, including a group meeting with the department chair, two one-on-one faculty/alumni interviews, student panel interview, a team-based activity, a video essay, and a campus tour. 

Students will be selected for admission based on all scores and feedback generated during the application review and interview process described above. The program will make final decisions by March 1, and formal notifications will be sent by the admissions office thereafter. Students will be informed of admissions decisions by one of the following notifications: offer of admission, waitlist with position number, or denial of admission. If you have not received a formal notification from the Office of Admission by March 16, please contact the Office of Admission. 

Students who need disability accommodations may request them by emailing the director of the Disability Resource Center. Please give as much notice as you can to allow time to set them up.

Patient Care Experience

We define patient care experience as paid or volunteer work in a clinical setting that involves hands-on patient care where you are directly responsible for the patient’s well-being. Patient care experience does not include front office or administrative work. Examples of patient care experience include, but are not limited to: 

Medical assistant, certified nursing assistant, emergency medical technician, behavioral health technician, phlebotomist, paramedic, athletic trainer, clinical pharmacist, dietician, medical scribe, physical therapy aide, radiology technician, registered nurse, respiratory therapist, sonographer, etc. 

In order to diversify our cohorts of students, we also accept work experience as a:

Patient advocate, medical interpreter, social worker, or community health worker

All reported patient care experience will be evaluated based upon the following criteria:

• Certification
• Specific duties performed
• Quality of patient interaction
• Total number of hours accrued
• Setting(s)
• Patient population served

We value both diversity and continuity of clinical experiences. 

Casper

The program will require applicants to complete the Casper test beginning 2024; the test needs to be completed prior to the September 1 deadline for consideration. Your Casper results do not need to be included in your application; the MPA program will access your results directly in Acuity Insight.Casper is an online, open-response situational judgment test. It asks what you would do in a tough situation, and more importantly, why. This helps determine behavioral tendencies of applicants pursuing people-centered professions. The results of the Casper test will be included in our holistic admissions review.

Biological sciences courses must include classes in anatomy, physiology, microbiology and an additional biology elective. See additional details below.

For applicants in the quarter systems who have taken Human Anatomy, Human Physiology, and Microbiology courses with a lab and are short in units, an advanced course may be able to fulfill the requirement for the subject. Contact the Admission Office for more information.

Human Anatomy*, introductory or advanced course is acceptable, no lab required. A combined course in A&P can be used to meet the requirement only if two combined A&P courses are presented, 4.0 semester or 6.0 quarter units

Human Physiology*, introductory or advanced course is acceptable, no lab required. A combined course in A&P can be used to meet the requirement only if two combined A&P courses are presented, 4.0 semester or 6.0 quarter units

Microbiology*, introductory or advanced course is acceptable, no lab required, 4.0 semester or 6.0 quarter units

Biology Elective, any area of the biological sciences, 4.0 semester or 6.0 quarter units

Statistics, introductory or advanced course is acceptable, 3.0 semester or 5.0 quarter units

Inorganic/General Chemistry*, we will accept a standard Inorganic Chemistry course or the first course of a General Chemistry course series. We require chemistry courses at the level a biology or premed major would complete, 4.0 semester or 6.0 quarter units

Organic Chemistry*, we will accept a standard Organic Chemistry course or the second course of a General Chemistry course series. We require chemistry courses at the level a biology or premed major would complete, 4.0 semester or 6.0 quarter units

*Strong preference will be given to those who have completed these courses within the past five years. This recent recommendation is less stringent for those currently working in the healthcare field.

International Medical Graduates

International medical graduates and students educated abroad may apply for admission. Regardless of previous professional training and academic degrees earned, the SMU MPA curriculum must be completed in its entirety; the MPA program does not offer advanced placement. 

All international academic transcripts must be evaluated by a U.S. evaluation service that is a member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) for degree, course content, semester unit equivalencies, and science and cumulative GPAs prior to the application deadline. The evaluation must be sent to CASPA as part of the application. Information on NACES may be found at www.naces.org. For all applicants educated outside the United States, it is strongly recommended that they complete one semester (15 units) of graduate or undergraduate coursework at a U.S. college or university. In addition, all other admission requirements must be met.

Medical Knowledge (PLO1)

1. Demonstrate mastery of principles of anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology necessary for entry-level clinical practice as a physician assistant
2. Demonstrate competency in obtaining an adequate medical history necessary to evaluate, diagnose, and formulate a patient-centered treatment plan for patients with commonly encountered medical, surgical, and behavioral conditions
3. Demonstrate competency in physical examination skills necessary to evaluate, diagnose, and formulate a patient-centered treatment plan for patients with commonly encountered medical, surgical, and behavioral conditions
4. Understand pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic principles of patient health management and wellness
5. Demonstrate the application of medical knowledge and critical thinking necessary to develop an accurate differential diagnosis in patients presenting with common medical, surgical, and behavioral conditions
6. Apply current healthcare screening and maintenance recommendations for patients across the life span

Communication Skills & Teamwork (PLO2)

1. Develop and demonstrate effective, professional, and ethical interpersonal and communication skills
2. Demonstrate maturity, flexibility, and emotional stability appropriate for working in the healthcare setting
3. Demonstrate competency in oral and written communication that meets the medical and legal standards established for healthcare professionals
4. Demonstrate the ability to work effectively with other healthcare professionals

Patient-Centered Care (PLO3)

1. Understand the influence of culture, biases, and attitudes on health and healthcare practices
2. Demonstrate empathy, respect, and appropriate sensitivity to perspectives, values, and cultural norms that may differ from one’s own
3. Access and utilize evidence-based recommendations and guidelines for patient-centered clinical practice
4. Effectively demonstrate skills in obtaining patient history that addresses the unique preferences, values, needs, and cultural/spiritual norms of each patient and their family, and develop patient management plans that are in concordance with those elements
5. Work effectively with other members of the healthcare team, including the patient and family, to provide care that is responsive to the patient’s needs
6. Utilize patient education and counseling techniques, including information technology, that are appropriate and responsive to a patient’s age, preferences, values, culture, and norms

Professional Development (PLO4)

1. Conduct themselves in a professional manner in all academic and clinical settings
2. Demonstrate excellent interpersonal skills, reliability, responsibility, empathy, respect, and integrity
3. Demonstrate professional relationships with other healthcare providers
4. Demonstrate a commitment to ongoing professional development and ethical practice
5. Demonstrate culturally appropriate care in a diverse patient population

Evidence-Based Practice (PLO5)

1. Locate, appraise, and integrate evidence from scientific studies related to their patients’ health
2. Critically evaluate medical literature using their knowledge of study design and statistical methods to inform their clinical practice
3. Identify and evaluate current medical literature to enhance their medical knowledge
4. Identify and evaluate current medical literature used in clinical decision-making related to best practice standards

SMU MPA Program Goals 

Benchmarks and measures of success for current class(es) and three previous cohorts
(Reviewed and updated annually in August)

*SMU Board of Regents goal is 25% Black/Hispanic student body

Goal 1: To admit applicants who will enhance the diversity of our student body and the profession

• Measures of success: race/ethnicity (Black/Hispanic) of matriculated class; metrics include PA admission, SMU campus and Physician Assistant Education Association data
• Reviewed and updated: annually in August by the department chair
• Benchmarks: 
  • Greater percentage of Black/Hispanic PA students at SMU than national program data (PAEA)
  • Proportion of Black/Hispanic students equal to or greater than university total (SMU)

Year Admitted — Black/Hispanic SMU, Black/Hispanic PAEA

• 2021 — 32%; 14.7%
• 2020 — 25%, 11.5%
• 2019 — 25%, 11.9%
• 2018 — 14%, 10.7%

Year Admitted — Black/Hispanic SMU, Black/Hispanic MPA

• 2023 –-- 32%, 28%
• 2022 — 30%, 42%
• 2021 — 27%, 32%
• 2020 — 25%, 27%
• 2019 — 25%, 27%
• 2018 — 25%, 14%

Note: Students who reported "unknown" or "two or more" racial/ethnic identities were not included in these percentages in order to remain consistent among all data sets. 

Goal 2: To graduate knowledgeable PAs through rigorous didactic and clinical education

• Measures of success include program accreditation status, didactic phase GPA, and PANCE pass rates
• Reviewed and updated annually in spring and as needed per changes by department chair
• Accreditation
• Benchmark: maintain the status of accreditation-continuing
• Measures of success: ARC accreditation actions

Data

1999-2001 accreditation-provisional
2001-2019 accreditation-continuing
2019-2021 accreditation-probation

2021-2029 accreditation-continuing

Didactic Phase GPA

• Reviewed and updated annually in spring by Curriculum Committee
• Benchmark: Cohort GPA > 3.2

Data

Class of 2023: average cum GPA 3.53

Class of 2022: average cum GPA 3.58

Class of 2021: average cum GPA 3.46
Class of 2020: average cum GPA 3.51
Class of 2019: average cum GPA 3.42

PANCE Pass Rate

• NCCPA PANCE Exam Performance Summary Report Last 5 years 
• Reviewed and updated every April and August by the department chair
• Benchmark: 95% or greater annual pass rate

Data

• CY2023 (2024 PANCE Pass Rate): 80%
• CY2022 (2023 PANCE Pass Rate): 95%
• CY2021 (2022 PANCE Pass Rate): 87%
• CY2020 (2021 PANCE Pass Rate): 93%

• CY2019 (2020 PANCE Pass Rate): 98%

   

Goal 3: To graduate PAs who function as effective members of interprofessional teams

Measures of Success:

• Participation in interprofessional learning at SMU 
• Reviewed and updated annually in summer by academic coordinator
• Benchmark: 100% participation in IPE Patient Safety and Communication Course, spring semester

Note: Since 2016, we have had 100% participation of PA students in the Interprofessional Patient Safety and Communication Course. Students participate in multi-learning simulation scenarios with colleagues from other disciplines and learn from and with each other in this unique learning experience. Other interprofessional opportunities on campus include hotspotting, TEAMStepps training, and project IGNITE.

Goal 4: To graduate PAs who effectively use data, information, and technology to support medical decision-making

Measures of Success:

• Preceptor evaluation (beginning CY 2020) 
• Reviewed and updated annually in spring by the clinical coordinator
• Benchmark: 90% scores of 4 or 5 on preceptor evaluations rating student use of data in support of medical decision making

Data
For the CY2020 cohort, students were rated at a 4 or 5 by their preceptors on 386 out of 408 (94.6%) evaluations of rotation performance to date. The program has met its benchmark for CY2020.

For the CY2021 cohort, students were rated at a 4 or 5 by their preceptors on 388 out of 424 (91.5%) evaluations of rotation performance. The program has met its benchmark for CY2021.

For the CY2022 cohort, students were rated at a 4 or 5 by their preceptors on 363 out of 379 (95.8%) evaluations of rotation performance. The program has met its benchmark for CY2022.

For the CY2023 cohort, students were rated at a 4 or 5 by their preceptors on 357 out of 368 (97%) evaluations of rotation performance. The program has met its benchmark for CY2023.

Note: This goal was added for the 2020 clinical year in order to support newly revised Institutional Learning Outcomes. To assess our performance relative to our benchmark, we have added a question to our preceptor evaluation of clinical year students, and we are using the data from those surveys to demonstrate our success at achieving this goal beginning in spring of 2021.

Goal 5: To graduate PAs who engage in effective self-care and wellness strategies to avoid provider burnout

Measures of Success:

• Semester advising meeting reports
• Reviewed and updates: annually in fall semester by the department chair
• Benchmark: 90% of students are able to articulate effective and appropriate measures to assure their own personal wellness in regular meetings with their advisers. 

Data
In 2019 and 2020, 100% of students who addressed wellness were able to articulate effective and appropriate measures to assure their own wellness. In 2021, the advising form was changed to mandate the conversation occurs and is documented at all advising encounters. 

The percentage of students during advising able to articulate a plan for effective self-care and wellness:

• Spring 2024: 93%

• Summer 2024: 98%

• Summer 2023: 98%

• Fall 2023: 100%

Note: Beginning January 2025, the PA Program will implement a Wellness series to instruct students in how to develop, apply and evaluate personal wellness strategies toward personal and professional growth, including the prevention of impairment and burnout. The measure of success will be passing this 3-course series..

Will the program accept online prerequisites? 
Yes, the program will accept all prerequisite coursework (including labs) completed online from an accredited institution. However, faculty highly encourages labs to be taken in person. 

Will the program accept prerequisites completed as Pass/Fail? 
Yes, the program will accept prerequisite courses completed on a Pass/Fail basis ONLY for Spring/Fall 2020. All completed prerequisites must have a passing grade.  

Will the program accept virtual shadowing experience? 
No. The program understands that shadowing experiences with physician assistants in clinical settings is difficult and can be an obstacle to applicants. However, we believe it is critical to understanding the role of physician assistants to shadow or work with PAs in person, and therefore we will no longer accept virtual shadowing experience.

Will there be any delay in processing of applications? 
No, there are no changes to the PA department’s application review timeline or process.

Note: Unless addressed above, all other PA admission requirements apply.

MPA students are expected to develop a robust medical knowledge base and requisite clinical skills, with the ability to appropriately apply knowledge and skills, effectively interpret information, and contribute to patient-centered decisions across a broad spectrum of medical situations in all settings. The following technical standards, in conjunction with the academic standards, are requirements for admission, promotion, and graduation. The term “candidate” refers to candidates for admission to the MPA program as well as current MPA students who are candidates for retention, promotion, or graduation.

These requirements may be achieved with or without reasonable accommodations, the cost of which will be borne by the institution. These standards should not serve as a deterrent to any candidate with disabilities who desires to pursue medical education. Candidates with disabilities bring unique perspectives that contribute to the diversity of the student population and will create a diverse healthcare workforce of culturally competent practitioners who can meet the needs of their patients. Candidates with disabilities are encouraged to contact the Disability Resource Center to begin a confidential conversation about possible accommodations necessary to meet these standards. Fulfillment of the technical standards for graduation from the MPA program does not guarantee that a graduate will be able to fulfill the technical requirements of any specific clinical position.

Observational Skills

A candidate must acquire information as presented through demonstrations and experiences in foundational sciences. In addition, a candidate must be able to evaluate a patient accurately and assess relevant health, behavioral, and medical information. Candidates must be able to obtain and interpret information through comprehensive assessment of patients, correctly interpret diagnostic representations of patient physiologic data, and accurately evaluate patient conditions and responses. 

Communication Skills

Candidates must exhibit interpersonal skills to enable effective caregiving of patients, including the ability to communicate effectively in English with all members of a multidisciplinary healthcare team, patients, and their families in person and in writing. Candidates must be able to clearly and accurately record information and accurately interpret verbal and non-verbal communication.

Patient Care Skills

Candidates must perform physical examinations and diagnostic maneuvers. A candidate should be able to perform or direct basic laboratory tests (urinalysis, wet mount, etc.), diagnostic and therapeutic procedures (venipuncture, placement of catheters and tubes, lumbar puncture, suturing, etc.), and interpret electrocardiograms and imaging studies. A candidate must be able to provide or direct general care and emergency treatment for patients, and respond to emergency situations in a timely manner; examples of emergency treatments reasonably required of a physician assistant include, but are not limited to, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, administration of intravenous medications, application of pressure to arrest bleeding, opening obstructed airways, and performance of obstetrical maneuvers. Candidates must meet applicable safety standards for the environment and follow universal precaution procedures.

Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative, and Cognitive Skills

Candidates must be able to learn through a variety of modalities, including but not limited to, classroom instruction; laboratory, including cadaver lab; small group, team and collaborative activities; individual study; preparation and presentation of reports; and use of computer technology. A candidate must effectively interpret, assimilate, and understand the complex information required to function within the PA school curriculum including, but not limited to, the ability to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and understand the spatial relationships of structures; effectively participate in individual, small group, and lecture learning modalities in the classroom, clinical and community settings; learn, participate, collaborate, and contribute as a part of a team; synthesize information both in person and via remote technology; interpret causal connections and make accurate, fact-based conclusions based on available data and information; formulate a hypothesis and investigate the potential answers and outcomes; and reach appropriate and accurate conclusions. A candidate must be able to find sources of knowledge and acquire the knowledge through various modalities, and possess the ability to be a lifelong learner.

Behavioral Attributes, Social Skills, and Professional Expectations

A candidate must be able to exercise good judgment, promptly complete all responsibilities attendant to the diagnosis and care of patients, and develop mature, sensitive, and effective relationships with patients. The skills required to do so include the ability to effectively handle and manage heavy workloads, function effectively under stress, adapt to changing environments, to display flexibility, and to learn to function in the face of uncertainties inherent in the clinical problems of patients. Candidates are expected to exhibit professionalism, personal accountability, compassion, integrity, concern for others, and interpersonal skills including the ability to accept and apply feedback, respect boundaries, and care for all individuals in a respectful and effective manner regardless of gender identity, age, race, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or any other protected status. Candidates should understand, and function within, the legal and ethical aspects of the practice of medicine, and maintain and display ethical and moral behaviors commensurate with the role of a physician assistant in all interactions with patients, faculty, staff, students, and the public. Interest and motivation throughout the educational processes are expected of all candidates.