This is a source of some debate in the PA world. The US News and World Report conducts an annual survey meant to identify the top Physician Assistant Programs and is generally accepted as the go to list but there are other factors that need to be taken into account besides these rankings.
Things such as cost, location, pre-requisites and clinical rotations available should be considered as well as the student mix. But first we’ll take a look at the rankings.
The 2011 rankings of the 10 Best Physician Assistant programs are as follows:
1. Duke University, Durham, NC
T2. University of Iowa, Iowa City IA
T2. University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT
T4. Emory University, Atlanta, GA
T4. George Washington University, Washington, DC
T6. Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
T6. Oregon Health and Sciences University, Portland, OR
T8. University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey – Newark, Piscataway, NJ
T8. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center – Dallas, Dallas, TX
T8. University of Washington, Seattle, WA
These rankings are based on peer assessment surveys completed by deans, administrators, and faculty at accredited degree programs or schools in each discipline. Respondents are asked to rate the academic quality of PA programs on a 5-point scale: outstanding (5), strong (4), good (3), adequate (2), or marginal (1). Only fully accredited programs in good standing during the survey period are ranked.
Now this is certainly helpful in determining what the top Physician Assistant programs in the country are but you really need to think about what’s important to you when choosing your PA school. Some things to consider are location, price, PANCE pass rates and what types of clinical rotations they offer.
When you have come up with a list of possible schools you also need to look at the pre-requisites and if you do or want to try to meet them. It is likely that you may be stronger in one aspect than another. For example your academic marks may be strong but you may be light on work experience. Certain PA programs will place more weight in one or the other and therefore be a better fit. You will also want to visit any schools you are interested in if at all possible and talk to some staff, faculty and current students.
Finally, something you might want to consider when figuring out what Physician Assistant program is best for you is the general mix of students. Generally speaking you will find that schools that “rank” high may tend to have younger students with excellent marks but little practical work experience so if you have been in health care for a number of years, perhaps as a nurse or EMT or maybe in the military then you may feel more comfortable attending a PA school where experience is an important factor.
So as you can see a Top 10 list of Physician Assistant programs is really just the starting point when picking your PA school.