Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences/Rutgers School of Health Professions Joint Bachelor of Arts/Master of Science Degree (B.A./M.S.) Physician Assistant Program
This is a six-year (3+3) program offered jointly by the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Health Professions (SHP). The program can be looked at as a two-phase program, an undergraduate phase followed by a professional phase. This program is open to students enrolled at the School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, who are U.S. citizens, permanent residents of the United States, or international individuals currently on a student visa. At a minimum, applicants must be enrolled for one year at Rutgers-New Brunswick earning at least 30 credits.
The first phase of the program includes three years of undergraduate liberal arts and basic science education. Students may apply to the second (professional) phase in April of their second year by applying to the Physician Assistant (PA) program. Personal interviews will be required of those applicants being considered for admission. The interview will serve to determine the applicant's emotional and intellectual maturity, ability to communicate, and the potential to achieve career satisfaction within the physician assistant role. Applicants must have a cumulative and science GPA of 3.2. In cases where individuals may show high potential by improved performance, exceptions to this requirement may be considered. Please note that acceptance by Rutgers University does not guarantee acceptance by the PA program.
Applicants to the program must have completed the following courses with a grade of C or better: at least one semester (3 credits) of English composition, applied statistics or biostatistics (from Psychology, Biology, or Math departments), General Biology I and II with lab (119:115, 116, and 117, or equivalents); General Chemistry I and II with lab (160:161,162 and 171, or equivalents); and General Psychology (830:101, or equivalent). If the student has been granted AP credit by Rutgers for science courses, additional science courses will be required.
All applications must be received by June 1 and final notices of acceptance will be made by August 1. If the applicant is accepted into the program, it will be contingent on maintaining a 3.2 GPA through the end of the third undergraduate year at Rutgers-New Brunswick, and on all requirements for the undergraduate degree being met before the beginning of the fourth year. Students who are accepted into the second phase of the program will begin this phase at the beginning of their senior year. At the end of the senior year, these students will receive a bachelor of arts degree conferred by the School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University-New Brunswick. After completion of the remaining two years of the PA program, graduates will receive a master of science degree awarded by Rutgers School of Health Professions.
Before entering the second (professional) phase, a student accepted by this program must also complete for the PA program, Functional Human Anatomy (01:377:223), General Microbiology (01:447:390), Intro to Biochemistry (01:694:301) and Systems Physiology (01:146:356) (waived if Gen Bio II is completed at Rutgers-NB and not AP credit), and 6-8 additional credits of life science electives. Students majoring in biological sciences are required to have completed, in addition to the School of Arts and Sciences core distribution requirements, the Life Sciences Core requirements, Intro to Biochemistry (01:694:301) and General Microbiology (01:447:390) and one (three credit or more) course from the 216 subject area approved electives. Students with AP or transfer credit of General Biology I and II and lab must take an additional life science elective course for 3 or more credits.. A maximum of 14 credits from SHP courses will be accepted toward the biological sciences major. Please be sure to meet with a biological sciences adviser when selecting life sciences elective courses because not all course combinations are allowed given overlap in subject matter taught at Rutgers and SHP.
For a complete description of the requirements for the major in biological sciences, please read the appropriate section under the Division of Life Sciences in this catalog.
For more information about this program, you may contact the PA program office at the School of Health Professions, 675 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08854, at 732-235-4444; or the Division of Life Sciences, Health Professions Office at Rutgers University, Nelson Biological Laboratories, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8082, at 848-445-5667.
