Department of Physician Assistant Studies

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Preceptors

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Advocating for military veterans

According to Military Times, NAU is a ‘Best College’ for military vets, providing military veterans a cost-effective transition into becoming physician assistants. NAU’s Office of Veteran and Military Services and Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid offer assistance with military education benefits, loans, and scholarships.

More information

If you have any questions, or you wish to receive email updates, send your request to PAprog@nau.edu. If you would like to subscribe to our mailing list and receive all of the latest updates as they become available, please follow the instructions here to join.

Northern Arizona University’s PA program

Start a career in a rewarding, high-demand sector of health care by joining the Northern Arizona University Physician Assistant (PA) program, Arizona’s only public university PA program. Graduates will study in the state-of-the-art Phoenix Bioscience Core a 30-acre medical and bioscience campus in downtown Phoenix. The program operates in collaboration with the University of Arizona – Phoenix College of Medicine.

Our program offers:

a master’s degree in Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS)
high quality didactic and clinical experiences
interdisciplinary medical education
value and affordability

Upon completion of the program, graduates will graduate with a Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS).

We offer real-world experience

The program’s Phoenix location will offer graduates real-world education in well-established hospitals and clinics in cooperation with other public university colleges of medicine, nursing, public health, and pharmacy.

Our mission and goals shape your education

The mission of the Northern Arizona University Physician Assistant Program is to recruit individuals of the highest possible quality from diverse backgrounds and life experiences to the profession.

We will equip graduates with clinical and professional knowledge, skills, and abilities to provide high-quality, compassionate medical care for the people of Arizona.

To read more about our mission, visit our program goals and successes page.

Graduate performance on certification exam (PANCE)

95%

NAU student average pass rate on PANCE exam

For more detailed data, view the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) Exam Performance Summary Report Last Five Years.

Licensure

Successful completion and graduation from this degree program leads to licensure in the United States. For information on licensure for NAU’s MPAS in Physician Assistant Studies degree by state, view the NAU Professional Licensure by State table.

Accreditation

The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) has granted Accreditation -Continued status to the Northern Arizona University Physician Assistant Program sponsored by Northern Arizona University. Accreditation-Continued is an accreditation status granted when a currently accredited program is in compliance with the ARC-PA Standards. Accreditation remains in effect until the program closes or withdraws from the accreditation process or until accreditation is withdrawn for failure to comply with the Standards. The approximate date for the next validation review of the program by the ARC-PA will be September 2025. The review date is contingent upon continued compliance with the Accreditation Standards and ARC-PA policy. The program’s accreditation history can be viewed on the ARC-PA website. The program’s attrition data is available by clicking to view Attrition Table.