Physician Assistant Studies Curriculum
The Physician Assistant Studies program at JWU is a 24-month, 104-credit, full-time course of study.
Didactic Year
During the first 12 months of the program, you will follow a curriculum of preclinical studies in preparation for 12 months of clinical experiences.
The summer semester provides a foundation upon which the following fall and spring body system courses are constructed, including cadaver-based dissection in Applied Anatomy, adult history and physical exam in Patient Care I, and basic medical sciences in Foundations to Medicine.
Three semesters of Professional and Health Policy Issues commences in the summer with discussions ranging from the history of the PA profession, types of healthcare settings, healthcare and public health policy to the expectations of a medical workplace relative to ethical and professional behavior. Students explore the role that diet has on health and wellness across the lifespan in the Food is Medicine course series, including practical application of the principles in culinary labs.
Fall and spring courses in Clinical Medicine are body-system-based, encompassing all aspects of clinical medicine, diagnostic skills and pharmacotherapeutics for the particular body-system. Students work sequentially through each body-system course, one at a time, learning the physiology, pathophysiology, clinical medicine, evidence-based medicine, diagnostic skills and treatment specific to that system. In Patient Care, students learn the history and physical examination skills specific to the body-system being studied in that course; this knowledge is applied to case scenarios in Problem-Based Learning.
Clinical Year
Your second year consists of clinical studies in 9 clinical rotations, including 7 required rotations in outpatient family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, behavioral and mental health, emergency medicine and surgery. The remaining two rotations are electives that allow you to further develop skills in an area of medicine that is of interest to you
Clinical rotations I-IX are assigned by the program.
| ROTATIONS (5 weeks/4.5 credits) |
CURRENT ELECTIVES* |
|---|---|
Family Medicine Internal Medicine Pediatric Medicine Women’s Health Emergency Medicine Behavioral & Mental Health Surgery Clinical Elective I Clinical Elective II |
Addiction Medicine |
*List of current electives is subject to change, based upon availability at the time.
About the PA Academic Calendar
Be advised that the PA program academic calendar does not align with the Providence Campus’ published academic calendar.
The PA Program Academic calendar for each class is part of the Physician Assistant Studies Program Student Handbook. The Handbook for the current cohorts is available in Policies and Procedures. Term start and end dates, as well as those of holidays, makeup classes and/or exam schedules, may differ. Be sure to consult with the program director prior to scheduling non-program activities.