How long is the program?

The program is 30 months in length (9 quarters, with the first summer off).

How many applicants are accepted into the program each year?

Between 25 and 30 students. 

What is the cost of the program?

Please visit the Stanford Registrar's Office website for current tuition and fee information. 

Can you tell me more about the degree offered?

Students who complete the Stanford University PA Program will receive a Master of Science (M.S.) Degree in P.A. Studies.  

Is housing available?

Yes.  Please visit the Gateway for New Graduate Students at Stanford website for more information. 

Is financial aid available?

Yes.  Please visit our financial aid page for details. 

You may also find additional information on the Gateway for New Graduate Students at Stanford website.

What if I miss the application deadline?

Sorry, but we do not accept applications for a particular start date once its application deadline has passed. 

If you have missed the application deadline for a particular start date, we encourage you to apply for the following start date. 

Do I need a bachelor's degree to apply to the program?

You will need to have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university prior to matriculation, but you're not required to have one at the time of application.  Applicants with degrees in progress at the time of application may be conditionally accepted into the program, provided they successfully complete their bachelor's degree within the timeframe planned.

Ask the Educational Testing Service (ETS) to send your score to Stanford electronically.  The Stanford University ETS code is 4704.

What is the deadline to complete program prerequisites?

Most courses, including the "strongly recommended" courses, need to be completed prior to application.  However, the three additional upper-division-level courses ("recommended" courses) may be completed by matriculation.

Please see the Admissions section of our website for more information.

How old can my coursework be?

Strongly recommended and recommended prerequisite courses should be completed within the last 10 years.

Please see the Admissions section of our website for more information.

Can a higher-level math course satisfy the "statistics" requirement?

No.

Any clinical experience that includes direct patient contact should be entered in the Patient Care section of CASPA.  You may then indicate whether each entry was paid or unpaid.  Do not enter these hours again in the Volunteer section.

Please do not.  We will only accept the letters of recommendation that are included in your CASPA application.

Do my military course credits count toward the program prerequisites?

We can only accept credits that are granted by a regionally accredited US college or university.   If your military course credits fit this criterion, then we can accept them.

What type of "clinical healthcare experience" is accepted for the program?

The type of clinical experience required is not narrowly defined.  At a minimum, it should involve interacting with patients in a health care setting and require critical thinking.  Roles that require "hands-on" experience (touching patients) are highly desirable. 

Do I really need to meet the 500 hours of health care experience requirement?

We strongly recommend 500 hours of health care experience, though we may consider a lower number of hours in special circumstances.  

Will veterinary experience satisfy the clinical experience requirement? 

No. 

Do course credits taken outside of the US count toward the program prerequisites?

We can only accept credits that are granted by a regionally accredited US college or university.  If your credits were taken outside of the US but were granted by a qualifying institution, we can accept them. 

Applications are reviewed and interviews are scheduled on a rolling basis over the summer.  Applicants not selected for an interview will be informed by the end of September, when the interview scheduling cycle has concluded.  Until then, all applications are considered to be in an "under review" status.

Rolling admissions means that applications are evaluated as they are received.  Our process is specifically designed so that the class does not fill up prior to the application deadline or prior to the conclusion of the interview cycle.

The alternative is a lock-step admissions process, in which all interviews invitations are sent after all applications are evaluated and all admissions decisions are made after all interviews have been completed.

Each application is reviewed holistically.  The factors utilized in making our decision for admission include, but are not limited to: 
academic achievement (GRE and GPA, particularly in science courses), depth and breadth of healthcare experience, scholarly output (publications, research experience), interview performance (interpersonal communication skills), prior community service, and leadership potential, as well as supporting documents (i.e. essay, letters of recommendation).

The Admissions Committee consists of PA program leadership and faculty, other School of Medicine faculty, and clinically practicing PAs.  Final decisions are made by the PA program leadership and PA program core faculty.

Historically, the Stanford Primary Care Associate Program, which resulted in a Certificate of Competency from Stanford and an associate's degree from Foothill Community College (the last students of which will graduate in 2018), had mostly received applications from within California.  Beginning in 2016 with the opening of applications for the Master of Science in PA Studies Program, we at Stanford hope to enroll a much more geographically diverse group of students, hailing from cities across the country.  Students applying from California will not be given preference.

We are interested in accepting a diverse group of students with interests in all areas of medicine who have leadership potential.  Our innovative curriculum and clinical training will prepare students to practice in all areas of medicine and in a wide spectrum of health care settings, from remote underserved communities to large academic health care centers.