Graduate College
Master of
Physician Assistant Studies
About the Program
Aging populations are requiring more healthcare. Recent legislation encourages more people to use community services. Fewer doctors overall and a growing call to focus on primary care means that physician assistants will be needed to ensure access to care. This profession is one of the fastest growing in the United States, and St. Catherine’s Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS) degree is poised to meet that demand.
Our program prepares you to practice under the supervision of a licensed physician. Physician assistants (PAs) are increasingly common in all general practice settings, as well as specialty areas, and are well-respected members of healthcare teams. As a PA, your work may include:
• Taking medical histories and performing physical exams
• Diagnosing and treating illnesses
• Ordering laboratory tests and writing prescriptions
• Counseling patients
• Assisting in surgery
Our Curriculum
The 110-credit (seven semesters) MPAS degree is a full-time program that is completed in 28 months. Classes meet on our St. Paul campus in a weekday format.
You are trained using a medical model, with curriculum that focuses on classroom and laboratory instruction in basic, medical and behavioral sciences, followed by clinical rotations. The curriculum is taught in a block sequence focusing on body systems, patient populations and clinical practice areas. Topics such as anatomy, pathophysiology, history taking and conducting physical examinations are interwoven. You develop problem-solving skills through casebased learning that incorporates technology and clinical observation and become a scholar practitioner capable of assessing processes and outcomes to constantly improve patient care
Your clinical reasoning skills will deepen through instruction that’s repeated in the following key areas and applied to new topics during every sequence:
• Basic, medical and behavioral science
• Clinical medicine and clinical practice
• Patient evaluation, assessment and management
• Practice settings and systems
Sample Plan of Study
YEAR 1
FALL
Foundations: Medicine and Meaning
Dermatology
Musculoskeletal
Neurology
Eyes/Ears/Nose/Throat Infectious Disease
Research I
J-TERM
Cardiovascular
SPRING
Pulmonary
Gastroenterology
Genitourinary
Hematology and Oncology
Endocrine
Mental Health
Research II
SUMMER
Women’s Health
Pediatrics
Aging and Elderly
Special Populations
Primary Care
Research III
YEAR 2
FALL
Formative Exams
Surgical and Hospital Care
Urgent and Emergency Care
Clinical Block I
J-TERM
Clinical Block II
SPRING
Clinical Block II (cont'd)
SUMMER
Clinical Block III
YEAR 3 FALL
Summative Exams
Community and Clinical Quality Improvement
Senior Clerkship I
Senior Clerkship II
Senior Seminar
MPAS students complete over 2,000 hours of clinical clerkships and obtain experience in a wide variety of medial settings. Rotations are followed by two senior internships and a senior seminar. Areas of clinical clerkships include:
• Family medicine (8 weeks)
• Women’s health (2 weeks)
• General surgery (4 weeks)
• Mental health (4 weeks)
• Pediatrics (4 weeks)
• Internal medicine (6 weeks)
• Emergency medicine (6 weeks)
• Electives I and II (4 weeks each)
Tuition and Fees
The 2024–25 tuition rate for the MPAS degree is $15,112 per semester. Additional fees include student services and technology ($330 per term), books (prices will vary), etc.
How to Apply
Application deadline: August 1 for Fall 2026 enrollment
To be eligible for admission, applicants must have:
• A bachelor’s or graduate degree from an institution accredited by a nationally recognized, regional accrediting association
• A cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher
• A minimum of 2,000 hours of experience in a health, wellness or patient care setting
• Prerequisite courses:
o Human or Vertebrate Anatomy
o Human or Vertebrate Physiology
o Organic Chemistry (with lab)
o Biochemistry
o Microbiology
o Pre-calculus (or higher)
o Statistics
o General/Introductory Psychology
o Lifespan Developmental Psychology or Abnormal Psychology
o Medical Terminology
The MPAS application requires the following materials:
• Personal statement
• Two recommendations
• Official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions
• Official scores from TOEFL or IELTS (if native language is not English)
• Credential evaluation from World Education Services (if college/university coursework was completed outside the U.S.)
Visit our website for detailed application information, or to learn more about the MPAS degree: stkate.edu/graduate
This document provides information about graduate studies at St. Catherine University. The information may change at any time. Contact the Office of Graduate Admission to confirm program and application details.
8/2024