More information about this degree program can be found in the College of Health Sciences section of the catalog.
Faculty
- Jason Huddleston, Program Director, Associate Professor
- Wade Denney, Medical Director, Associate Professor
- Matthew Steidl, Director of Didactic Education, Associate Professor
- Johanna Brooks, Director of Clinical Education, Assistant Professor
- Linda Elrod, Associate Professor
- Lizzie Monroe, Associate Professor
- Cindy Wingert, Associate Professor
- Abbey Wu, Assistant Professor
- Casie Ramirez, Part-Time Faculty
- Lauren Webb, Part-Time Faculty
- Geoff Wright, Part-Time Faculty
- Richard Thompson, Adjunct Faculty
Program Overview
Mission
To be the spark that ignites Christ-centered medical practice through excellence in education, meaningful engagement, and empowerment of students.
Description
The Physician Assistant program is seven consecutive semesters in duration, requiring full-time, year-round student participation. The curriculum is broken down into a didactic phase (four semesters) and a clinical phase (three semesters). Throughout the program, students will acquire core knowledge about established and evolving biomedical and clinical sciences that is focused on application to patient care. The robust curriculum, which is consistent with the program’s mission, goals, and competencies, has the breadth and depth designed to prepare the student for the clinical practice of medicine as a Physician Assistant.
Discipline Specific Accreditation
The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA) has granted Accreditation-Continued status to the Lipscomb University School of Physician Assistant Studies Program sponsored by Lipscomb 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remains in effect until the program closes or withdraws from the accreditation process or until accreditation is withdrawn for failure to comply with the Standards.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 March 2033. 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 at https://www.arc-pa.org/accreditation-history-lipscomb-university/.
Program Admission Requirements and Processes
The admission requirements listed here are relevant to the admissions cycle for the class matriculating in the fall of the 2025-2026 academic year. For the most current admissions information, please visit our website: https://www.lipscomb.edu/academics/programs/physician-assistant-studies.
Education & Academic Requirements
Degree Requirement
Applicants must earn the following degree prior to matriculation into the program:
Academic Standards for Degree
- The following academic standards apply to the degree requirement:
- The bachelor’s degree must be from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or the international equivalent, as verified by World Education Services (WES).*
- The bachelor’s degree must be completed by the end of the spring semester preceding the anticipated fall matriculation date.
*For more information about international admission requirements, please refer to the International Students section below.
GPA Requirements
The program strictly adheres to a standardized approach to evaluating applicants’ academic qualifications to ensure consistency and fairness in the admissions process. As such, we utilize the grade point averages (GPA) calculated by the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA) at the time of application submission.
By relying on CASPA-calculated GPAs, we maintain a uniform and reliable method for assessing academic performance across all applicants. This approach helps mitigate discrepancies that may arise from variations in GPA calculations among different educational institutions or systems.
The program does not replace grades or recalculate GPAs based on coursework completed after application submission.
Academic Standards for GPA
Students must meet the following GPA minimum requirements to be considered for admission:
- CASPA-calculated minimum cumulative GPA: 3.0
- CASPA-calculated minimum overall science GPA: 3.2
Prerequisite Requirements
In addition to the requirements noted above, all applicants must complete the following prerequisite courses:
- Human Anatomy & Physiology I and II - 8 credits minimum.
- Two-course sequence with laboratory experiences:
- Introduction and survey-type courses will not satisfy this requirement.
- No online courses are accepted except when the COVID-19 Exception Policy criteria are met.
- Coursework must be 200 or 2000 course level or higher.
- Each 4-credit section must have an accompanying lab.
- Examples of courses that would satisfy the requirement include, but are not limited to, the following:
- A 4-credit Human Anatomy course with lab and a 4-credit Human Physiology course with lab could also fulfill this prerequisite.
- Biology for science majors - 8 credits minimum.
- Biology coursework with associated laboratory experience:
- Introduction and survey-type courses will not satisfy this requirement.
- No online courses are accepted except when the COVID-19 Exception Policy criteria are met.
- Examples of courses that would satisfy the requirement include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Biology I & II
- Cell Biology with lab
- Immunology
- Virology
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology with lab
- Microbiology - 3 credits minimum.
- Microbiology coursework with associated lab work (if applicable):
- No online courses are accepted except when the COVID-19 Exception Policy criteria are met.
- Chemistry for science majors - 8 credits minimum.
- Chemistry coursework with associated laboratory experience:
- Introduction and survey-type courses will not satisfy this requirement.
- No online courses are accepted except when the COVID-19 Exception Policy criteria are met.
- Examples of courses that would satisfy the requirement include, but are not limited to, the following:
- General Chemistry I and II
- Organic Chemistry I and II
- Any upper-level chemistry may be mapped to this requirement.
- Psychology - 3 credits minimum.
- Psychology coursework:
- Online coursework and AP/CLEP credit accepted. AP/CLEP credit must be verifiable by transcript to meet the qualifications for this prerequisite.
- Examples of courses that would satisfy the requirement include, but are not limited to, the following:
- General Psychology
- Abnormal Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Statistics - 3 credits minimum.
- Statistics coursework
- Online coursework accepted.
- No Calculus or other math coursework fulfills this requirement.
- Examples of courses that would satisfy the requirement include, but are not limited to, the following:
- General Statistics
- Biostatistics
Academic Standards for Prerequisite Coursework
Qualifying prerequisite coursework must meet the standards below to be considered acceptable:
- Institution: All prerequisite coursework must be completed through a regionally accredited U.S. Institution.
- Course Expiration: All prerequisites must have been successfully completed within ten (10) calendar years of the planned year of matriculation into PA school. For example, an applicant expecting to enroll in Fall 2025 must have taken all prerequisites no earlier than 2015.
- Course Completion: All prerequisite courses must be completed by the end of the spring semester preceding the anticipated fall matriculation date.
- Course Grade: Students must have earned a “C” or better grade on all prerequisite coursework.
- Prerequisites Still Outstanding: Students must have no more than two (2) prerequisites outstanding at the time of application submission to be considered for admission.
COVID-19 Prerequisite Exception Policy
Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the following exception may be applied to any science coursework and corresponding labs taken during 2020 and 2021, according to the criteria listed below:
The program will accept online credit for science coursework with corresponding labs only if the transition to an online platform was due to COVID-19, assuming all other prerequisite criteria are met. To apply for this exception, please answer the applicable custom questions in CASPA to indicate any courses that may have been affected.
Any science coursework with corresponding labs taken online before the impact of COVID-19 will not fulfill the prerequisite requirement.
The admissions committee may require official documentation from your institution.
Experience
Required Experiences
Applicants to our program must demonstrate a breadth of experience that aligns with and reflects the demands and expectations of the profession. The program values diverse experiences that showcase a candidate’s commitment, adaptability, and understanding of the healthcare landscape. Accordingly, the program requires both patient care experience and PA shadowing experience to be considered for admission.
- Patient Care Experience: Lipscomb requires all applicants to document patient care experience at the time of application submission. However, we do not require a specific number of hours to be considered as an applicant. Patient care experience is defined as those experiences in which you are directly responsible for a patient’s care. Examples of these skills include but are not limited to checking vital signs, bathing/grooming patients, feeding patients, performing phlebotomy, and assisting with medical procedures. Patient care hours may be paid or volunteer. It is imperative to provide a detailed description of your experiences on your CASPA application to ensure that you are given appropriate credit. Examples of typical patient care roles may include but are not limited to nurse, certified nursing assistant, medical assistant, patient care technician, athletic trainer, physical therapist assistant, paramedic, emergency medical technician, emergency room technician, home health aide, and phlebotomist.
- PA Shadowing Experience: PA shadowing experience is also a mandatory requirement that must be documented at the time of application submission. However, there is no minimum number of hours required for application processing. We urge students to see high-quality interactions with practicing PAs to help develop a holistic understanding of the roles and responsibilities of a future physician assistant.
Virtual PA shadowing experiences are not accepted. To count toward this requirement, all PA shadowing must be conducted in person.
Encouraged Experiences
Prospective applicants are encouraged to have healthcare experience and volunteer experience to help make them more well-rounded applicants. Though not mandatory requirements, such experiences are valued as part of the holistic selection process.
- Healthcare Experience: Healthcare experience is defined as experience in a health or health-related field where you are not directly responsible for a patient’s care but may still have patient interaction. Examples of these tasks include but are not limited to general hospital volunteering, patient transport, performing clerical work, delivering patient food, cleaning patient rooms, record-keeping, and scribing. Healthcare experience care hours may be paid or volunteer. You must describe your experiences on your CASPA application to ensure that you are given appropriate credit. Examples of healthcare roles may include but are not limited to patient transporter, pharmacy technician, laboratory technician, hospital volunteer, medical receptionist, hospital unit secretary, patient registration specialist, and medical scribe.
- Volunteer Experience: Volunteer experience and community service reflect a candidate’s dedication to serving others and commitment to improving their community. Beyond aligning with the ethos of our program, volunteer experiences offer aspiring PAs the opportunity to engage with diverse populations, cultivate empathy, and gain invaluable insight into diverse populations. Whether volunteering for an organization, serving your community, or participating in mission trips, these experiences provide fundamental exposure to the human condition while simultaneously fostering compassion and humility. When detailing volunteer experiences in the CASPA application, students are encouraged to provide a comprehensive description, highlighting the specific duties performed, the impact made, and the lessons learned from each endeavor. By showcasing such altruistic endeavors and the meaningful connections forged through volunteerism, applicants can effectively demonstrate their readiness and passion for the PA profession.
Letters of Recommendation
The School of Physician Assistant Studies requires a minimum of three (3) letters of recommendation for admission consideration. These letters serve as vital endorsements of an applicant’s character, academic prowess, and suitability for the rigorous demands of the program. By requiring at least three distinct perspectives, the school ensures a comprehensive evaluation of each candidate’s qualifications and potential. Through these letters, applicants may demonstrate professional aptitude, strong interpersonal skills, and commitment to the field of healthcare, thus presenting a holistic picture of their candidacy to the admissions committee.
For additional information regarding advantages and letters of recommendation, please refer to the Holistic Applicant Review section below.
Admission Process
The program application process utilizes the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA). Applicants must submit their applications, including transcripts, personal statements, letters of recommendation, and other required materials, through the CASPA online portal. CASPA then verifies the application materials and transmits them to the participating PA programs selected by the applicant.
Please note that a nonrefundable supplemental application fee of $75 is required for all program applicants. We encourage applicants to review all program requirements and ensure their applications are complete before submission.
Once the program receives your verified application from CASPA, you will receive a confirmation email with a direct payment link and additional directions to pay your supplemental application fee. Your application will not be considered complete until the supplemental payment is received and processed.
Holistic Applicant Review
The Admissions Committee takes a broad range of factors into consideration as we select candidates, including:
- Capacity for academic success*
- Patient care experience*
- Superior interpersonal skills
- An understanding of the PA profession with PA shadowing experience*
- Letters of recommendation (3 required) with additional weight given for those from a healthcare provider (PA, NP, MD, DO)*
- Written expression of personal thought and technical proficiency in writing
*Applicants who exceed the minimum requirements for specific admission criteria will receive incremental weighting during the applicant review process.
The Lipscomb University School of Physician Assistant Studies endeavors to recruit and retain a diverse community of physician assistant students whose qualifications align with the programmatic mission and goals. As such, the program has admissions and enrollment practices that advantage specific individuals or groups. Applicants demonstrating any of the following attributes will be advantaged within various sections of the admission rubric:
- Applicants who have healthcare experience hours*
- Applicants who are licensed healthcare professionals
- Applicants who have medical scribing experience
- Applicants who are multilingual (advanced or fluent)
- Applicants with socioeconomic indicators*
- Applicants who have military service with honorable discharge
- Applicants with teaching experience*
- Applicants with extracurricular activities*
- Applicants who have evidence of service (volunteer/community service) *
- Applicants who have taken and performed above threshold scores in the following science courses:
- Anatomy & Physiology
- Organic Chemistry I
- Immunology
- Lipscomb degree-seeking students, alumni, and those with strong connections to the university
*Certain advantages will receive additional incremental weighting.
Field Experience
The program’s supervised clinical practice experiences (SCPEs) are a crucial component of the PA curriculum, providing students with hands-on patient care experience in diverse medical settings. Students complete eight six-week rotations, seven of which are required in core specialties such as family medicine, internal medicine, general surgery, pediatrics, women’s health, behavioral medicine, and emergency medicine. The eighth rotation is an elective, allowing students to explore a medical or surgical subspecialty of their interest, contingent upon availability. These rotations occur in various clinical settings, including hospitals, clinics, and physician offices, and may require students to travel within or outside of commuting distance from campus.
Exit Requirements
Program completion and exit is contingent upon the following:
- Successfully complete all requirements for the Didactic Phase
- Successfully complete all requirements for the SCPE Phase
- Successfully complete the Physician Assistant Summative Exam (PASE) given within the School of Physician Assistant Studies
- Successfully complete all PANCE preparation reviews and activities
- Be in good standing with the Lipscomb University Registrar, Business office, and Security office concerning all tuition, fees, fines, or requirements
- Receive a recommendation for graduation from the Progression & Accountability Council (PAC)
Statute of Limitations
The entire PA program must be completed within 48 months of matriculation
Tuition and Fees
|
Tuition (tuition for 7 semesters)
|
$106,750
|
|
Fees
|
|
| Matriculation fee |
$500 |
|
Semester 1
|
$2,361
|
|
Semester 2
|
$2,071
|
|
Semester 3
|
$2,071
|
|
Semester 4
|
$2,266
|
|
Semester 5
|
$1,157
|
|
Semester 6
|
$1,157
|
|
Semester 7
|
$1,157
|
| Graduation Fee |
$250 |
| Technology fee (per semester) |
$100 |
|
Total Cost* - Tuition + Fees
|
$120,440
|
*All amounts shown are estimates and subject to change.
Comprehensive Exam information
The School of Physician Assistant Studies will conduct a comprehensive summative assessment for each student in the final four (4) months of the program. Collectively known as Physician Assistant Summative Evaluation (PASE), the program will use a series of assessments to verify that each student meets the program competencies required for clinical practice. The PASE will measure each student’s medical knowledge, clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills, clinical and technical skills, interpersonal skills, and professional behaviors. PASE will use a combination of traditional testing and authentic assessments explicitly designed to correlate with program competencies. Students must be entrustable with all competencies to be considered eligible for graduation.
Between the sixth (6th) and seventh (7th) supervised clinical practice experiences, each PA student must complete the PASE. During this comprehensive series of evaluations, the School of Physician Assistant Studies will assess the acquisition of the program’s required competencies for new graduates. Students’ results will be tracked in their individual student records (e.g., Progress IQ), ensuring that each student has successfully acquired each assessed competency. Failure to achieve any program competencies will result in focused remediation and reassessment. Students must remediate and reassess until the targeted performance level is obtained. Through this methodology, the program can verify and ensure that each student has achieved the required competencies for graduation.
The program will not use reviews of previous evaluation methods or evaluation products designed for individual student assessment (e.g., PACKRAT) in lieu of or to fulfill the summative testing requirements.
Program-Specific Policies
The following program-specific policies augment and, in some cases, differ from the general policies governing the College of Graduate Studies. Students enrolled in the School of Physician Assistant Studies are responsible for adhering to both the College of Graduate Studies policies and the program-specific policies outlined herein. In instances where program-specific policies deviate from those of the College of Graduate Studies, the program-specific policies will take precedence.
Academic Standing
Students are expected to remain in good academic standing within the School of Physician Assistant Studies during their tenure in the program. As such, the academic standards are outlined below:
- Good Academic Standing
- Didactic: Current semester GPA ≥ 2.75
- Clinical: Maintianence of ≥ C in each Supervised Clinical Practice Experience (SCPE)
- Academic Violation
- Any didactic semester GPA ranging from 2.5 to < 2.75*
- One (1) SCPE failure
- Three (3) End-of-Rotation (EOR) exam failures
- Dismissal
- Any semester GPA < 2.5
- GPA < 2.75 in any two semesters
- One (1) didactic course failure
- Two (2) SCPE failures
- Four (4) End-of-Rotation Exam failures
*It is important to note that the academic standards in the didactic phase are based on per-semester performance and NOT cumulative GPA calculations.
Transfer Credit
The School of Physician Assistant Studies does not offer advanced placement for applicants or currently enrolled students. Advanced placement is defined as the waiver of required coursework within the PA curriculum, allowing a student to progress without completing specific curricular components at our institution. Because we do not grant waivers for required PA coursework, transfer credit for courses taken at other institutions is not applicable towards fulfilling the degree requirements. All students admitted to the program must complete the full curriculum as outlined by the program, regardless of prior coursework or experience.
Graduate Transfer
Individuals wishing to transfer from another PA program must apply through the Central Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA) and will be considered with the general applicant pool. Transfer applicants will not be granted advanced standing or transfer credit for coursework completed at other PA programs. Admission decisions for transfer applicants will be made on a competitive basis, and acceptance is not guaranteed.
Readmission
PA students who voluntarily withdraw from the program may be considered for readmission only if they remain in good standing with both the School of Physician Assistant Studies and Lipscomb University. Readmission will only be considered through submission of a new application in CASPA. Students seeking readmission will be evaluated as per the current admission requirements at time of re-application alongside all other applicants.
Auditing
The School of Physician Assistant Studies does not permit auditing of any coursework within the curriculum. This policy applies to all courses the School offers, regardless of delivery method (e.g., in-person, online, hybrid).
Class Attendance
Attendance in a professional program of study, particularly physician assistant (PA) training, is crucial for student success. The rigorous and accelerated nature of PA education demands consistent engagement with the curriculum, as each class builds upon prior knowledge and skills. Regular attendance not only facilitates comprehension of complex medical concepts but also fosters the development of essential professional behaviors, including punctuality, responsibility, and collaboration. Because of the unique nature of PA training, the program has developed distinct, specific policies on attendance for both the didactic and clinical phases of training, which can be found in the program’s handbook or available by hyperlink below.
Candidacy
Candidacy in the School of Physician Assistant Studies signifies a student’s ongoing satisfactory progress toward degree completion. It indicates that the student is meeting all progression requirements as applicable to the stage of training. Maintaining candidacy requires continuous adherence to program policies and standards. Failure to meet these requirements at any point may result in the issuance of a violation or dismissal from the program.
International Students
To apply to the Lipscomb University School of Physician Assistant Studies, applicants must be either:
- U.S. citizens, or
- U.S. permanent residents.
Graduates of foreign institutions must have a degree equivalent to a U.S. bachelor’s degree, as verified by World Education Services (WES). Contact information for WES can be found at www.wes.org. Transcripts must be provided in the original language and with an English translation. Since CASPA-calculated GPAs are not available for international degree equivalents, the program will use the WES-calculated cumulative GPA and require a minimum of 3.0. In addition, all prerequisite classes must be completed from a regionally accredited post-secondary U.S. institution. The Physician Assistant Program requires a course-by-course evaluation, including verification of lab components of the courses with the CASPA application. Applications will not be considered for admission until the WES report is received.
English as a Second Language
- TOEFL Requirement
- Applicants who speak English as a second language must present the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) results when applying to the program. Applicants can submit scores to the university using Lipscomb’s TOEFL code (1161). For more information, please visit www.toefl.org.
- Minimum TOEFL scores are as follows:
- Computer Exam - 213
- Paper Exam - 550
- The equivalent TOEFL iBT score is 80.
- TOEFL Exemption
- Individuals who learned English as a primary language before age five are exempt from submitting TOEFL scores. This exemption recognizes that early exposure to English typically results in a high level of proficiency. Such individuals usually demonstrate sufficient English language skills without the need for additional testing. Therefore, the program may waive the TOEFL requirement for these applicants.
- To be considered for a TOEFL Exemption, please answer the custom questions in your CASPA application. Our admissions team will review your responses to determine if you qualify for an exemption.