Master's Degree in Physician Assistant Studies

Northeastern State University welcomes its first cohort of students entering the Master of Science in
Physician Assistant Studies (PAS) program. The inaugural class of 20 students will begin coursework in
October 2020 and complete their degree requirements in just over two years (27 months).

Physician assistants are advanced healthcare providers, licensed by state medical boards to practice
medicine under the delegatory authority of a licensed physician. The physician assistant is able to
provide a broad range of medical services within primary and specialty care including diagnostic,
therapeutic, preventative and health maintenance services. One of the goals of the NSU PAS program is
to increase healthcare in rural communities.

“Our graduates will be encouraged to remain northeastern Oklahoma and to provide healthcare to the
underserved, rural Oklahoma and American Indian populations,” said NSU President Steve Turner. “It is
paramount to the success of our program and the health of the people in our region that graduates of
our PAS program are able to demonstrate cultural sensitivity and respect for individual differences
among colleagues and patients.”

With the emphasis of the program placed on providing healthcare in more individualized rural settings,
NSU has partnered with several regional medical facilities to assist with the comprehensive clinical
curriculum components of the program. Physician assistant students will experience clinical rotations in
emergency medicine, family medicine, behavioral health, internal medicine, women’s health, pediatrics
and surgery.

NSU students will practice and sharpen their advanced clinical skills in the Marilyn S. Gailey Clinical Skills
Center on NSU’s Muskogee Campus before training with local medical professionals.

“Within the clinical phase of the program, our students will be working specifically within rural hospitals
and communities in this area to expose them to the challenges that healthcare communities face every
day,” Dr. Troy Bender, NSU Physician Assistant Studies Program Director, said.

“The curriculum of the program is designed to enable the students with the necessary knowledge, skills
and clinical reasoning that is required to enter into clinical practice.”

Applications for NSU’s second PAS cohort will be available in April through the Centralized Application
Service for Physician Assistants.

The Northeastern State University PAS program is accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission
on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA). ARC-PA is the accrediting agency that protects the
interest of the public and Physician Assistant profession by defining the standards for Physician Assistant
education and evaluating Physician Assistant educational programs within the territorial United States
to ensure their compliance with those standards.