BA/MS Physician Assistant

The purpose of the 3+3 Physician Assistant Program is to offer undergraduates an opportunity to enter the PA Program prior to their college graduation.   Designed as “3+3” program, the first three years are spent as an undergraduate at a partner school, and the last three years are spent in graduate school in the PA Program.

• Students will have a conditional, early-acceptance to School of Health Professions (SHP)- please see grade requirements below.
• Students will pay for three years of tuition at Rutgers + 3 years tuition at SHP, thus saving one year of undergraduate tuition and fees.
• Credits for some classes taken during the first year at the grad school will count toward both the graduate school and the BA degree.

• They must be in the spring semester of their sophomore year at the School of Arts and Science (SAS) at the time of application.
• As a minimum, they must be enrolled for one year at RU-NB, earning 30 credits.
• Minimum overall and science (including math) GPA requirement of 3.2.  Applicants with a science and/or overall GPA of less than 3.2 should submit a letter of explanation to describe the circumstances which surrounded their academic performance if they want to be considered for further review. Please note: this should be a separate writing piece and not embedded in their personal statement.
• Two semesters of General Biology with lab, two semesters of General Chemistry with lab, one semester of Organic Chemistry, one semester of Statistics (Preferably Applied Statistics or Biostatistics from the Psychology, Biology or Math depts.), one semester of Psychology, and one semester of English Composition must be completed by the time of application.
• If AP or transfer credit was granted for General Biology, two other approved biology courses (200-level courses or higher) must be taken at Rutgers University.
• Matriculation into the graduate school is conditional upon meeting additional requirements by the end of their junior year: Human Anatomy (01:377:223) and Physiology (01:146:356 or 11:067:300), General Microbiology (01:447:390 or 11:680:390), Biochemistry (recommended:  01:694:395; accepted alternatives:  01:694:407 & 11:115:301)), and 6 credits of approved life science elective coursework at the 300-400 level.
•  The Biological Sciences major is the only major that will accept credits from the PA program toward fulfillment of major requirements.  Any other major would have to be completed before starting the professional portion of the program, which accepted students start in their senior year. Accepted students who are not majoring in Biological Sciences must have their major completed by the end of their junior year.               
   ** Students are encouraged to meet with their major advisor and SAS Academic Advisors to discuss and plan for additional major and degree requirements that must be fulfilled by end of junior year**

• Patient Contact Experience:   Patient contact experience is required. The program has not established a minimum number of hours of health care experience, but the most competitive applicants will be able to document experience working directly with patients. Examples of the types of experiences that are recommended include, but are not limited to, medical assistants, nursing assistants/aides, nurses, EMTs, patient care technicians, physical therapy assistants, and hospice volunteers.
• PA Shadowing:  : PA shadowing is required. It is important that applicants spend time with PAs to ensure a sufficient understanding of the PA role in the delivery of healthcare. Therefore, applicants to the PA Program must be able to demonstrate familiarity with the PA profession through direct experience. This can be accomplished by either shadowing PAs in practice or working alongside PAs
• Volunteerism: Service to the community is one of the program’s core values. The program seeks students who demonstrate an ongoing commitment to their community by volunteering. The most competitive applicants have consistently volunteered, not only to gain healthcare experience, but because they are passionate about a particular cause, organization, or underserved population.

There are no minimum-hour requirements for the above categories. The objective of accruing hours is not necessarily to obtain specific skills, but rather to ensure the applicant has had adequate exposure to healthcare, patients, and the role of the PA. When the Admissions Committee considers volunteer work, we seek applicants who have shown consistent commitment to serving the community.

To get an idea of the number of hours accrued by the most competitive applicants, please view the table below for data of a recent class of matriculated students. Note that the quantity of hours is evaluated with the quality of hours, and that these components are just part of the application which undergoes a holistic evaluation process.

Effective in the upcoming 2025-2026 admissions cycle for Fall 2026 entry, 3+3 applicants will apply to Rutgers PA program using the national Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA). CASPA will open on April 24th, 2025, and the deadline for complete and verified applications is August 1st, 2025.

3+3 applicants will follow the same instructions as traditional applicants, with up to two exceptions:

1. All 3+3 applicants are required to submit a signed Degree Tracking Sheet to the Documents section in CASPA. Instructions are included in the CASPA application portal.
2. 3+3 applicants who took the SAT and/or ACT must submit their official score reports to the Documents section in CASPA. Instructions are included in the CASPA application portal.

The CASPA application requires applicants to submit a personal statement

In addition, applicants must submit a supplemental application (linked in CASPA), which contains the same questions as the previous 3+3 application.

1. Within the supplemental application, there is a question that asks if the applicant is a 3+3 applicant. It is essential that 3+3 applicants answer “yes” to this question so the Program filters their applications from the traditional applicants

Three letters of recommendation are required; it is recommended that one LOR come from a PA.

Rutgers SAS-New Brunswick students who are interested in the 3+3 PA program should meet with Dr. Elizabeth Vogel before applying to this program to discuss the application process.  You are required to obtain a signature from your 3+3 Advisor on your Degree Tracking Sheet as part of the CASPA application. Therefore, you should schedule an appointment with Dr. Elizabeth Vogel before submitting your application

For more information:  shp.rutgers.edu/physician-assistant/master-of-science-physician-assistant-program/