Frequently Asked Questions

For clinical experience, research experience, and volunteer experience, We acknowledge that certain applicants may have been affected by COVID, potentially hindering their ability to accumulate in-person hours. We will use discretion during the review process to take this into account; however, the majority of clinical practice have resumed in-person and are functioning under normal conditions, so our existing recommendations for preparatory experience will remain in place. Please note that as always, our preparatory experience recommendations are not required, and we will review all applications regardless of prior experience. 

For preparatory coursework, we recognize that many institutions moved to online or hybrid learning during COVID pandemic; many also transitioned to a "pass/fail" or "credit/no credit" grading system. We will use discretion during the review process to take this into account; however, the majority of institutions have returned to in-person teaching, and campus operations have resumed normal functioning, so our existing recommendations for preparatory coursework will remain in place. While we prefer that recommended preparatory coursework be completed in person, we will consider coursework completed online in our review. Please note that as always, our preparatory coursework recommendations are not required, and we will review all eligible applications regardless of prior coursework. 

We have only one(1) requirement for admission: a qualifying bachelor's degree. All other application elements are recommended but not required. 

Yes. Applicants must have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited academic institution in the United States or Canada* or a graduate degree from the United States** by July 1 of the year of matriculation. No specific discipline or major is required. Online bachelor's degree/program is not acceptable. 

Applicants with non-U.S. or non-Canadian degrees, including international medical degrees, are ineligible to apply unless they also hold a qualifying degree listed above. We do not accept WES equivalencies in place of degree requirements. We do not provide waivers or exceptions for applicants without a qualifying degree. 

Applicants with degrees in progress at the time of application may be conditionally accepted into the program but must demonstrate that they are on track to complete their degree. 

*Three-year bachelor's degree from Quebec or a four-year bachelor's degree from other provinces. 

**Applicants with a graduate degree from a regionally accredited U.S. academic institution must also have an equivalent undergraduate degree (see required minimum level of study) from a recognized academic institution outside the U.S. in order to be eligible to apply. 

Maybe. International students are welcome to apply as long as they meet our eligibility requirements. 

Applicants must have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited academic institution in the United States or Canada* or a graduate degree from the United States** by July 1 of the year of matriculation. No specific discipline or major is required. Online bachelor's degree/program is not acceptable.

Applicants with non-U.S. or non-Canadian degrees, including international medical degrees, are ineligible to apply unless they also hold a qualifying degree listed above. We do not accept WES equivalencies in place of degree requirements. We do not provide waivers or exceptions for applicants without a qualifying degree. 

Applicants with degrees in progress at the time of application may be conditionally accepted into the program but must demonstrate that they are on track to complete their degree. 

In order to practice in California or any other state, physician assistant graduates must pass the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) and apply for state licensure. Criteria for eligibility to sit for the PANCE board examination and/or to qualify for state licensure are set by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) board and each state. DACA students are currently eligible to apply for and obtain a license to practice as a physician assistant in California; however, this varies by state. Prospective PA students should consult the requirements of the licensing authority in any state in which they contemplate practicing to determine the qualifications for licensure. Information concerning licensure in California can be found at https://www.pab.ca.gov. Information about other states can be found at https://www.nccpa.net/state-licensing-boards.

Applicants are considered for admission to the Stanford MSPA program without regard to their country of origin. Eligible applicants include U.S. citizens, permanent U.S. residents holding a valid visa, applicants who have been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at the time of application, undocumented applicants, and international applicants. 

*Three-year bachelor's degree from Quebec or a four-year bachelor's degree from other provinces. 

**Applicants with a graduate degree from a regionally accredited U.S. academic institution must also have an equivalent undergraduate degree (see required minimum level of study) from a recognized academic institution outside the U.S. in order to be eligible to apply. 

Yes. Applicants are considered for admission to the Stanford MSPA program without regard to their country of origin. Eligible applicants include U.S. citizens, permanent U.S. residents holding a valid visa, applicants who have been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at the time of application, and undocumented applicants. For more information visit Non U.S.-Citizens and Undocumented at Stanford.

In order to practice in California or any other state, physician assistant graduates must pass the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) and apply for state licensure. Criteria for eligibility to sit for the PANCE board examination and/or to qualify for state licensure are set by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) board and each state. DACA students are currently eligible to apply for and obtain a license to practice as a physician assistant in California; however, this varies by state. Prospective PA students should consult the requirements of the licensing authority in any state in which they contemplate practicing to determine the qualifications for licensure. Information concerning licensure in California can be found at https://www.pab.ca.gov. Information about other states can be found at https://www.nccpa.net/state-licensing-boards.

Maybe. Applicants must have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited academic institution in the United States or Canada* or a graduate degree from the United States** by July 1 of the year of matriculation. No specific discipline or major is required. Online bachelor's degree/program is not acceptable.

Applicants with non-U.S. or non-Canadian degrees, including international medical degrees, are ineligible to apply unless they also hold a qualifying degree listed above. We do not accept WES equivalencies in place of degree requirements. We do not provide waivers or exceptions for applicants without a qualifying degree. 

*Three-year bachelor's degree from Quebec or a four-year bachelor's degree from other provinces. 

**Applicants with a graduate degree from a regionally accredited U.S. academic institution must also have an equivalent undergraduate degree (see required minimum level of study) from a recognized academic institution outside the U.S. in order to be eligible to apply. 

No. All elements of the application are included in the CASPA application.

In 2020, California became the fifth state to prohibit the use of criminal background checks in admissions considerations for graduate schools when the California Education Code 66024p was updated following passage of the Ban the Box bill. While this legislation generally prohibits post-secondary institutions from considering criminal backgrounds in the admissions process it does not prohibit criminal background checks for matriculated students. 

Students who matriculate into the Stanford School of Medicine, Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies program will be required to undergo background checks as those are required to work with minors and to participate in clinical training activities at our partnering clinical training sites. Students with a history of a criminal conviction may not be able to successfully complete the curriculum and progress through the program and may not be able to graduate.  Given this, students with a history of a criminal conviction should discuss this with the program prior to matriculation.

In addition, criminal background checks are required for state licensure in California and a history of criminal conviction may be considered by the California Physician Assistant Board as well as other state medical boards and the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants in the licensure application. Applicants and matriculants with a criminal conviction should consult with these entities prior to matriculation to ensure they will be eligible for licensure upon completion of their degree.

Information about our current cohorts can be found here. 

Completion of the GRE, MCAT, or PA-CAT is highly recommended. We highly recommend that applicants complete either the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE), the Medical College Admission Test® (MCAT) examination, or the Physician Assistant College Admission Test (PA-CAT), we will review all eligible applications regardless of standardized test completion. The PA-CAT test is preferred among standardized testing. An application for partial fee waiver assistance for the PA-CAT is available.  

Applicants with GRE scores should submit official scores for all sections (Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical) in the CASPA application using the Stanford MSPA Program CASPA code 4510. Applicants with MCAT scores should provide their Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) verification code in the CASPA application using the Stanford MSPA Program CASPA code 4510. Applicants taking the PA-CAT should designate Stanford as one of the schools to send their scores to, and then PA-CAT will send official scores directly to us. Official GRE, MCAT, and/or PA-CAT scores should be verified either in CASPA (for GRE and MCAT) or received by our admission office (for PA-CAT) by July 1 in order to be included in our review. 

You can check the status of GRE or MCAT scores by viewing your CASPA application at any time after submission. For PA-CAT scores, you will receive an email when our admission office receives your scores. Please do not contact our admission office to ask if we have received your scores. 

We do not have a minimum GRE/MCAT/PA-CAT score requirement. 

We do not have a minimum GPA requirement.

We use the GPA calculations from the CASPA application portal. Overall GPA and overall science GPA, as well as GPA for undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and/or graduate work (when applicable) will be included in our review. 

We will see all coursework completed on any transcript(s) submitted in the CASPA application. In the case of multiple grades for the same course, we will give preference to the better grade; however, we will note all grades during our review. 

Maybe. None of our recommended preparatory coursework is required, and we will review all applications regardless of prior coursework. We strongly recommend that you complete as much of the preparatory coursework as possible to increase the competitiveness of your application. Please review the Preparatory Coursework page for more detailed information about specific course recommendations.

No. Because preparatory coursework is strongly recommended but not required, we do not make exceptions or provide "waivers" for preparatory coursework. If a course does not meet the criteria described on our preparatory coursework page (e.g., is a specialized statistics course), we will note the course but it will not be formally considered during our review as meeting our preparatory coursework recommendation. You are not required to take any of the preparatory courses; however, completing as many of the recommended preparatory courses as possible may increase the competitiveness of your application. 

No. Because preparatory coursework is strongly recommended but not required, we do not make exceptions or provide "waivers" for preparatory coursework. If a course does not meet the criteria described on our preparatory coursework page (e.g., is a specialized psychology course), we will note the course but it will not be formally considered during our review as meeting our preparatory coursework recommendation. You are not required to take any of the preparatory courses; however, completing as many of the recommended preparatory courses as possible may increase the competitiveness of your application. 

Preparatory coursework must be completed prior to the application deadline in order to be considered during the review process. Coursework in progress will be noted but not formally considered during the review process.

No. We strongly recommend that preparatory coursework be completed prior to applying. Coursework in progress will be noted but not formally considered during the review process.

Yes. All preparatory coursework from regionally accredited educational institutions will be considered. While we prefer that courses with a lab component (e.g., Anatomy and Physiology) be completed in person if possible, we will consider online coursework, including online labs, in our review.

For our upper-division course recommendation, please note that because most upper-division courses are offered only to advanced students at four-year institutions and carry a course number of 300 or above, they may not be offered online or at two-year institutions. Unless the course is explicitly classified as upper division by your institution, it will not satisfy our course recommendation.

Probably. As long as the course appears on the transcript from your "home" institution and was completed for a grade, we will consider it in our review.

No. We strongly recommend that preparatory coursework be completed within the last ten (10) years. Coursework completed more than ten years ago will be noted but not formally considered during the review process.

No. Preparatory coursework should be completed at the postsecondary level only; AP credit or coursework completed in high school does not fulfill our coursework recommendations and will not be considered during the review process.

Our recommendation for clinical experience is not a prerequisite for admission, and we will review all applications regardless of prior clinical experience. However, we recommend that applicants complete a minimum of 500 hours clinical experience. Clinical experience includes direct patient care experience and health care experience, broadly defined. While all types of clinical experience will be considered in our review, direct patient care experience in a medical setting is strongly preferred. Common examples of direct patient care experience include but are not limited to: athletic trainer, behavioral health technician, certified nursing assistant, clinical pharmacist, dietician, emergency medical technician, medical assistant, medical scribe, medical technician, military medic, nutritionist, paramedic, physical therapist, physical therapy aide, radiology technician, registered nurse, respiratory therapist, and sonographer. We will consider other health care experience as well, including volunteer experience. Applicants will have an opportunity to describe their clinical experience in their application. There is no expiration date for clinical experience. Clinical experience completed for academic credit will be noted but not formally considered in our review.  Likewise, shadowing will be noted but not formally considered in our review.

No. We do not require shadowing experience and do not formally consider it during the review process.

Information about the CASPA application fees and fee assistance program can be found here. 

Stanford MSPA program does not charge addtional fee for application. 

You can update your CASPA application at any time prior to the application deadline directly though the CASPA application portal. However, we only consider experience and coursework completed by the time of application. Please do not contact our admission office with updates about additional experience or coursework after the application deadline, as it will not be considered during the review process.

Please update your contact information directly through the CASPA website.

Our admission team reviews all eligible applications on a semi-rolling basis. This means that once an application has been submitted and verified in CASPA, we begin the review process. We will continue to review all applications that are in Complete status by the deadline. The only potential advantage to applying early is that you may be notified of the status of your application sooner; there is no other advantage to applying early.

Our admissions team reviews all eligible applications on a semi-rolling basis. This means that once an application has been submitted and verified in CASPA, we begin the review process. If we determine that an applicant will move forward in the admissions process, we will send an interview invitation via email.  Interview invitations may be sent anytime between late August and October. If we determine that an applicant will not move forward in the admissions process, we will send a denial letter via email. Denial letters may be sent anytime between late August and October. Please do not contact our admissions office for updates about application status.

We do not offer information sessions or tours directly through our program; however, we participate in the PAEA Virtual Fairs. The PAEA Virtual Fairs are held each year in early April and late July. Registration information for the PAEA Virtual Fairs can be found here. Information about scheduling a tour of Stanford University can be found here. 

We aim to recruit applicants who meet our admission requirements and recommendations and who align with our program mission and goals. We encourage you to use our Applicant Self-Assessment Checklist for guidance in strengthening your application, and to emphasize how your experiences align with one or more of our program goals. 

In order to ensure fairness for all applicants, we do not offer individualized feedback on applications, but we are happy to provide general information about the admission process and answer questions. 

If after reviewing the FAQ you would still like to speak with an admission officer about an inquiry that is not addressed, please email paadmissions@stanford.edu.