Apply to the PA program

To apply for admission to the physician assistant program at WMU, you must submit an application to the Central Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA) and pay a $50 supplemental application fee to the WMU PA department.

application links

 
The admission process is highly competitive. Select candidates are interviewed, and admitted students are chosen from those interviews. Recently admitted students have a GPA well above the minimum and have documented hours above the minimum of 1,000. Competitive applicants will have superior oral and written communications skill and have an understanding and commitment to the physician assistant role and mission. 

Questions

Refer to our Advising Guide for answers to many commonly asked questions. More information is also available on our Resources page.

ADVISING GUIDE

Minimum requirements

  • A bachelor's degree, earned before the fall start date of the WMU PA program.

  • A minimum of 1,000 hours of health care experience, which must include direct patient contact. Shadowing experiences do not count toward this requirement. Volunteer hours may be considered at half of the total amount if direct patient care is evident.

  • A minimum GPA of 3.0 in the most recent 60 credit hours.

  • Six required prerequisite courses, completed before Dec. 31, with a grade of C or better.

COVID-19 Considerations

Many universities allowed students to change the grading of courses to credit/no credit for spring 2020. As such, our admissions committee has approved the following for spring 2020 grades only: 

  • Credit/no credit or pass/fail grades will meet our minimum requirements, as long as the minimum grade required for credit/pass status at the issuing institution is a C or higher.
  • We will ask the institution (registrar or instructor) to provide written verification that the pass/credit status meet that standard. 

Note: This policy does not apply to other programs at WMU.

International applicants

Minimum English proficiency scores:

  • Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL): 80 iBT graduate level (WMU Institutional Code: 1902)
  • International English Language Testing System (IELTS): 6.5 graduate level
  • Pearson Test of English, Academic Module (PTE): 54 graduate level
  • Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB): 77 graduate level 

Degree verification

The degrees of all international applicants must be evaluated by Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) or World Education Services (WES). If ECE or WES determine that your degree is equivalent to a bachelor’s degree, it will meet our requirements.  If you are uncertain about your degree evaluation (i.e., first professional degree),  please submit your WES or ECE to pa-info@wmich.edu for further clarification.

Other things to consider

Before you submit your application for this competitive selection process, consider if you can answer "yes" to the following questions:

  • Have you exhibited an ability to meet the demands of the program as shown by GPA and grade trends or patterns?
  • Do you have solid clinical experience at a competitive level of responsibility (e.g., paramedical or other allied health profession)?
  • Is your clinical experience primarily comprised of direct patient contact?
  • Do you comprehend the physician assistant role as a primary care provider?
  • Are you committed to fulfilling the mission of the program and the profession?
  • Have you completed all prerequisite courses and health care experiences prior to the application deadline? (Grades for courses completed by the end of the fall semester of the application year will be accepted. The bachelor's degree must be completed prior to the Fall program entry date.)

Notes

  • The GMAT, GRE, MCAT, etc. are not required for application to the WMU PA program.
  • Central Application Service for Physician Assistants starts accepting applications mid-April. Applications and all supporting documents must be submitted to the application service by Dec. 1.
  • The PA department's supplemental application fee must be paid by Dec. 1.
  • Do not send transcripts or any paperwork to WMU's Department of Physician Assistant unless instructed to do so.
  • After a review of submitted materials, students will be informed of a complete/incomplete application by email. Please save pa-info@wmich.edu in your contacts to ensure delivery of email from our program.
  • Selected candidates are invited to participate in an interview session.
  • Candidates for admission to the program are selected from the interview pool.
  • Candidates for admission begin their studies in the fall semester and then follow the continuous 24 month curriculum.