Master of Science

Each Clerkship course is worth 6 units, for a total of 72 Units.

The clinical phase of the program is 12 months long and exposes students to medical care across the lifespan, including infants, children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly.  They will be exposed to women’s health, including prenatal and gynecologic care; care of conditions requiring surgical management, including pre-operative, intra-operative, and post-operative; and behavioral and mental health conditions. Supervised clinical care experiences will occur in the outpatient and inpatient settings, the emergency department, and the operating room.  Enrollment is limited to Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies students. 

The majority of rotations are expected to take place within the Stanford Medicine community, as well as other select sites in California.  Current clerkship experiences include the following:

The Master of Science Degree in Physician Assistant Studies Program desires to develop exceptional clinical PAs and future PA leaders. Beyond the core curriculum and clerkships, students are required to select a leadership track and complete a thesis. The leadership tracks are intended to foster leadership potential in each student in one of five domains. The leadership tracks include Community Health, Health Services and Policy Research, Clinical Research, Medical Education, and Healthcare Administration.

During the first quarter, students are encouraged to explore and compare the different Leadership Track areas and their course and research opportunities. Each student must declare a Leadership Track by submitting their course plan, learning objectives, and general project description to the Director of Student Scholarship and their respective Leadership Track lead by the end of the first quarter. 

Students are also required to submit a written report of their scholarly work and present their project at the Thesis Symposium held in the last Winter Quarter. A final complete Thesis paper is due at the end of Q8 (December). 

Clinical Research

Undertaking the Clinical Research Leadership Track will, among other objectives, enable students to critically evaluate medical literature, underscoring the limitations of much of the current practice of medicine. Our belief is that the ability to critically review the burgeoning body of medical publications paves the way for a lifetime of learning that is essential to the prudent, conscientious, cost-effective practice of scholarly medicine. In addition to didactic instruction, students will participate in the conduct of faculty-mentored, hypothesis-driven clinical research projects for their thesis.

Community Health

Health and disease are shaped by our social and physical environments. Our goal is to empower future PAs to improve the health of diverse communities and reduce health inequity through scholarship and community engagement. The Community Health leadership track provides MSPA students with a faculty-mentored scholarly experience in areas of individual interest combined with structured coursework to support this scholarship. Students in the Community Health Concentration may also have an opportunity to partner with the AHEC Community Scholars Program ,where they will receive community-oriented academic training and complete a project in collaboration with an affiliated community clinic.

Health Services and Policy Research

Healthcare quality, cost, and access are significantly affected by government policies and by a wide range of institutions, including hospitals, physician groups, pharmaceutical companies, and health insurers. To formulate effective health policy and improve clinical practice, it is essential to understand the interactions among these institutions, medical decision-making at the population level, and the social and economic environment of healthcare. The Health Services and Policy Research leadership track provides students with a faculty-mentored scholarly experience in areas of individual interest combined with structured coursework to support this scholarship. 

Medical Education

The purpose of the Leadership Track in Medical Education is to prepare students for engagement and leadership in the field of medical education. Students will choose a specific area of interest in curriculum development and delivery, evaluation and assessment, educational technology, or simulation, and complete a comprehensive education project with the guidance of a faculty mentor combined with structured supportive coursework. Students in the Medical Education leadership track may have an opportunity to complete the Honors Certificate Program through the Clinical Teaching Seminar Series of courses. 

Health Administration

The Leadership Track in Healthcare Administration is designed to give students an overview of key topics in healthcare administration, economics, and workforce issues for advanced practice providers. Through a faculty-mentored scholarly experience, students will engage in research related to healthcare economics, healthcare administration, advanced practice provider utilization, scope of practice, professional advocacy, and leadership training and development.    

All MSPA students are required to complete and pass the following milestone examinations:

End of Didactic Exam (EOD)

The End of Didactic Exam (EOD) is a 120-question exam covering all topics from the Principles of Clinical Medicine and the Clinical Therapeutics course series. Students must successfully complete End of Didactic exam prior to beginning clerkships. 

Clinical Performance Examination for MSPA Students (CPX-P)

The CPX-P is a comprehensive examination consisting of both standardized patient encounters and computer-based exercises. The goals of this assessment are to evaluate students’ history and physical examination skills, patient interaction skills, clinical reasoning, and overall medical knowledge.

During the CPX-P, students see a series of patients with a broad range of clinical problems. Students are expected to perform a focused history and physical examination, and are also expected to communicate their thinking and preliminary plans to the patients. Students also complete computer-based exercises designed to assess medical knowledge and clinical reasoning.

Students must demonstrate at least minimum competency in each of three primary skill areas:

• History and physical examination

• Communication skills

• Clinical reasoning

Applied Procedural Skills Assessment (APSA)/Professionalism and Interpersonal Skills Measurement (PRISM)

The APSA/PRISM is a two-part assessment requiring students to demonstrate technical skills (APSA) and professionalism and interpersonal skills (PRISM).

APSA requires students to demonstrate at least minimum competency in each of the following skill areas:

• Sterile technique

• Local anesthesia administration (subcutaneous route)

• Suturing

• Intramuscular injection

• Billing and coding the patient encounter

PRISM requires students to demonstrate at least minimum competency in professionalism and interpersonal skills, including, integrity, respect, and advocacy during a challenging encounter with a colleague in a simulated clinical environment.

Students must pass both parts of the APSA/PRISM assessment to successfully complete the milestone.

End of Curriculum Exam (EOC)

The Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) EOC exam is used by the MSPA program as the summative assessment for medical knowledge. The 300-question exam is built using a blueprint and content area list developed by PA educators and national exam experts and is administered at the end of the clerkship year.

It is a milestone requirement for MSPA students to complete the MSPA Program Annual Survey for accreditation compliance and to provide feedback for program improvement.