PA Post-Professional Masters Program Description

As providers of medical care and members of the health care team, physician assistants (PAs) must respond to new standards of practice, evolving delivery systems, changes in reimbursement procedures, shifts in population demographics, and the opportunities and challenges of technology. Stony Brook University (SBU) is offering a new part- time Physician Assistant Post-Professional Masters Program that will help insure that PAs have the opportunity to advance their academic credentials to meet these challenges while obtaining their Master of Science Degree. Our post-professional program will increase the depth and breadth of student medical knowledge and skills well beyond that attained during entry-level PA education and prepare graduates for career advancement and leadership in areas such as administration, management, education, and research. It is anticipated that our innovative post-professional program will promote the personal and professional development of our post-professional students and result in improved services to the patients and communities that they serve.

Students must complete a total of 30 credits within five (5) years in order to graduate. Eighteen credits are included in the core curriculum and include the topics of evidence-based medicine, ethics and health care, contemporary issues in health care delivery, clinical pharmacology, research writing, and clinical prevention and population health. The remaining twelve credits of elective courses will allow students to tailor their graduate education to both their personal interests and clinical practice or other work settings.

In addition, we have a new collaboration with the Department of Health Care Policy and Management to offer an Advanced Certificate in Health Care Management. This opportunity is intended for physician assistants who require or desire management training. Full details are available in the Advanced Certificate Program web page.

Of particular note is that the program is highly cost effective, convenient, flexible, and consistent with the reputation for high quality that our existing masters PA program enjoys. Small classes offered at a variety of times and in a variety of settings are an integral part of responding to the part time wants and needs of graduate PAs. Courses are offered in the traditional classroom setting, in on-line format, and as hybrids of these two approaches. Evening and weekend courses will be available at various junctures throughout a student’s post-professional education.