Application Period

Checklist for the Master of Physician Assistant Studies Program

All checked items listed below are required for a complete application.  If items are missing, your application may not be processed.

• All prerequisite courses completed by the end of Fall semester of the year you apply for the program, with a minimum overall grade point average (GPA) of 2.75.
• Minimum GPA of 2.75 in science courses, excluding technical courses
• Minimum GPA of 2.75 in core curriculum and program prerequisite courses.  Click here for prerequisites. 
• Minimum GPA of 2.75 in last 30 hours taken, excluding technical courses

Complete and submit the CASPA Application (Central Application Service for Physician Assistants) at https://secure.CASPAonline.org/.  The CASPA application requires the items listed below; all information and documents must be submitted before the application deadline.  CASPA forwards only complete applications to UTHSCSA.  Some items must be mailed to CASPA:

Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA)
P. O. Box 9108
Watertown, MA  02471

• Application fee
• Personal data and contact information
• Colleges/universities you have attended
• College/university transcripts
• Academic record - coursework you have completed, attempted, or plan to take*
• Patient contact experiences
• Related health care experience and research, including Physician Assistant shadow time
• Community service
• Employment history
• Personal statement of 500 words or less, expressing your motivation or desire to become a physician assistant
• Personal references from 3 individuals
• TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) required of applicants from countries where English is not the native language

* Note that if you are taking coursework during the semester when you apply, you must submit a transcript from the institution where you are enrolled showing that the coursework is in progress.  Then, submit an updated transcript to the Allied Health Registrar with your fall grades annotated (see address below) as soon as possible following the end of the semester. If you are selected for a program interview, you may be requested to provide a copy of your Fall transcripts showing grades for the completed courses during the interview.

Submit the following materials and documents to the Registrar at the address below, by the application deadline:

UTHSCSA Office of the Registrar
Allied Health Admissions
7703 Floyd Curl Dr., Mail Code 7702
San Antonio, TX  78229-3900

• UTHSCSA Supplemental Application – In addition to the CASPA application, you must complete a supplemental application and send it to UTHSCSA; the mailing address is provided on the application form.  Both applications – CASPA and UTHSCSA Supplemental Application – are required.  Click here to download or print the Supplemental Application.
• $45 application fee (check or money order) mailed with your UTHSCSA Supplemental Application.
• One-page typed essay on how your aspirations fit into the mission of the UTHSCSA Physician Assistant Studies program (see instructions on the Supplemental Application.)
• Request for Waiver of State Required Prerequisites (if required) – Necessary if you already have a bachelor’s degree but are lacking UTHSCSA Core Curriculum requirements.  If you waive any core curriculum requirements, you will also waive the Bachelor of Science in Health Care Sciences (BSHCS) that is awarded after one year in the Physician Assistant Studies program.  Click here to download or print the waiver form.  For more information about core curriculum requirements and program prerequisites click here.
• Letter from college/university counselor or registrar stating that you are eligible to receive a college degree and the anticipated graduation date, if you do not already have a bachelor’s degree or higher annotated on your transcripts at CASPA.
• Request for Waiver of Program Prerequisites (if required) – Necessary if you wish to request substitution of a program prerequisite course or a waiver of program prerequisites.  Include a copy of the course number and title, description, college/university where it was taken, and state which prerequisite that it will substitute for.  Click here to download or print a waiver form. NOTE: It is highly unusual to have a program prerequisite waiver granted.
• DD214 – Required of military or prior military applicants, only

You are encouraged to contact the Office of the Registrar by e-mail at ahprospect@uthscsa.edu, or phone at (210) 567-2660, to check the status of your application and supporting materials two to three weeks after submitting them.