ADMISSIONS CRITERIA

The admissions committee will base all decisions upon the applicant's overall and science grade point averages (GPAs), the personal interview, personal and professional references, GRE score, knowledge of the profession and the applicant's written personal statement. It should be noted that the application process is very competitive and that completion of all prerequisites does not guarantee an interview for or acceptance to the program.

BASIC ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Candidates for admission to the LMU-DCOM PA program must meet the following requirements:

1. Baccalaureate degree earned prior to matriculation from a regionally accredited university or college. Applicants must have official transcripts submitted directly to the program at:

LMU-DCOM PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT PROGRAM
OFFICE OF ADMISSIONS AND STUDENT ADVANCEMENT
6965 CUMBERLAND GAP PARKWAY
HARROGATE, TN 37752

Prerequisite courses completed with a grade of "C" or better from a regionally accredited college or university:
- General Biological Science with laboratory (two semesters, eight to ten semester hours or equivalent)
- Human Anatomy with lab and Human Physiology (separate courses of at least three to four semester hours each), or a combined anatomy and physiology course with lab, at least two semesters
- General Chemistry with laboratory (two semesters, eight to ten semester hours or equivalent)
- Biochemistry or Organic Chemistry, with laboratory (four to five semester hours or equivalent)
     -LMU’s CHEM 220/C220 will be accepted.
- General Psychology (three semester hours or equivalent)
- Psychology elective (three semester hours or equivalent)
- Microbiology with lab (four to five semester hours or equivalent)
- English (six semester hours or the equivalent with at least one writing intensive course, such as English composition)
- Mathematics (three semester hours or equivalent of college algebra or higher)
- Medical Terminology (one semester)
**Note: a test in medical terminology will be given at the beginning of the program. Students who score less than 80% will have to retake examination until they pass it. Exception: a grade of "B" or higher in any medical terminology course.

Applicants who have taken their prerequisite courses at different regionally accredited colleges or universities must have all official transcripts submitted directly from those colleges or universities to the Physician Assistant program.

Because of the rapid evolution of the basic sciences and the rigor of the program, it is highly recommended that applicants who have completed the pre-professional basic science prerequisite coursework greater than five years prior to application may want to review materials if accepted into the program.

Strongly recommended additional courses which will strengthen an application include statistics or biostatistics, advanced psychology, cell biology, embryology, epidemiology, histology, immunology, parasitology, pathogenic bacteriology, abnormal psychology, human sexuality, physics, technical writing, advanced chemistry and quantitative analysis.

2. It is required that the applicant has an overall and science grade point average of at least 2.5. In order to be competitive, most students will have cumulative and science GPAs of at least 3.2. Students who have attended a foreign college must have their grades certified by a DCOM-approved vendor.

Applicants with Foreign Coursework

Applicants who wish to use coursework completed outside the United States must submit their transcripts for evaluation to one of the following services:

World Education Services
P. O. Box 745, Old Chelsea Station
New York, NY 10113-0745
212.966.6311
www.wes.org

Josef Silny & Associates
7101 SW 102 Avenue
Miami, FL 33173
305.273.1616
www.jsilny.com

A course-by-course evaluation is required and all coursework must be designated as undergraduate, graduate or professional. The LMU-DCOM PA program will only honor evaluations from one of the above services. The evaluation must be included with the application packet.

3. Three current references, less than one year old; at least one from a science professor, former employer, or academic adviser, and one from a healthcare professional, preferably from a PA or a physician.

4. Applicants must take the general test component of the Graduate Record Examination, GRE, within five years of the application date and have scores reported to Lincoln Memorial University (school code: 1408). No minimum score requirement. Information about the GRE can be found at www.gre.org.

5. An applicant whose native language is not English needs to submit scores from the combined TOEFL and TSE examination unless the applicant is a graduate of a U.S. college or university. The minimum required score for the IBT (Internet Based Testing) is 79 and a minimum score of 26 is required for the speaking component.

6. Submit a complete curriculum vitae.

7. Meet all the technical standards for admission to the PA program.

8. While not required, health care experience is strongly recommended for the PA program applicant. Shadowing a physician assistant or other health professional offers the applicant a chance to increase their understanding of the role of the PA and of the health care profession.

Dr. Michelle Heinan, PAC, DFAAPA
Director, Physician Assistant Program
800-325-0900, ext. 6669 (toll-free)
423-869-6669 (direct)
PAAdmissions@lmunet.edu

The LMU-DCOM Physician Assistant Program is applying for provisional accreditation from the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA). Accreditation is anticipated to be granted in March, 2009. Provisional accreditation is required prior to starting the program in order for graduates to be able to sit for the national certification examination for physician assistants, a credential required for state licensure. Should the program not receive provisional accreditation, all deposits will be returned to candidates. Information on accreditation is available at www.arc-pa.org.