We are excited to announce that our new, state-of-the-art facility is currently under construction at 636 Grand Regency Blvd, Brandon, FL 33510. Our faculty and staff are scheduled to move into the building this October, and we look forward to welcoming our inaugural class of students to this modern learning environment in January 2026. We will share a full virtual tour upon the building’s completion.
While the Brandon campus will not house a traditional cadaver lab on-site, our students will learn anatomy through a comprehensive virtual dissection platform. This is supplemented by planned, in-person lab experiences at specialized local facilities like CAMLS to ensure a complete understanding of anatomical structures.
PANCE preparation is a core part of the curriculum. The program integrates board review materials, provides access to question banks, and administers comprehensive exams throughout the didactic and clinical phases to ensure you are fully prepared for certification. As a critical preparatory instrument, the PACKRAT provides a diagnostic self-assessment for PANCE candidates. By simulating the length, format, and rigor of the national certifying exam, it allows students to identify specific knowledge gaps via a detailed performance report while simultaneously building essential cognitive stamina. This data-driven insight enables students to develop a highly targeted study strategy, prioritizing areas that need the most improvement to achieve a successful outcome on the PANCE.
The first 12 months of the program comprise the didactic year. The didactic phase follows a full-time schedule, with classes and labs running Monday through Friday from morning to late afternoon. Expect to dedicate significant time to studying in the evenings and weekends. A comprehensive didactic schedule will be provided during orientation.
Students are required to purchase essential medical equipment needed for the program. Please factor approximately $1,000.00 into your budget for pre-matriculation expenses. This often includes a stethoscope, an otoscope/ophthalmoscope set, branded scrubs and white coat. A link for online ordering will be forthcoming in the next few weeks. Any pre-purchased medical equipment will need to be reviewed by faculty during orientation for use starting January 2026. If the equipment does not meet the program’s standards, you will need to purchase the items through our medical vendors.
LMU is actively securing partnerships with hospitals and clinics in the Tampa area and beyond. The program coordinates all clinical placements for students.
Yes, students should expect to travel. While many sites are in the Tampa Bay area, some rotations may require travel to other parts of the state, which is standard for most PA programs.
The LMU–SMS PA Program Supervised Clinical Practical Experiences (SCPE) sites are unique in comparison to other PA Programs. As most programs are associated within one specific health system, LMU relies on multiple health systems and independent clinical sites for its SCPEs. Because of this unique set up, the program creates areas or PODS based on the number of resources it can provide. The number of PODS varies per year, and PODS are not necessarily available every year.
Although the program strives to place students within their preferred POD for all SCPE's, the program reserves the right to place students in SCPE's outside of the generalized 60-mile radius POD if necessary. The program also may reassign a student to a new POD altogether during the clinical phase.
The inaugural cohort for the LMU–SMS Tampa PA program is expected to have 100 students.
The Cost of Attendance (COA) on the website is a comprehensive estimate that includes tuition and fees. Tuition and fees are set for the academic year, while other costs are estimates. Please see the tuition and fees below:
Students can apply for federal aid by completing the FAFSA. An appointment can be made with an LMU Financial Aid Officer to provide all financial options available to you. Please reach out to the LMU Financial Aid office for additional information.
To ensure that all prospective students receive a timely and accurate response, we ask you please direct all program-related inquiries to the Admissions Coordinator. Our faculty and Program Director are unable to respond to individual admissions questions. Our team will review your message and reply within 48 business hours.
For all inquiries, please contact our Admissions Coordinator:
Wishing you all the best for the remainder of the year, and we can't wait to have you with us in December for orientation!
