Department of Physician Assistant Studies

UND’s PA Program is the only PA Program in North Dakota and has held continuous accreditation since 1974.

We are dedicated to preparing selected students to become competent physician assistants working collaboratively with physicians, emphasizing primary care in rural and underserved communities within North Dakota as well as regionally, nationally and globally. We have proven successful to our mission with nearly 2,000 graduates since our program started in 1970.

The UND Department of Physician Assistant Studies offers a unique hybrid of online coursework combined with alternating classroom and clinical experiences to award a Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS) degree. Our distance education program provides students with the potential to complete online coursework and clinical experiences in their home areas. This innovative curricular design provides exceptional comprehensive physician assistant education and helps solidify skills and concepts.

Student Perspective

Alumni Perspective

Accredited by ARC-PA

The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) has granted Accreditation-Continued status to the University of North Dakota Physician Assistant Program sponsored by the University of North Dakota. "Accreditation-Continued" is an accreditation status granted when a currently accredited program is in compliance with the ARC-PA Standards.

Accreditation remains in effect until the program closes or withdraws from the accreditation process or until accreditation is withdrawn for failure to comply with the standards. The approximate date for the next validation review of the program by the ARC-PA will be September 2026. The review date is contingent upon continued compliance with the Accreditation Standards and ARC-PA policy.

The program's accreditation history can be viewed on the ARC-PA website http://www.arc-pa.org/accreditation-history-university-of-north-dakota/.

Authorization & State Licensure

Successful completion of this program provides eligibility for national certification through the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA), of which successful completion satisfies the exam requirement for licensure in all U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Please visit the state board website for specific licensure requirements required of your home state. For additional information, please refer to Authorization & State Licensure.