Physician assistant program goals and outcomes
The four primary program goals are shown below. Click on a goal to learn more.
Goal: 80% of physician assistant (PA) students will graduate on time (within nine quarters of consecutive coursework).
Faculty and staff with the PA program are committed to helping all students finish successfully. The on-time graduation rate for the last five years averaged 94%.
Goal: 90% of PA graduates will find employment in a health care setting.
The UC Davis PA program exceeded these employment goals in four of the past five years.
Goal: 50% of PA graduates will practice in medically underserved areas (MUAs), health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) or in primary care settings.
Over the past 40 years, the program graduated 1,800 nurse practitioners and PAs. In the past five years, between 45 and 71 percent of each year's graduates worked in MUAs, HPSAs or primary care, compared to much lower national averages of between 30 and 40%.
Goal: 90% of PA students will pass the PANCE within nine months of program graduation.
The mission of the UC Davis PA program is to educate health care professionals to deliver care as members of interprofessional health care teams and to improve the availability of culturally relevant primary health care to underserved populations throughout California.
The program met this goal in each of the past five years (2020-2024). The school strives to support student success throughout the program and ensure that graduates pass the PANCE within nine months following graduation.
Read the complete PANCE report (PDF)
