ARC-PA Standard A3.14a
The curriculum is lockstep. The student must pass all semester courses in order to progress from the first through the final semester. The program Faculty and Program Director will evaluate students’ academic records after each semester to approve progression into the next phase. Students must maintain a minimum cumulative (CUM) GPA of 2.667 as well as a semester GPA of 2.333 in order to progress from the first semester through the final semester unless otherwise stated by the APC.
In order for a student to enter the clinical year, the student must achieve a minimum CUM GPA of 2.667 and also must have successfully completed all course offerings during the didactic year. If a student’s CUM GPA falls below 2.667 at the end of the didactic year, the student is called before the Academic Progress Committee to decide a course of action.
An End of Didactic Year Exam (EDYE) and Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) are given at the end of the didactic phase of the program to determine student readiness to progress to the clinical year. If a student does not pass the EDYE (70% or higher) and/or OSCE (80% or higher), they may be remediated and their progression in the program may be delayed.
Satisfactory completion of clinical rotation courses in the PA Program requires a minimum passing grade of 70% (C-). A cumulative (CUM) GPA of 2.667 must be maintained to be considered in “Good Academic Standing.” Although grades of 70%(C-) may add up to a passing grade, it will not equate to a CUM GPA of 2.667.
The student will have one semester to increase their clinical CUM GPA to 2.667. Failure to achieve a clinical CUM GPA of 2.667 will require the student to appear before the Academic Progress Committee (APC,) which will decide on the appropriate course of action.
All components of a clinical rotation course must be successfully passed in order to obtain a passing grade for the course except the Multi System Assessment Tool (MSAT). Please note that this assessment will count towards the final rotation grade and is used for remediation criteria.
Each clinical rotation must be passed with a grade of 70% (C-) or better, in order to receive credit for the rotation. Clinical rotation (course) grades are calculated based on the following:
- End-of-rotation (EOR) examination or EOR project
- Preceptor’s evaluation
- Multi System Assessment Tool (MSAT)
- Professionalism and timely submission of required rotation documents at the end of each rotation
