Accreditation

The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) has granted Accreditation-Continued status to the University of Charleston Physician Assistant Program sponsored by the University of Charleston. 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remains in effect until the program closes or withdraws from the accreditation process or until accreditation is withdrawn for failure to comply with the Standards.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 purpose of accreditation is to establish and maintain standards of quality. The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) is the agency authorized to accredit PA Educational Programs.

Students graduating from a PA program that holds an active accreditation status at any time during the student’s enrollment are considered graduates of an accredited program, and thus are eligible to sit for the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE). Students must successfully complete the program that was accredited at the time the student matriculated. Certification is required to be eligible for licensure to practice as a Physician Assistant.

To learn more about PA Program accreditation, visit the official ARC-PA website. To learn more about the PANCE, visit the official National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) website.

The Program’s Accreditation History

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

On April 26, 2022, the program received ARC-PA approval to increase its cohort size from 30 to 33, effective January 1, 2023.

On August 18, 2023, the program received ARC-PA approval for a one-time temporary class size increase to accommodate incoming transfer students from the Alderson Broaddus University PA Program.