Questions to Ask PA
Questions for the decision stage of physician assistant school: you have an offer, or more than one, and need the numbers and commitments in writing before you accept a seat and pay a deposit.
The questions
Open any question for the note
What is the full cost of attendance for the whole program, not per year?
Why ask it
PA programs run 24 to 36 months and often straddle three tuition years, so the annual figure understates the total. Ask for the program's own published cost of attendance and check whether it includes the summer terms, which are easy to omit.
What does that figure leave out?
Why ask it
The usual omissions are rotation travel, a second rent during away placements, medical equipment, immunizations, background checks, exam and certification fees, and a license application. Together these commonly add several thousand dollars, and none of it appears on a tuition invoice.
Can tuition increase once I have started, and by how much historically?
Why ask it
Some programs lock the rate at matriculation and others raise it annually. Ask for the actual increases over the last three years rather than a policy statement, since that is the number your loan planning depends on.
What scholarships or grants exist, and when are decisions made relative to my deposit deadline?
Why ask it
Aid decided after the deposit is due is not aid you can plan around. Ask the timing explicitly, and ask whether an offer can be held while you wait for a financial aid package.
What is the deposit, and is any of it refundable?
Why ask it
Deposits are how programs secure a class and are frequently non-refundable, which matters if you are holding two offers. Ask the amount, the deadline, and whether a later withdrawal creates any further liability.
What was the first-time certification exam pass rate for the last five cohorts?
Why ask it
One year is noise, five years is a pattern. This is published data, so ask about any dip specifically and what the program changed in response. A program that cannot explain its own trend is not tracking it.
How many students in each of the last three cohorts did not graduate on time, and why?
Why ask it
Attrition is the number applicants ask about least and should ask about most. Ask for the split between academic dismissal, voluntary withdrawal, and personal leave, because those three point at very different problems.
What is the current accreditation status, and what happens to me if it changes?
Why ask it
Provisional and probationary status carry real consequences, including for eligibility to sit the certification exam if a program closes. Ask what the arrangement would be for enrolled students, and whether there are any outstanding citations.
Are all required clinical rotation sites already contracted for my cohort?
Why ask it
This is the question that separates programs on paper from programs that work. Sites that are aspirational rather than contracted turn into gaps that students are asked to fill themselves, which costs weeks and money.
Will I ever be expected to find my own preceptor?
Why ask it
Get a direct yes or no, and if it is yes, ask how often that has happened in the last two cohorts. Unpaid placement hunting while in clinical year is one of the most common serious complaints about specific programs.
How far will I have to travel for rotations, and will housing be provided or reimbursed?
Why ask it
Ask for the furthest placement any student had last year, not the average. A single rotation four hours away means a second rent, a car, or both, and this is where an affordable program becomes an expensive one.
Are there mandatory expenses I have not been told about yet?
Why ask it
Ask about laptops with specific requirements, a stethoscope and diagnostic set, required conference attendance, a required review course, and any subscription the program mandates. Asking as an open question usually surfaces two you had not counted.
What is the remediation policy, and does it delay graduation?
Why ask it
Ask how many attempts you get, whether a retake caps your grade, and whether remediation pushes you into the following cohort. Delay has a direct financial cost in extra tuition and deferred salary, so this belongs in the decision, not in a future crisis.
Under what circumstances would a student be dismissed?
Why ask it
Ask for the written policy and how many students it has applied to recently. Programs differ substantially in whether a single failure is survivable, and this is not something to discover in your second semester.
If I need to take a leave of absence, what happens to my seat and my aid?
Why ask it
Illness, bereavement, and pregnancy happen during a two year program. Ask whether students rejoin the next cohort, what the financial aid consequences are, and whether it has actually been done recently or is only theoretical.
Where do graduates work now, and how many are outside this region?
Why ask it
Placement rates are high nearly everywhere, so the distribution is the informative part. If almost nobody leaves the state, the program's value is partly its local network, which matters if you intend to move.
What is the starting salary range graduates report, and in which specialties?
Why ask it
Ask for their own graduates' figures rather than national data. Held against your total debt, this is the calculation that should drive the decision between two offers, and programs that collect the data will share it.
Is any part of the program taught in a format I have not been told about?
Why ask it
Ask what proportion is online, whether anatomy uses cadavers or software, and whether any teaching is shared with other health profession students. These change the experience considerably and are often glossed over on a tour.
Who will be my adviser, and how often will I meet them?
Why ask it
A named person with a scheduled meeting is materially different from being told the door is always open. Ask what happens if that person leaves, since faculty turnover mid-cohort is common and disruptive.
Can you put me in touch with a student who found this program hard?
Why ask it
Programs will readily connect you with their happiest students. Asking for the other case tests candour, and if they decline, ask instead what the most common complaint was on the last student survey.
Deciding between offers
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Get the numbers on one page
Build a single total for each program
Tuition and fees for the full length, plus rotation travel and housing, equipment, exam fees, and the months of income you will not earn. Comparing these totals often reverses the ranking you had based on tuition alone.
Ask every program the same list of questions
Answers are only comparable if the questions were identical. Send the same email to each and keep the replies, which also gives you something in writing to refer to later.
Read the published student outcomes yourself
Accredited programs must publish attrition and certification exam pass rates. Reading them before you ask lets you question a specific number rather than accepting a general reassurance.
What to get in writing
- The full cost of attendance for the whole program, with inclusions listed.
- Whether tuition can rise after matriculation, and by how much it has.
- Confirmation that required rotation sites are contracted for your cohort.
- The remediation, dismissal, and leave of absence policies.
- The deposit amount, deadline, and refund terms.
Where applicants go wrong
Accepting the first offer out of relief
Admission is difficult and the instinct to take any seat is strong. Unless the deadline forces it, ask the questions above first, because the debt and the two years are the same regardless of how the offer felt.
Assuming a university's name transfers to its PA program
Program quality is local: it comes from the clinical network, the faculty, and the rotation contracts. A well-known institution can host a program with placement problems, and a small one can be excellent.
Not asking about rotation placement at all
Of everything in this list, self-sourced preceptors and long placement travel are the issues current students complain about most. Both are knowable in advance and both are easy to forget to ask about.
Who to ask what
- Financial aid office: cost of attendance, aid timing, loan limits.
- Program director or clinical coordinator: rotation contracts, travel, remediation policy.
- Current second year students: whether the clinical year matches the description.
- Recent graduates: onboarding at their first job, and whether they felt prepared.
- The program's published outcomes page: pass rates, attrition, accreditation status.