Welcome to the Physician Assistant Program
NEW FOR 2012 ADMISSIONS CYCLE: 3 Semester hours of Physics is now a strongly recommended prerequisite. This will become a required prerequisite for the 2013 admissions cycle.
Click here for admissions information for those interested in the RRCC PA Program.
The Red Rocks Community College Physician Assistant Program is accredited by the Accreditation Review
Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA). The RRCC Program offers courses leading to a
Certificate in PA Studies and prepares the student for the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE)
which is administered by the National Commission for the Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA). Upon
passage of the PANCE, graduates are eligible for licensure in any state. Students admitted to the RRCC PA
program may elect to co-register at St. Francis University to pursue a fully-accredited master's degree. PANCE
pass rates for the past few years for RRCC PA Program graduates and the national pass rates are presented
below.
| Year | RRCC PA Program Pass Rate (first time takers) |
NCCPA National Pass Rate (first time takers) |
| 2004 | 92% | 90% |
| 2005 | 97% | 91% |
| 2006 | 100% | 92% |
| 2007 | 93% | 93% |
| 2008 | 100% | 94% |
| 2009 | 93% | 92% |
| 2010 | 97% | 94% |
| 2011 | 100% | 92% |
Physician Assistants (PAs) are health professionals authorized by law to practice medicine under the supervision of a licensed physician. Within the physician/PA relationship, physician assistants often exercise delegated autonomy in decision-making and provide a broad range of diagnostic and therapeutic services. The clinical role of PAs includes primary and specialty care in medical and surgical practice settings in rural and urban areas. Though physician assistant practice is primarily directed toward patient care, PAs also provide leadership in educational, research and administrative settings.
The Red Rocks Physician Assistant Program
The Red Rocks Physician Assistant Program is a rigorous 25 month, state-sponsored, nationally accredited curriculum that recruits adult learners who have prior experience in health care. Our mission is to train clinically competent and compassionate physician assistants to provide primary care to the medically underserved.
The Program was created in 1998 after several years of needs assessment and after community support was determined to be strong. The first class was admitted in January of 1999; subsequent classes were admitted in August of each year thereafter beginning in 1999.
Our students have been successful in careers such as nursing, physical therapy, emergency services, exercise physiology, medical assisting, radiographic technology, respiratory therapy and audiology, among many others. Some students hold a master's or doctoral degree; all have a baccalaureate degree. Admission to the Program is extremely competitive. The average age for the 2011 entering class is 28 years, and 32 students have been offered a seat.
Click here to see the Mission, Values, & Goals of the Physician Assistant Program.
If you have questions about the PA profession, a great web site for info is www.aapa.org. We do not schedule individual transcript reviews or appointments with program faculty.
Current students and alumni, join us on Facebook
Information Sessions
February 21, 2012
April 10, 2012
May 24, 2012
Information sessions will be
held in the Community
Room @ 5:30 p.m.
Contact Info