The 2025 CASPA application cycle is open April 24–September 1, 2025.
The Red Rocks Physician Assistant Program is a rigorous 27-month, state-sponsored, nationally accredited program. The program was established in 1998 and has maintained accreditation since inception. The RRCC PA program is the only community college in the US to confer its own master's degree.
Each cohort includes 32 students. Graduates of the RRCC PA program receive a Master’s in Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS). The RRCC PA program has a long history of educating competent, community-minded PAs to practice primary care. Our graduates receive exceptional training and are well-prepared to enter clinical practice upon graduation.
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 accepted 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 prior to acceptance. Admission to the program is extremely competitive. The average age of each class is between 28 and 30 years old. The RRCC PA Program accepts 32 students per year.
The mission of the RRCC PA Program is to prepare physician assistants to serve all communities by practicing professional, empathetic, inclusive, team-based medicine with a focus on primary care.
The goals of the RRCC PA program are to:
Produce competent PAs
The success of the program in meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- A first-time PANCE pass rate comparable to the national average based upon cohort size equivalency
- A graduation rate of greater than 90%
Promote the development of professionalism and professional identity
The success of the program in meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- Content and advising designed to teach, monitor, and promote professionalism
- Encouraging the development of professional identity as a PA through self-reflection and self-awareness
- Producing graduates with professionalism appropriate for the workplace
Deliver a primary-care focused, team-based curriculum
The success of the program in meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- Curriculum content taught by organ system with a primary-care focus
- Incorporating interprofessional experiences in the didactic and clinical curricula
- Providing clinical experiences in primary care to include family medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, behavioral health, and internal medicine
Emphasize the underserved/rural practice of medicine
The success of the program in meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- Delivering content and assessment that examines the challenges and opportunities in underserved/rural medical practice
- Providing at least two underserved and/or rural clinical experiences per student
Serve the community
The success of the program in meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- Providing community service opportunities
- Service to the community as a student portfolio requirement
Create a climate of belonging
The success of the program meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- Delivering content that will support a deeper understanding of students’ own cultures as well as others and develop skills in communicating with diverse patient populations
- Preparing students to provide empathic care to patients from variety of lived experiences and backgrounds
Provide employable PAs for the healthcare workforce
The success of the program in meeting this goal is demonstrated through:
- The expectation that all students meet all clinical and professional standards to become a successful practicing PA