• The RFUMS PA Program is a participating member of the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA). All applications must be submitted online, directly to CASPA. Our CASPA admissions cycle begins around April 15th each year, and ends on December 1st.
• Once CASPA forwards a completed application to RFUMS, the University Office of Admissions will send the applicant instructions on submitting the required $35.00 processing fee. Once the University Admissions Office receives the completed processing form, the required processing fee of $35.00, and the applicant’s GRE scores, the application file is forwarded to the PA Program for review.
• Applications are reviewed by the PA faculty Admissions Committee, who evaluate the overall qualities of the candidate.  Specific areas of consideration include but are not limited to: knowledge and understanding of the PA profession, personal motivation, interpersonal skills, academic performance and scholarly activities, research experience, community service activities, life experiences, length and quality of health care experience, and recommendation evaluations. Qualified applicants are offered an on-campus interview to assess interpersonal and communication skills, maturity, and commitment to a career as a PA.  The interview session also allows the candidate an opportunity to tour the University’s facilities, to meet Program faculty and staff, and to talk with current students of the program. Interviews begin in September and continue through February.  Seats in the class are filled on a rolling admissions basis.
• Rolling Admissions - Offers of acceptance into the program are extended to selected candidates at each interview session. Candidate selection continues until all seats in the class are filled.  After that, applicants are invited to interview for seats on a waiting list.  Offers of acceptance are extended to candidates on the waiting list if a candidate from the accepted class list withdraws from the program.
• Once an offer of acceptance is made by the program, the applicant will have a designated amount of time to accept or decline the offer.  An acceptance must be accompanied by a non-refundable $500 tuition deposit in order to hold the applicant's place in the class. The applicant must also agree to submit to a criminal background check before matriculation.
• The final deadline to apply for admission through CASPA is December 1st. 
• All supporting materials must be received by RFUMS by February 1st for consideration in the current admissions cycle.  Application materials received after Feb 1st will only be considered if the PA program needs to schedule additional interviews.

Note to All Medical Graduates: The State of Illinois PA Practice Act states that "Persons holding an M.D. or equivalent degree will not be eligible for licensure as a PA."  Therefore, if you are a graduate of a US or foreign medical school, and your medical degree is recognized in the United States, you are not eligible to become a licensed Physician Assistant in the State of Illinois.  Other states may have different regulations regarding PA licensure for physicians who subsequently graduate from an accredited US PA program and who wish to practice as a PA.