Physician Assistant Studies

Mission

To prepare highly skilled and trustworthy Physician Assistants, to serve our diverse communities with kindness and compassion, while upholding excellence, integrity, and a commitment to equitable, patient-centered care.

The Dominican University of California PA Program is dedicated to preparing strong, effective, and trustworthy Physician Assistants who combine compassionate, patient-centered care with exceptional skills and knowledge. Through small, intimate cohorts and a diverse student body, we cultivate a community- and team-based culture that emphasizes resilience, mutual respect, and cultural humility. We value lifelong learning by upholding evidence-based medicine and emphasizing continuous reevaluation and recalibration in our approach to education and practice. 

This mission is anchored in the Dominican values of study, reflection, community, and service. By integrating these principles, we connect our behavior to what is meaningful and purposeful for the greater good of the program and profession, to be ethical leaders and socially responsible global citizens in the healthcare environment.

Vision

As leaders in their communities, Dominican PAs will provide high-quality care to the diverse populations they serve, seeking to advance health equity, make a lasting impact on healthcare, and contribute meaningfully to the PA profession.

Values

• Academic and Clinical Excellence 
• Resilience
• Compassion and Kindness
• Collaboration and Teamwork
• Community 
• Diversity 
• Self-awareness 

We are a team with "heart", fostering confidence and kindness that values integrity, strength and resilience. With values of lifelong learning and support of evidence-based medicine practices, we are committed to excellence and open to positive change. We strive to consistently demonstrate mutual respect for our students, faculty and staff. 

Our students will gain the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to respond positively and effectively to challenges and opportunities relating to trends in healthcare delivery. Students will learn in groups, through discussions and lectures and role- playing, and through the use of standardized and simulated patients, independent research, and case-based problem-solving.

Our focus on higher order of learning prepares PAs for critical thinking, ethical decision making, and the synthesis and judgment of problems, based on an integrated biopsychosocial medical model. PA students will learn to be reflective, insightful, and aware of professional roles as well as the limitations, needs, styles, and values of patients and other health professionals.