Entry requirements

Candidates should be of the required academic standard and be able to satisfy one of the following conditions:

- have been awarded an initial degree (2.1 or higher) by a recognised Higher Education Institution in medically-related life science subjects (see widening access section if you are interested but do not have a degree in these areas). Examples include: Medical Sciences; Biomedical Sciences
- have a 2:2 in a life science degree with a higher degree in a relevant subject e.g. MSc Clinical Sciences

Students will be interviewed prior to acceptance.

Please note: Only EU and home students can currently apply for this commissioned course. Undertaking this program in the UK does not currently enable you to work as a PA in any other country.

English Language requirements: IELTS of 7.5.

Widening Access - Applications are invited from all individuals with a strong interest in primary or secondary care. Applicants with a Higher Education degree outside the Life Sciences are expected to complete the Certificate in Medical Sciences (year 1 of the BMedSci B100 course) or Diploma in Medical Sciences (years 1 + 2 of the BMedSci B100 course) subject to their requirements. Having successfully completed this top-up qualification, graduates are eligible to apply for a place on the MSc Physician Associate program. Alternatively applicants may be eligible to undertake the MSc Clinical Sciences instead of the BMed Sci, subject to meeting the criteria. Please contact the School for information.

Risk assessments for disabled persons will be conducted on a case-by-case basis.

Months of entry

September

Course content

A Physician Associate (PA) is defined as a healthcare professional who, while not a doctor, works to the medical model, with the attitudes, skills and knowledge base to deliver holistic care and treatment within the general medical and/or general practice team under defined levels of supervision.

While Physician Associates are not meant to replace doctors, they are urgently needed to meet the increasing demand of a growing and ageing population combined with reductions in the medical workforce especially in the more rural areas of Wales. Working within teams, they enhance patient care both in the community and hospital setting in a more efficient and relatively cost-effective manner.

Graduates from this course will have a broad and relevant set of transferable skills with a focus on medical history-taking, clinical examination, analysis of test results, clinical reasoning and diagnosis, and the development of evidence based patient management plans.

Our Physician Associate course was one of the first of it’s kind in the UK. It will utilise the best teachers in medical science and clinical practice in north Wales - all of whom have a track record of teaching, research and clinical excellence in their specialist fields.

To be eligible to sit the national Physician Associate examination, successful completion of the PGDip or MSc in Physician Associate Studies is required.

89% pass rate in national Physician Associate exams, which is considerably above the national average.
NHS funded places, no tuition fees.

Bangor will accept applications all year round for this course however, we have a limited number of places and recommend applications are submitted as early as possible in the cycle. Once the course is full, applicants will be considered for the following year.

Watch the Royal College of Physicians video on the role of a Physician Associate.

Information for international students

Please note: This course is not open to International students as they are not eligible for a funded place. Only available applicants who are treated as home students for fees can currently apply for this commissioned course. Undertaking this program in the UK does not currently enable you to work as a PA in any other country.

Fees and funding

Candidates should be of the required academic standard and be able to satisfy one of the following conditions:

have a 2.1 or higher degree in a life science subject (particularly those that are medically related). Examples include: Medical Sciences; Biomedical Sciences, Psychology, Sport Science, Biology (particularly Human Biology), Anatomy etc.
have a 2:2 in a life science degree with a higher degree (eg MSc) in a relevant subject e.g. Medical Sciences; Biomedical Sciences, Psychology, Sport Science, Biology (particularly Human Biology), Anatomy etc.

Students will be interviewed prior to acceptance.

English Language requirements: IELTS of 7.5.

Risk assessments for disabled persons will be conducted on a case-by-case basis.

Please be advised that if you are offered a place on this course you will need to meet a number of criteria before the offer is made unconditional.

We recommend early applications due to the limited number of places but applications are accepted all year round. Once the intake is full, applicants will be considered for the following year. At the moment we do not offer January intake for this course.