Physician Associate Studies MSc
Source: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/postgraduate/degrees/bb96/ Parent: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/postgraduate/degrees/
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Overview
Physician Associates (PAs) are highly trained healthcare professionals with a generalist medical education. They work alongside doctors and other healthcare professionals to provide patient care.
PAs are trained to:
- take medical histories
- carry out physical examinations
- diagnose conditions
- develop management plans under the supervision of a consultant or general practitioner (GP)
Qualified PAs are registered with the General Medical Council (GMC) and work under defined levels of supervision in either primary or secondary care. PAs are an integral member of the multidisciplinary team and of the NHS workforce.
The course draws on our considerable excellence in medical training and access to state-of-the-art facilities.
The course is taught by trained PAs, doctors, specialist nurses, physiotherapists and academics.
This course would suit those with a minimum of an upper second-class degree from a bioscience discipline or from a health care background.
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Important information
We've highlighted important information about your course. Please take note of any deadlines.
Your course and study experience - disclaimers and terms and conditions
Please rest assured we make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the programmes, services and facilities described. However, it may be necessary to make changes due to significant disruption, for example in response to Covid-19.
View our Academic experience page, which gives information about your Newcastle University study experience for the academic year 2025-26.
See our terms and conditions and student complaints information, which gives details of circumstances that may lead to changes to programmes, modules or University services.
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What you'll learn
During the course you will develop core knowledge in preparation for the clinical workplace. This will include appropriate knowledge of:
- communication skills
- clinical examination skills
- clinical reasoning
- data interpretation
- anatomy
- physiology
- pharmacology
- ethics
- professional standards
- audit and critical thinking skills
This course will prepare you for the Physician Associate Registration Assessment (PARA) entrance exam. Successful completion of the PARA allows you to work as a PA. On successful graduation you will be eligible to be registered on the GMC register.
Learn more about the national examination here
How you'll learn
You'll develop your understanding of clinical practice through a combination of:
- case-based self-directed learning
- clinical skills laboratory teaching
- hands-on experience in clinical settings
Year one runs over 46 weeks and includes:
- five weeks training in clinical, communication and diagnostic skills. This is using mannequin-based and role-play simulations
- a 27-week course introducing core clinical knowledge. This is through clinical case studies and lectures
- one day a week in a primary care setting. You'll be developing history taking and examination skills
- a five-week placement in a hospital-based setting to introduce the role of the PA
- introduction to research methodologies
- preparation for undertaking the dissertation element in Year 2
Year two comprises 32 weeks of essential rotations. The rotations are in:
- emergency medicine
- mental health
- primary care
- obstetrics and gynaecology
- paediatrics
- general medicine
- surgery
You will then undertake an eight-week apprenticeship in a specialty of your choice. Students will set their own learning objectives and work with the team to experience working as a PA under clinical supervision.
Depending on your modules, you'll be assessed through a combination of:
- Dissertation
- Observation of professional practice
- Written examination
- Written exercise
- Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE)
Additional assessment information
Assessments will include:
- 7,500 word dissertation which will represent audit or a literature review to support patient safety and/or quality improvement
- written exam - comprised of single best answer questions
- clinical exams - consisting of Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE's)
- written skills exam - assessing your ability to request diagnostics and interpret data
- professionalism- is assessed throughout the course
- self-directed diary of learning/portfolio of evidence
- skills assessments in the workplace
Your teaching and learning is also supported by the Medical Learning Environment (MLE). MLE is a Virtual Learning Environment. You'll use the MLE to view your calendar, complete learning diary entries and view the course resources.
Throughout your studies, you’ll have access to support from:
- PA team, academics and clinical tutors
- University Student Services Team, in particular the dedicated post graduate student support
- School of Medicine Wellbeing Advisor
- near peers
You'll also be assigned an academic member of staff. They will be your personal tutor throughout your time with us. They can help with academic and personal issues.
- Mrs Emma McAllister - Degree Programme Director
- Ms Lana Shakespeare PA- Year 1 Lead
- Ms Alice Fitzpatrick PA - Year 2 Lead
- Ms Nicola Townshend – Learning and teaching assistant
Your development
This programme will teach you a broad range of skills. Some of the skills you will learn are how to:
- consult with patients effectively
- take medical histories
- perform physical examinations
- request and interpret tests
- diagnose illness or injuries
- develop treatment and management plans
- counsel on preventative healthcare
Alongside learning basic clinical theory you will undertake clinical placements. You will spend at least 1600 hours in clinical placements within NHS trusts and primary care providers in the North East.
Your future
On completion of the course, you'll be able to take the Physician Associate Registration Assessment (PARA). Successfully passing this exam allows you to register with the GMC and begin work as a PA within the NHS. The exam is overseen by the Faculty of Physician Associates within the Royal College of Physicians.
Graduates from this course have undertaken various roles including:
- Primary care
- Emergency care
- Obstetrics and gynaecology
- Mental health
- Older peoples medicine
- Respiratory medicine
- Neurology and stroke medicine
- Breast surgery
- Musculo-skeletal care
Our Careers Service
Our expert Careers Service is here to help you take the next steps in your professional life. We will support you while you’re studying with us and for up to three years after you graduate.\ \ You will have access to expert one-to-one advice and guidance through our campus careers centre and online, along with digital resources, workshops, networking opportunities, and careers and recruitment events.\ \ We’ve been awarded 5 QS Stars for Student Employability (2025). Many of our degrees are shaped by strong links with national and international businesses. We are committed to helping you access real-world experience opportunities and develop key skills through paid work placements and internships.
Visit our Careers Service website
Quality and ranking
- Global Top 140 University - QS World University Rankings 2026
- Top 25 in the UK and Top 200 in the world for sustainable development – Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2025
- 42% of our research is classified as 4* world-leading research – Research Excellence Framework 2021
- 65% increase in research power since 2014 – Research Excellence Framework 2021
- Global Top 145 University - Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026
- Joint 64th in the world and 22nd in the UK for sustainability – QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2026
- Top 5 city for affordability in the UK – QS Best Student Cities 2026
- World Top 50 and UK Top 5 student city – QS Best Student Cities 2026
- 89th in the world - TIME Magazine: World’s Top Universities 2026
Professional accreditation and recognition
General Medical Council (GMC)
This degree is professionally accredited by the General Medical Council (GMC)."
All professional accreditations are reviewed regularly by their professional body
Recognition of professional qualifications outside of the UK
If you’re studying an accredited degree and thinking about working in Europe after you graduate, the best place to find current information is the UK Government’s guidance on recognition of UK professional qualifications in EU member states. This official resource explains whether your profession is regulated in another country, what steps you need to take, and which organisation you should contact.
Facilities
Students benefit from:
- clinical skills laboratory
- simulation labs
- consultation rooms
- a unique virtual learning environment (Medical Learning Environment – MLE)
- access to high-quality online learning resources and lecture material
- access to regional healthcare trusts and primary care settings
Fees, Funding and Scholarships
Tuition fees for 2026 entry (per year)
| Qualification: MSc Full time | |
|---|---|
| Home students Full time: 24 months | Tuition fees (per year) £11,200 |
| International students Full time: 24 months | Tuition fees (per year) £27,500 |
As a general principle, you should expect the tuition fee to increase in each subsequent academic year of your course, subject to government regulations on fee increases and in line with inflation.
EU, other EEA and Swiss nationals - tuition fee status
Depending on your residency history, if you’re a student from the EU, other EEA or a Swiss national, with settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, you’ll normally pay the ‘Home’ tuition fee rate and may be eligible for Student Finance England support.
EU students without settled or pre-settled status will normally be charged fees at the ‘International’ rate and will not be eligible for Student Finance England support. You may be eligible for a scholarship worth 25% off the international fee. Search our funding database.
If you are unsure of your fee status, check out the latest guidance here.
Scholarships
We support our EU and international students by providing a generous range of Vice-Chancellor's automatic and merit-based scholarships. See our searchable postgraduate funding page for more information.
What you're paying for
Tuition fees include the costs of:
- matriculation
- registration
- tuition (or supervision)
- library access
- examination
- re-examination
- graduation
Find out more about:
If you are an international student or a student from the EU, EEA or Switzerland and you need a visa to study in the UK, you may have to pay a deposit.
You can check this in the How to apply section.
If you're applying for funding, always check the funding application deadline. This deadline may be earlier than the application deadline for your course.
For some funding schemes, you need to have received an offer of a place on a course before you can apply for the funding.
Search for funding and scholarships
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Entry requirements
The entrance requirements below apply to 2026 entry.
Academic entry requirements
A 2:1 honours degree, or international equivalent, in a bioscience or related subject.
Some examples of degrees we regard as generally suitable are:
- anatomy
- biology
- biochemistry/medical biochemistry
- biomedical science
- dentistry
- human biology/physiology/pharmacology
- medical sciences
- nursing
- Operating Theatre Practitioner
- pharmacy
- physiotherapy
- podiatry
- psychology (with a biological orientation)
- radiography
- zoology
We do not consider applications from candidates who have previously commenced a medical degree and failed to progress for any reason.
Qualifications from outside the UK
Select your country AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBritish Virgin IslandsBruneiBulgariaBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCaribbeanCayman IslandsChileChinaColombiaCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGreeceGrenadaGuatemalaGuyanaHaitiHondurasHong KongHungaryIndiaIndonesiaIranIraqIsraelItalyIvory CoastJamaicaJapanJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKosovoKuwaitLaosLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyaLithuaniaLuxembourgMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaltaMauritiusMexicoMongoliaMontserratMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarNamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNew ZealandNicaraguaNigeriaNorth MacedoniaNorwayOmanPakistanPalestinePanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalQatarRepublic of IrelandRomaniaRussiaRwandaSaint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da CunhaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSamoaSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSolomon IslandsSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSpainSri LankaSudanSurinameSwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyriaTaiwanTajikistanTanzania, United Republic ofThailandTogoTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTurks and Caicos IslandsTuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUruguayUSAUzbekistanVanuatuVenezuelaVietnamZambiaZimbabwe
English Language requirements
Select your qualification IELTSPearsonsDuolingo English TestTOEFLOtherPre-Sessional Entry - 6 weeksPre-Sessional Entry - 10 weeks
Admissions policy
This policy applies to all undergraduate and postgraduate admissions at Newcastle University. It is intended to provide information about our admissions policies and procedures to applicants and potential applicants, to their advisors and family members, and to staff of the University.
University Admissions Policy and related policies and procedures
Credit transfer and Recognition of Prior Learning
Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) can allow you to convert existing relevant university-level knowledge, skills and experience into credits towards a qualification. Find out more about the RPL policy which may apply to this course
How to apply
Before you start
Start Dates
We have one intake per year with students beginning their studies in early September each year.
Specialised application information
How to apply
Applications are made via UCAS. The UCAS code for this course is BB96.
Please contact us if you have any queries.
Interviews
If you are short-listed you will need to attend a 25 minute interview. This is to confirm that you have the aptitude, motivation and personal qualities to succeed as a student and physician associate.
Two selectors from a wide pool of clinicians, educators and non-practitioners conduct the interview. They will assess you on six categories:
- preparation and motivation for study
- effective learning skills
- team working
- personal qualities/resilience
- interpersonal and communication skills
- empathy, sensitivity and integrity
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Interviews will be held from February until May. We will not issue any offers to successful candidates until all interviews have been completed. You will normally be notified of the outcome in mid-late May. If you have limited availability for interview please contact us.
Deposit
All International students
If you are an international student or a student from the EU, EEA or Switzerland and you need a visa to study in the UK, you must pay a deposit or submit an official letter of sponsorship. The deposit is payable after you receive an offer to study with us. This deposit is non-refundable and will be deducted from your tuition fees when you register. You may also be subject to academic and English language qualification verification, confirmation of funds and credibility interviews.
International students who received an offer before 18 March 2026
- You are required to pay a £1,500 deposit or submit an official letter of sponsorship.
International students Bangladesh, Ghana, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan who received an offer after 18 March 2026
- You are required to pay a deposit of £5,000 or submit an official letter of sponsorship by 01 August 2026.
All International students (excluding those from the markets above) who received an offer after 18 March 2026
- You are required to pay a deposit of £1,500 or submit an official letter of sponsorship by 01 August 2026.
Programme codes
| Qualification: MSc Full time | |
|---|---|
| Full time: 24 months | Programme Code: BB96 |
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Questions about this course?
If you have specific questions about this course you can contact:
Course Administrator\ School of Medical Education\ Email: mpas@newcastle.ac.uk
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