CMSV 323 Student Academic-Clinical Evaluations

Policy Name: Student Academic/Clinical Evaluations

University of Mount Saint Vincent Master of Science Physician Assistant Program students will be evaluated utilizing various processes to ensure they meet or exceed the standards of the fifth edition of the Accreditation Standards for Physician Assistant Education put forward by the ARC-PA.

The processes are listed below:

Didactic (first-year) written or computer-based course related examinations as well as other areas of review, including:

• End of Didactic Year (EDY) summative examination.
• History and physical write-ups.
• Faculty advisory reviews.
• Physical examination skill tests.
• Observations by faculty of student involvement in classroom activity, small group projects (graded clinical correlation projects), and discussion-oriented groups.
• Observed, Structured, Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) at the end of the didactic year of studies.
• Performance of clinical procedures.
• Oral patient presentations (in-line with present scope of knowledge).
• PACKRAT-I (This will be utilized as an evaluation tool only and will not be utilized for the purpose of determining any student letter or numerical grade)
• PDAT (Professional Development Assessment Tool)

Clinical (second-year) written or computer-based examinations as well as other areas of review, including:

• PAEA developed End of Rotation Examinations (EORE).
• Clinical year summative examination.
• History and physical write-ups.
• Call-back classroom participation.
• Faculty advisory reviews.
• Clinical preceptor evaluations-clinical.
• Clinical preceptor evaluations-professional (clarification included below).
• Observations by faculty of student involvement in classroom activity, small group projects, and discussion-oriented groups such as:
  • Journal club
  • Poster development
• OSCEs
• Performance of clinical procedures via preceptor evaluation.
• Oral patient presentations seen during clinical rotations.
• PACKRAT-II (This will be utilized as an evaluation tool only and will not be utilized for the purpose of determining any student letter or numerical grade)
• PDAT

Grading Criteria | Master of Science Physician Assistant Program

Please note: Any numerical final (not examination) grade below a 70% (>69.5%) will be considered a failing grade as per the College’s Master of Science Physician Assistant Program standards. Additionally, although 80% is a B-, it will only compute out to GPA of 2.667, thus falling below the program standard of needing to maintain a 3.00 GPA, and thus continued matriculation within the program.

Professional Evaluations
From the initial day of a student’s orientation into the College’s program, it is stressed to students the importance of maintaining a professional demeanor at all times. This relates to not only how students interact with faculty and staff, but also how they interact with their peers on a daily basis. Respect for one’s peers is an important aspect of building a professional appearance. Manner of dress and hygiene is also stressed. Other areas include conversational tone, acceptance of criticism, anger management, respect for varying cultures and attitudes, and, more importantly, treating all patients and fellow colleagues as they themselves wish to be treated.

Violations of these standards are taken very seriously within the program. Violations of standards of conduct, including, but not limited to the areas discussed above, will be the subject of disciplinary actions, which may result in:

• Professional warning.
• Professional probation—which will remain on the student’s permanent record and can be accessed by employers and other educational institutions.
• Dismissal from the program.