If approved by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA), Berry's PA program will launch in fall 2025. A program director will be selected by the end of May 2023. Berry has requested a starting cohort of 24, with cohort size eventually reaching 40, with two cohorts per year.
ARC-PA includes library resources and access as part of Student Services in the Accreditation Standards for Physician Assistant Education, 5th edition. Relevant standards:
A1.04 The sponsoring institution must provide academic support and student services to PA students that are equivalent to those services provided to other comparable students of the institution. (p.7)
A1.05 The sponsoring institution should provide PA students and faculty at geographically distant campus locations access to comparable services and resources available to PA students and faculty on the main campus, which help students reach their academic and career goals.
A1.09 The sponsoring institution must provide the program with access to instructional and reference materials needed to operate the educational program and support evidence-based practice.
B2.13 The curriculum must include instruction to prepare students to search, interpret and evaluate the medical literature to include: a) framing of research questions, b) interpretation of basic biostatistical methods, c) the limits of medical research, d) types of sampling methods, and e) the use of common databases to access medical literature.