Dear Colleagues,
In January, we officially welcomed the inaugural cohort of physician assistant candidates to our Columbia campus as part of new collaboration with the University of Missouri-Kansas City Master of Medical Science Physician Assistant program.
This partnership with my alma mater has been nearly four years in the making, and seeing these students arrive on campus was a moment of great pride for all involved.
This new partnership is similar to our longstanding collaboration with UMKC School of Pharmacy, which has a training site on the Columbia campus for Doctor of Pharmacy candidates.
The program launched with 8 students, with a planned expansion to 20 students per class by 2028. Over the course of this rigorous 29 month program, students will complete their didactic training and clinical rotations throughout the School of Medicine and MU Health Care clinics, benefiting from the outstanding faculty expertise and clinical opportunities our community offers.
There is already tremendous enthusiasm across the School of Medicine. Our department chairs have expressed how meaningful this partnership will be in developing a strong pipeline of well prepared physician assistants who can continue their careers at MU Health Care.
As demand increases nationwide for advanced practice providers, this program positions us to grow our workforce locally with exceptional graduates trained right here in Columbia.
We are thrilled to welcome these students and look forward to seeing them graduate their program in 2028.
Sincerely,
Rick Barohn, MD
Executive Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and Hugh E. and Sarah D. Stephenson Dean, School of Medicine
rbarohn@health.missouri.edu
