How to Become a Physician Assistant in Texas

As a physician assistant, you’ll examine patients and help them obtain the healthcare interventions they need, putting them on the path to living healthier lives. In Texas, physician assistants are able to practice under the supervision of a physician, including:

• Obtaining patient histories
• Performing physical exams
• Ordering and/or performing diagnostic and therapeutic procedures
• Forming a diagnosis
• Creating and implementing treatment plans
• Prescribing medications
• Monitoring the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions and adjusting care plans accordingly
• First Assist during surgery
• Providing patients with counseling and education
• Handling pharmaceutical samples, including requesting, receiving, and distributing them to patients in authorized settings
• Making appropriate referrals

Physician assistants can address a broad spectrum of healthcare needs for patients of all ages and work in every medical specialty. PAs increase access to primary and mental healthcare services, which can be especially important in rural and underserved communities.

Once you’ve met your undergraduate education requirements and have (ideally) gained some healthcare experience, you can finally pursue a master’s degree in physician assistant studies.

Here are a few points to consider as you search for a program:

• Your program should be accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA),or have provisional accreditation.
• Master’s-level PA programs typically take two to three years to complete.
• PA programs incorporate both traditional didactic coursework, hands-on practice through skills-based exercises like simulation labs, and clinical rotations.

The ARC-PA has granted Accreditation-Provisional status to the West Coast University, Texas Physician Assistant Program sponsored by West Coast University. The MPA program is offered at the university’s Dallas-area campus in Richardson, Texas, and it takes 24 months (six trimesters) to complete.

Students in WCU’s Texas MPA program get to practice what they learn using advanced technology and settings, such as virtual dissection tables and realistic simulation labs.

In Texas, there’s a two-stage process for becoming licensed as a physician assistant:

• Pre-Licensure/Screening
• Licensing

In the Pre-Licensure/Screening stage, you will submit the application form and pay the licensing fee. Next, you’ll receive an email with a list of documents that are required for licensure. The Texas Medical Board recommends sending the required documents using a private overnight delivery service that allows tracking.

Examples of documents you might be asked for include:

• Official transcripts from your PA program
• Verification of any other post-graduate training
• Proof of your National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) certification, which you obtain after passing the PANCE
• Proof of any other certifications or licenses

For a complete list of additional steps to obtain state licensure, please visit the Texas Medical Board’s website.

Once all the standard application documents have been submitted, you’ll reach the Licensing stage, which means a licensing analyst will review your application and reach out if any additional items are needed. Application processing times vary.

Once you’re approved, you will need to register your license and your supervising physician. If you will be prescribing Schedule II to V drugs, you will also need to get a Federal Narcotics number through the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Note that you will need to renew your PA license every two years, complete ongoing continuing medical education requirements (CME) for state and national licensure, and renew your NCCPA certification by exam every 10 years.

Learn more about the physician assistant license application process in Texas.