The PA Program's Clinical Team assigns all Supervised Clinical Practice Experiences based on the Accreditation Review Commission on the Education for Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) Standards and the RVU PA Program requirements. Students may express interest in their experience placements by completing preference sheets. One-on-one meetings may occur with the Director of Clinical Education. Special requests are typically not accommodated due to clinical requirements and preceptor availability.
Clinical experiences are scheduled and arranged by the Program (not the student). Multiple factors are considered in creating student schedules including, but not limited to the following:
- Program expectations;
- Quality of the learning experience;
- Preceptor availability;
- Requirements of the preceptor and/or clinical site;
- Satisfaction of requirements outlined in the ARC-PA accreditation standards;
- Satisfaction of the mission and vision of the RVU PA Program.
Once the SCPE schedule is published, clinical experiences will not be changed due to student preference or request. Only extreme circumstances (e.g. a severe health emergency) will be considered for a potential change in the schedule, and this is at the discretion of the clinical team. There are circumstances that may necessitate a change in a student’s scheduled clinical experience (i.e. the preceptor/clinical site requests a change in schedule, preceptor terminates partnership), and these situations are managed by the clinical team on a case-by-case basis. Given the multiple variables in creating a student’s schedule, these circumstances may require the clinical team to rearrange a student’s clinical experience schedule to ensure that the student receives all experiences required.
Students are expected to be flexible and professional in such matters. Clinical experiences are scheduled in various geographic locations and are coordinated to provide quality learning experiences, achieve competencies, satisfy accreditation standards, and align with the RVU PA Program mission. Travel outside of the Denver metropolitan area is likely.