Physician assistant · Master's

Duke University PA program: PANCE pass rate, cost and admission

At Duke University, 100% of the PA class of 2025 passed the PANCE on the first attempt, against 91% nationally. The program reports a class size of 90. IPEDS counts 85 PA degrees conferred by the institution in 2024-25.

Durham, NC ARC-PA: Accreditation-Continued, next review January 2028 Checked Oct 2026

Listed by ARC-PA as: Duke University Medical Center

PANCE score report, first-time takers

Source: NCCPA report posted by the program
Class of 2025
100%
Above national 2 of 5
First-time takers
88
National, class of 2025
91%
Classes shown
5
This programNational first-time rate
80%85%90%95%100%Class of 2021: 97%, national 93%, 89 takers97%2021Class of 2022: 89%, national 92%, 90 takers89%2022Class of 2023: 88%, national 92%, 90 takers88%2023Class of 2024: 92%, national 92%, 91 takers92%2024Class of 2025: 100%, national 91%, 88 takers100%2025
Table view
ClassProgramNationalTakers
202197%93%89
202289%92%90
202388%92%90
202492%92%91
2025100%91%88

Cost, size and outcomes

  • Tuition per yearProgram page, Fall 2026 entrants$55,327
  • Class sizeProgram page, Fall 202690
  • PA degrees conferred by the institutionIPEDS completions, 2024-25 (provisional), CIP 51.091285
  • Median earnings, 1 year after completionCollege Scorecard, Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, master's degree, graduates of 2020-21 and 2021-22$124,843
  • Median earnings, 4 years after completionCollege Scorecard, Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, master's degree, graduates of 2017-18 and 2018-19$132,468
  • Median federal loan debtCollege Scorecard, Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, master's degreeNot published
  • Physician assistants, median wage, North CarolinaBLS OEWS, May 2025, context only$129,360

What it asks of applicants

  • Application service and deadlineAs the program states it, 2026-27 cycleCASPA · September 1
  • Minimum overall GPANot published
  • Patient care hours1,000 required
  • Program length24 months
  • Program startsAugust
  • Prerequisite coursesAs the program states it, 2026-27 cycleAnatomy, Physiology, Microbiology, 2 other Biology courses, 2 Chemistry courses with lab, Statistics

Accreditation

  • StatusARC-PA list, fetched 2026-10-28Accreditation-Continued
  • First accreditedSeptember 1972
  • Next accreditation reviewJanuary 2028
  • Program websiteVisit

Nearby PA programs

Attrition by class, as the program posts it

ARC-PA attrition table from the program's own page, with the entering and graduating counts it prints. A table that prints attrition as a fraction (0.20) shows here as a percent (20%).
ClassEnteredGraduatedAttrition
202492911.1%
202592884.3%
202691882.3%

What the numbers say

Every first-time taker in Duke's class of 2025 passed the PANCE, a rate of 100% against 91% nationally. That 100% is the highest result among the 5 classes in the program's NCCPA report. The class of 2022 passed at 89% and the class of 2023 at 88%, below the national rate of 92% in both years. In 2024 Duke matched the national figure exactly, both at 92%. The class of 2021 posted 97%, 4 points above that year's national rate of 93%. Across the window the program sat above the national rate in 2 of 5 classes and below it in 2. Between 88 and 91 graduates sat the exam for the first time in each of those years. Duke describes its PA class size as typically 90 students per year, while IPEDS counts 85 PA degrees conferred by Duke in 2024-25. Tuition for students entering in fall 2026 is $55,327 for each year of the program, and Duke charges in-state and out-of-state students alike. In the 2026-27 cycle the CASPA application has to be verified by September 1, and the class begins in August. ARC-PA has listed the Duke program since 1972; its status is Accreditation-Continued and the next review falls in January 2028. College Scorecard puts the median pay of graduates of the allied health diagnostic, intervention and treatment field at Duke, 2020-21 and 2021-22 completers, at $124,843 1 year after they finished.

Sources

  1. Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA): Entry Level Accredited Programs, fetched 28 Oct 2026
  2. medschool.duke.edu: Application | Duke University School of Medicine, fetched 28 Oct 2026
  3. medschool.duke.edu: Duke ARC-PA Student Attrition | Duke University School of Medicine, fetched 29 Oct 2026
  4. medschool.duke.edu: What We Look for in an Applicant | Duke University School of Medicine, fetched 28 Oct 2026
  5. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES): IPEDS Completions, awards by program and award level, 2024-25 (provisional release), 21 Jul 2026, fetched 26 Oct 2026
  6. U.S. Department of Education: College Scorecard, Most Recent Field of Study Data, 15 Oct 2026, fetched 26 Oct 2026
  7. medschool.duke.edu: Prerequisites | Duke University School of Medicine, fetched 29 Oct 2026
  8. medschool.duke.edu: Frequently Asked Questions | Duke University School of Medicine, fetched 29 Oct 2026
  9. medschool.duke.edu: Tuition and Fees | Duke University School of Medicine, fetched 28 Oct 2026
  10. National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA), posted by the program: PANCE Exam Performance Summary Report for Duke University Medical Center (program 1010), printed 7/08/2026, fetched 28 Oct 2026
  11. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, state estimates, May 2025, 15 May 2026, fetched 26 Oct 2026