Physician assistant · Master's

University of Alabama at Birmingham PA program: PANCE pass rate, cost and admission

At University of Alabama at Birmingham, 96% of the PA class of 2025 passed the PANCE on the first attempt, against 91% nationally. IPEDS counts 55 PA degrees conferred by the institution in 2024-25.

Birmingham, AL ARC-PA: Accreditation-Continued, next review April 2034 Checked Oct 2026

PANCE score report, first-time takers

Source: NCCPA report posted by the program
Class of 2025
96%
Above national 3 of 4
First-time takers
55
National, class of 2025
91%
Classes shown
4
This programNational first-time rate
80%85%90%95%100%Class of 2022: 91%, national 92%, 68 takers91%2022Class of 2023: 98%, national 92%, 56 takers98%2023Class of 2024: 95%, national 92%, 55 takers95%2024Class of 2025: 96%, national 91%, 55 takers96%2025
Table view
ClassProgramNationalTakers
202291%92%68
202398%92%56
202495%92%55
202596%91%55

Cost, size and outcomes

  • Tuition, whole programProgram page, in-state, 115 credit hours, date not stated$74,290
  • Class sizeProgram pageNot published
  • PA degrees conferred by the institutionIPEDS completions, 2024-25 (provisional), CIP 51.091255
  • Median earnings, 1 year after completionCollege Scorecard, Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, master's degree, graduates of 2020-21 and 2021-22$110,106
  • Median earnings, 4 years after completionCollege Scorecard, Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, master's degree, graduates of 2017-18 and 2018-19$114,503
  • Median federal loan debtCollege Scorecard, Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions, master's degreeNot published
  • Physician assistants, median wage, AlabamaBLS OEWS, May 2025, context only$104,960

What it asks of applicants

  • Application service and deadlineAs the program states it, year prior to matriculationCASPA · August 1
  • Minimum overall GPA3.0
  • Patient care hoursNot published
  • Program length27 months
  • Program startsFall
  • Prerequisite coursesAs the program states it, Date not statedBiology for science majors, Microbiology, Human Anatomy, Human Physiology, General Chemistry, Statistics, Psychology (general and developmental or abnormal), Medical Terminology

Accreditation

  • StatusARC-PA list, fetched 2026-10-28Accreditation-Continued
  • First accreditedSeptember 1975
  • Next accreditation reviewApril 2034
  • 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
202359565%
202460558%
202559573%

What the numbers say

For the class of 2025, 96% of UAB's 55 first-time PANCE takers passed, compared with 91% nationally, a 5-point margin. The NCCPA report on file covers 4 classes, 2022 to 2025, and UAB led the national rate in 3 of them. The exception was 2022, when the program's 91% sat 1 point under the national 92%, its lowest rate in the window. A year later the class of 2023 reached 98%, the peak of the period and 6 points above the national figure. Between 2022 and 2025 the rate rose 5 points in all. IPEDS counts 55 PA degrees conferred by UAB in 2024-25, and ARC-PA's attrition table reports 3% attrition for the class of 2025. In-state tuition for the whole 27-month program is $74,290, charged across 115 credit hours, with no date given. The CASPA application must be e-submitted by August 1 of the year before matriculation, for a fall start; check the program's page for the current cycle. A cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 is required, along with prerequisites in biology for science majors, microbiology, human anatomy, human physiology, general chemistry, statistics, psychology and medical terminology. ARC-PA first accredited the program in 1975, lists it as Accreditation-Continued and has scheduled its next review for April 2034.

Sources

  1. Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA): Entry Level Accredited Programs, fetched 28 Oct 2026
  2. www.uab.edu: Admissions | SHP - Department of Clinical And Diagnostic Sciences, fetched 29 Oct 2026
  3. www.uab.edu: Physician Associate Studies | SHP - Department of Clinical And Diagnostic Sciences, fetched 29 Oct 2026
  4. 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
  5. U.S. Department of Education: College Scorecard, Most Recent Field of Study Data, 15 Oct 2026, fetched 26 Oct 2026
  6. www.uab.edu: The program's own page (PDF), fetched 29 Oct 2026
  7. www.uab.edu: The program's own page (PDF), fetched 29 Oct 2026
  8. National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA), posted by the program: PANCE Exam Performance Summary Report for University of Alabama at Birmingham (program 6001), printed 4/09/2026, fetched 29 Oct 2026
  9. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, state estimates, May 2025, 15 May 2026, fetched 26 Oct 2026