Admission requirements for Master of Science in Anesthesia
Program overview
The Indiana University School of Medicine offers a Master of Science degree in anesthesia as part of an Anesthesiologist Assistant Program. This program is a 28-month didactic curriculum that prepares learners for certification as anesthesiologist assistants.
This graduate program offers access to world-class clinical facilities and simulation laboratories and is housed within one of the top academic health care centers in the midwest. The IU School of Medicine Anesthesiologist Assistant Program is housed on the IU School of Medicine—Indianapolis campus, which is within walking-distance to IU Health University Hospital, Riley Hospital for Children, Eskenazi Hospital, and Methodist Hospital.
Curriculum
Curriculum for this program includes 28 months of intensive didactic sessions complemented by clinical rotations through a variety of subspecialties, including pediatrics, trauma, orthopedics, regional anesthesia, neuro and OB. The program, including classroom, laboratory and clinical requirements, prepares students for the certification examination offered by the National Commission for the Certification of Anesthesiologist Assistants. At the successful conclusion of the program, students are awarded a Master of Science degree in Anesthesia.
Admission requirements
- Applicants must have a Bachelor’s Degree from a regionally accredited institution in the United States or Canada.
- An overall GPA of 3.4 or greater is considered competitive for admission to this program.
- Pre-requisites must be completed within ten years of matriculation.
- Applicants must have taken the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) or the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) within three years of matriculation. There is no absolute minimum, but the following results are considered competitive: MCAT minimum total score of 499 (49th percentile) and GRE minimum score of 152 (55th percentile) in Verbal Reasoning and a minimum score of 154 (55th percentile) in Quantitative Reasoning.
- Applicants must complete at least 8 hours of shadowing. This can be either a Physician Anesthesiologist (MD or DO), Anesthesiologist Resident, Certified Anesthesiologist Assistant (CAA) or a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) who practices in the Anesthesia Care Team Model.
- Letters of Evaluation must be submitted by faculty, advisors, school administrators, employers, or other individuals who can speak to the applicant’s ability and personal character as they relate to the pursuit of a career as an anesthesiologist assistant. Of the three required letters, one must be from a professor or instructor who can attest to the applicant academic ability. Family members and/or friends of the family will not be considered as valid letters of recommendation for application submissions.
Required prerequisite courses (for the IU School of Medicine)
Course | IUPUI Equivalent |
Human Anatomy | BIOL-N 261 |
Human Physiology | BIOL-N 217 |
Two Semesters of Chemistry w/ Lab | CHEM-C 105 and CHEM-C 125, CHEM-C106 and CHEM-C 126 |
Two Semesters of Biology w/ Lab | BIOL-K 101 and BIOL-K 103 The following courses may be substituted for this requirement: Microbiology, Cell & Molecular Biology |
Biochemistry | BIOL-K 384 or CHEM-C 384 |
Two Semesters of Physics w/ Lab | PHYS-P 201 and PHYS-P 202 |
Two Semesters of Organic Chemistry w/ Lab | CHEM-C 341 and 343, CHEM-C 342 and 344 |
Calculus | MATH 23100 or 16500 |
Statistics | PSY-B 305 or STAT 30100 |
Writing/College English | ENG-W 131 |
Visit the IU School of Medicine Department of Anesthesia for more information.