Master of Science in Anesthesia

The Master of Science in Anesthesia program has partnered with the Central Application Service for Anesthesiologist Assistants (CASAA), to collect and manage applications to the Anesthesiologist Assistant Program. The Florida NSU AA programs matriculate students once per year each May. The Denver NSU AA program matriculates students once per year each January.

The following application process is required of all applicants:

1. Submit a CASAA application along with the required fee before the specified deadline. Each NSU AA program requires applicants to complete a separate CASAA application.
2. Submit all supplemental documentation directly to CASAA by specified deadline. 

Please note that  applications will not undergo review until the CASAA application is verified,and supplemental documents are received.

Important Dates

Effective for 2024-2025 CASAA cycle, ONLY the Fort Lauderdale AA program only is requiring the CASPER exam.

The NSU Fort Lauderdale Anesthesiologist Assistant program requires all applicant to complete a Casper assessment. Students applying to the Fort Lauderdale program will have the opportunity to submit their Casper assessment with their CASAA application for admissions review. To register for the Casper exam, visit https://acuityinsights.app/casper/. All test results must be received by January 15. 

The Admissions Committee begins interviews as early as September of the preceding year. Applicants are strongly encouraged to apply as soon as the CASAA application opens to afford the best opportunity to receive an interview.

Application Procedures

1. Apply to CASAA.
2. Send supporting documents, including official test scores, official transcripts, shadowing experiences, literature summary reviews, and resumes, to CASAA by designated deadline. 

NOTE: A NSU Supplemental Application is no longer required.

Prospective Master of Science in Anesthesia students are selected by the Committee on Admissions (COA), which considers the overall qualities of the applicant. Areas of consideration include interpersonal skills, personal motivation, knowledge and understanding of the AA profession and the Anesthesia Care Team, academic performance and level of achievement.

1. Baccalaureate degree from a nationally recognized and regionally accredited college or university, including above average performance in courses required in a premed curriculum. Refer to required courses below.
   
   Effective for the entering class of summer 2027, the minimum GPA for admissions will increase to a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.
   
   
2. Complete required prerequisite courses. 
   Note: a "C" or better is required in all prerequisite classes (there is no expiration date for prerequisite courses). In order to meet pre-requisite requirements, math and science courses must include sufficient rigor and detail in the discipline.
   
   Introductory, survey, or business courses will not satisfy the requirements.

    

   Required Prerequisites	Semester Hours
   Anatomy and Physiology I (A & P I) with Lab and Anatomy and Physiology II with Lab (A & P II)   OR  Human Anatomy with Lab and Physiology with Lab	8 semester hours
   Chemistry I and II with Labs	8 semester hours
   Biochemistry	3 semester hours
   Organic Chemistry I with Lab	4 semester hours
   Physics I and II with labs (Trigonometry, Pre-calculus or Calculus based) *Algebra based college physics does not meet requirements & will not be accepted*	8 semester hours
   English Composition or a Literature Course	3 semester hours
   Calculus	3 semester hours

   Please note the following courses are NOT REQUIRED but suggested.

   Preferred Courses - Not Required	Semester Hours
   Biology I and II with Labs	8 semester hours
   Biochemistry Lab	1 semester hour
   Cellular and Molecular Biology	3 semester hours
   Microbiology with Lab	4 semester hours
   Organic Chemistry II with Lab	4 semester hours

   AP and IB credits are acceptable if they are listed with course subject name and earned semester hours on official transcripts.
   
3. Official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate course work. (Please see item number 11 regarding foreign transcripts and courses.)  
   
   
4. Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.75 on a 4.0 grading scale. A minimum GPA of 3.2 is preferred. 
   
   Effective for the entering class of summer 2027, the minimum GPA for admissions will increase to a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.
   
   

5. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) scores must have been taken with the past five years and must be taken early enough for official scores to be received by admissions office by the application deadline of January 15 (October 15 for Denver AA program). Information can be obtained from the GRE website and the MCAT website. 

   The CASPER exam is only valid for the Ft. Lauderdale AA program. All CASPER scores are valid for one year and must be taken by December 4, 2025, for the 2025-2026 cycle. All official CASPER scores must be received by January 15.
   
   May 1, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   May 15, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   May 29, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   June 10, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   June 10, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   June 26, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   June 26, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   July 8, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   July 8, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   July 20, 2025 - 1:00 P.M. EDT
   July 20, 2025 - 4:00 P.M. EDT
   July 31, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   July 31, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   August 12, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   August 12, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   August 26, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   August 26, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   September 16, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EDT
   September 16, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   September 28, 2025 - 4:00 P.M. EDT
   October 21, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   October 28, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EDT
   November 13, 2025 - 6:00 P.M. EST
   December 4, 2025 - 8:00 P.M. EST
   Applicants applying to Fort Lauderdale must submit either a GRE or MCAT and the CASPER exam.
   
   
6. At least eight hours of documented anesthesia exposure by observation in the operating room.
   
   
7. Summary of an article published in a current anesthesia journal.
   
   
8. All applicants must show evidence of computer skills through coursework or self-study prior to the end of the first semester. Students may obtain instruction through the NSU Student Microcomputer Laboratory or other training facilities.
   
   
9. The applicant who has graduated from a college or university of a country for which English is not the primary language, regardless of United States’ residency status, must take the computerized Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). An official set of scores must be sent directly from the Educational Testing Service in Princeton, New Jersey, to NSU’s EPS and CASAA.
   
   
10. Coursework taken at a foreign institution must be evaluated for U.S. institutional equivalence. A course by course with GPA calculation official transcript evaluation is required. Foreign coursework must be evaluated by one of the following services:
    
    Josef Silny & Associates, Inc.
    International Education Consultants
    7101 SW 102nd Avenue
    Miami, FL 33173
    Phone: (305) 273-1616
    Fax: (305) 273-1338
    www.jsilny.com
    
    Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc.
    P.O. Box 415070
    Milwaukee, WI 53203
    (414) 289-3400
    www.ece.org
    
    World Education Services, Inc.
    P.O. Box 745
    Old Chelsea Station
    New York, NY 10113-0745
    (212) 966-6311
    www.wes.org 
    
    

    Send official foreign transcript evaluations to CASAA and also electronically to electronictranscript@nova.edu or via U. S. mail to:

    Nova Southeastern University
    Attn: EPS
    3300 S. University Drive
    Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33328-2004

Applicants seeking to enhance their application and scientific knowledge may be interested in our Post Baccalaureate Certificate in Pre-Anesthesiologist Assistant Studies. With a fall program start,this two-semester certificate program has limited enrollment, and to apply, candidates must have previously submitted a CASAA application to NSU during the last year's admission cycle. The program aims to provide a platform for demonstrating the academic excellence and acquiring the skills essential for admission into the Anesthesiologist Assistant program. 

Curriculum is subject to change as directed by the department.

Denver Program Outcomes

Fort Lauderdale Program Outcomes

 *All program statistics above represent 3-year averages (2022-2024)

Jacksonville Program Outcomes

*All program statistics above ONLY 2-year averages (2022-2023) 3 year N/A in 2023.

Tampa Program Outcomes

*All program statistics above represent 3-year averages (2022-2024)

The specific job descriptions and duties of AAs may differ according to geographic area and local practice. State law or board of medicine regulations or guidelines may further define the job descriptions of AAs. AAs practice under the direction of a qualified anesthesiologist.

The AA's functions include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Making the initial approach to a patient of any age in any setting to obtain a preliminary preanesthetic health history, perform an appropriate preanesthetic physical examination and record pertinent data in an organized and legible manner for review by an anesthesiologist. These activities help to define the patient's current physical status as it relates to the planned anesthetic.
• Performing or assisting in the conduct of diagnostic laboratory and related studies as appropriate, such as drawing arterial and venous blood samples.
• Establishing noninvasive and invasive routine monitoring modalities as delegated by the responsible anesthesiologist.
• AAs are permitted to perform regional anesthesia techniques.
• Assisting in the application and interpretation of advanced monitoring techniques such as pulmonary artery catheterization, electroencephalographic spectral analysis, echocardiography and evoked potentials.
• Assisting in inducing, maintaining and altering anesthesia levels, administering adjunctive treatment and providing continuity of anesthetic care into and during the postoperative recovery period.
• Assisting in the use of advanced life support techniques such as high frequency ventilation and intra-arterial cardiovascular assist devices.
• Assisting in making postanesthesia patient rounds by recording patient progress notes, compiling and recording case summaries and by transcribing standing and specific orders.
• Performing evaluation and treatment procedures essential to responding to life-threatening situations, such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, on the basis of established protocols (basic life support, advance cardiac life support, and pediatric advanced life support).
• Assisting in the performance of duties in intensive care units, pain clinics and other settings, as appropriate.
• Training and supervising personnel in the calibration, trouble shooting and use of patient monitors.
• Performing delegated administrative duties in an anesthesiology practice or anesthesiology department in such areas as the management of personnel, supplies and devices.
• Assisting in the clinical instruction of others.

The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) accredits AA training programs.

The National Commission for Certification of Anesthesiologist Assistants (NCCAA) was founded in July 1989 to develop and administer the certification process for AAs in the United States.

Graduates or senior students in an AA educational program that has been accredited by the CAAHEP may apply for initial certification. Initial certification is awarded to an AA who has successfully completed the Certifying Examination for Anesthesiologist Assistants administered by NCCAA in collaboration with the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). Certified AAs are permitted to use the designation AA-C to indicate that they are currently certified

Yes. In order to maintain certification after passing the initial examination, AAs must submit documentation to NCCAA that they have completed 50 hours of continuing medical education (CME) every two years. In addition, every six years they must pass the Examination for Continued Demonstration of Qualifications (CDQ).

The use of AAs within the anesthesia care team across the country is a dynamic and evolving process. Therefore, in order to get the latest and most accurate information, please contact your state board of medicine or the American Academy of Anesthesiologist Assistants.