Message from the President and CEO

I am always excited when we release the Statistical Profile of Recently Certified PAs because this report focuses on the next generation of PAs and the future of the PA profession. We are pleased to announce another record-breaking year, with almost 11,000 PAs earning NCCPA certification in 2021. This cohort was represented in every state and the District of Columbia. The data shared in this report highlights what’s important to this group as they embark on their job search and in their first clinical position. When available, data from 2017 are provided to show the five-year trends. Over 75% of this cohort is less than 30 years old. While the diversity is slightly better than the entire population of PAs, there is still much work to be done for the PA profession to be representative of the patient population. We continue to see a slight but steady decline in the number of PAs choosing to start their
careers in a primary care role. When looking at the data from the 2017, 2020, and 2021 cohorts, there is a gradual decrease in educational debt’s impact on deciding whether to seek a primary care position. Of those who accepted a position, 22.1% reported working in primary care. Similarly, 23.1% of those still searching for a position were interested in primary care. Almost half (46.8%) of those who have found a job are working in a hospital setting, and 42.1% of those searching for a job hope to work in this setting. Our report on the 2020 cohort reflected some of the challenges that recently Certified PAs faced as they were beginning their careers in the midst of the pandemic. We were pleased to see improvements for this 2021 group. In 2020, of those who accepted a position, 40.6% reported challenges when searching for a position, and that dropped to 35.6% for 2021. For those who have not accepted a position, 73.1% of the 2020 cohort reported challenges, compared to 60.6% of the 2021 group. Almost one-third (32.2%) of the 2021 cohort accepted a position within one month of starting their search, and 65.1% had two or more offers. This most recent cohort also saw a starting salary increase, with over 50% earning $100,000 or more. We hope you find this report interesting and useful. On behalf of NCCPA, we appreciate the PAs in this 2021 cohort for taking the time to provide this important data, and we wish them all the very best as they embark
on an exciting and rewarding career.

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About the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants

The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) is the national certifying organization for the PAs in the United States. The PA-C credential is awarded by NCCPA to PAs who fulfill board certification, certification maintenance, and recertification requirements. NCCPA also administers the Certificate of Added Qualifications (CAQ) program for experienced, Board Certified PAs practicing in nine specialties. For more information, visit https://www.nccpa.net.

https://doi.org/10.64936/SJRE2110