Nurse practitioners and physician assistants are advanced healthcare practitioners with similar responsibilities, such as diagnosing illnesses and prescribing medications. However, their training and paths toward certification differ in significant ways. This blog post unpacks the key differences between NPs and PAs to help you determine which career path best aligns with your goals. What Is a Nurse Practitioner? A nurse practitioner (NP) is a licensed clinician who provides comprehensive healthcare to patients of all ages. An NP can work in virtually any healthcare setting, diagnosing patient conditions and prescribing medications. As of October 2022, nurse practitioners have full practice authority in 27 states, meaning that they can practice Read more
Michael Roscoe, PhD, PA-C
Program Director, Physician Assistant Program
Michael Roscoe, PhD, PA-C is an experienced physician assistant (PA) educator and clinician. He has been a PA for more than 20 years, with a primary specialty in emergency medicine. He joined the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences in March 2021 and is based at the University’s Austin, TX campus.
Dr. Roscoe also has experience with military medicine and completed two combat tours (Afghanistan 2004-2005, Iraq 2008-2009). He has authored numerous journal articles and received the prestigious American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) Paragon Award for publishing in 2007.
He is actively involved in national and state levels of PA leadership, which has included serving on the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) Board of Directors and as president of the Indiana Academy of Physician Assistants (IAPA). He has also served on the Leadership Mission Advancement Commission (MAC) and has been a faculty facilitator/mentor for the Program Directors 101 Workshop for PAEA. In addition, Dr. Roscoe served on several national committees with the National Commission on the Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA), has worked on the Automatic Item Generation (AIG) test writing committee and the Emergency Medicine Certificate of Additional Qualification (CAQ) test writing committee.
Achievements Dr. Roscoe has earned include the Distinguished Hoosier Award from then Governor Mitch Daniels, the Bronze Star medal during his Afghanistan deployment and the 2005 Indiana PA of the Year.
Dr. Roscoe earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Butler University and a Master of Science in Biology from Purdue University. He received his second undergraduate degree in health science from Butler University and then a second master’s degree from the University of Nebraska. He received his PhD from TUI University, where his dissertation focus was on Leishmaniasis and risk mapping.
