Certified physician assistants (PA-C) are medical providers formally trained in primary care and graduating from one of over 130 accredited academic training programs in the U.S. The average PA student is age 33, has over 4 years of health-care experience, and a college degree before entering a PA program. Typical backgrounds of PA students include nursing, EMT, med-tech, paramedic, etc. Most Physician Assistant Programs last 24-27 continuous months and use the medical school model. To remain nationally certified Physician Assistants must complete 100 hours of Continuing Medical Education (CME) every 2 years and pass a national re-certification exam every 6 years. While over half of all PAs remain in primary care, the rest can be found in every medical and surgical specialty, including dermatology.