A T Still University of Health Sciences

What is the history of A T Still University of Health Sciences?

A.T. Still University of Health Sciences (ATSU) traces its origins to the American School of Osteopathy, founded by Andrew Taylor Still in Kirksville, Missouri, in 1892. The school was established to teach osteopathic medicine; its founding institution later became the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine.

ATSU has since expanded beyond osteopathic medical education. It now teaches students in dentistry, physician assistant studies, and other health professions, with programs in Missouri, Arizona, and California. That history explains both its emphasis on osteopathic principles and its present-day identity as a university focused on health professions rather than a general-purpose undergraduate college.

What are the faculties and departments at A T Still University of Health Sciences?

ATSU organizes its programs through specialized health-professions schools. Its Kirksville-based schools include the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine and the Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health; the latter also uses clinical education sites outside Kirksville.

Other ATSU schools include the Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health, Arizona School of Health Sciences, School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona, and College of Graduate Health Studies. Programs across the university include osteopathic medicine, dentistry, physician assistant studies, and graduate study in health-related fields. The credential, campus, clinical placement arrangements, and application process depend on the specific program. Applicants should begin with the school and degree they intend to pursue, not assume that every ATSU program is based in Kirksville.

What is the location of A T Still University of Health Sciences?

ATSU's historic campus is in Kirksville, a small city in northeastern Missouri. It is a different setting from the university's Arizona programs in the Phoenix metropolitan area and its physician assistant program in Santa Maria, California.

Kirksville students should plan around a small-city environment and the possibility that clinical training will take place elsewhere. Because specialized health programs may assign rotations or other experiences away from the teaching campus, the location of every required phase of a degree matters more than the university's mailing address alone. Students considering a move should also account for transportation to clinical sites and the availability of off-campus housing.

What is the mission and vision of A T Still University of Health Sciences?

ATSU describes its mission as preparing health professionals while continuing its osteopathic heritage. Its stated priorities include whole-person care, community health, scholarship, interprofessional education, and service to underserved populations.

In practical terms, those priorities are most relevant when evaluating a particular curriculum: an applicant can look for required community placements, opportunities to learn with students in other professions, and how a program teaches patient care. The mission describes the university's aims; it should not be read as a guarantee that every student will have the same clinical or service experience.