PA · Augusta, Georgia · public
Augusta University Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Augusta asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 12 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- Biology with labrequiredextra here
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
"Biology I and II - Labs required (8 hours)." Must be the majors sequence: Augusta names its own BIO 1107/1108 as qualifying and rejects the non-majors BIO 1101/1102, and it will not accept health science based science courses here.
- General chemistry with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
The two-semester sequence with lab. Around a fifth of programs want only one semester or skip general chemistry entirely and start at organic or biochemistry.
- Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
"Organic Chemistry I - Lab required (4 hours)." One semester only, and Augusta names no biochemistry requirement beside it.
- Biochemistrynot required here
Not on Augusta's mandatory prerequisite list. The chemistry ask is general chemistry I and II plus organic chemistry I.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English or writing course appears on the mandatory prerequisite list.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
Statistics, not calculus. The exception is regional: several Oklahoma and Texas programs require college algebra instead and do not count statistics, so check those individually.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
General psychology. Many programs fold it into a broader social or behavioural science block that sociology or anthropology also satisfies.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
For this cycle only one semester is required: "Human Anatomy and Physiology I - Lab required (4 hours). Must be a grade of 'B' or higher." A C does not pass this line. Augusta also warns that "As of the 2027-2028 admissions cycle, for the class of 2030, Anatomy and Physiology II with Lab will be a required prerequisite. A minimum grade of 'B' or higher must be earned," so anyone applying a year later needs the full sequence at B or better.
- Microbiologyrequired
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
Named by nearly every program, usually 3 or 4 credits. A minority accept it without the lab, so read the school's own line before dropping one.
- Medical terminologynot required here
Augusta names no medical terminology requirement or recommendation on its requirements page.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequireddiffers
160+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours.
"Candidates must have a minimum of 160 hours of direct patient care/healthcare experience (e.g. work as an EMT/LPN/MA/CAN/RN/Pharmacy Tech)." That 160 only gets you screened: the final review ranks hours in bands [160-299, 300-499, 500-799, 800-999, 1000+]. Scribing is being withdrawn. The program says it "has historically accepted 'scribe' hours," but "As scribe roles do not engage patients directly, scribe hours will no longer count toward PA admissions applications as of July 2027," accepted in the 2026 cycle and not in subsequent ones.
- Healthcare experiencerecommended
500+ hours
Many programs publish one combined healthcare figure instead of splitting patient care from healthcare exposure; where they do, the number lands here. Median published minimum is 500 hours.
- PA shadowingrequireddiffers
40+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 20+ hours and list it as recommended.
Required with a number, not merely recommended: "Candidates must have a minimum of 40 hours shadowing with PA(s) at the time of this screening." Final review then ranks both quantity [40-49, 50-59, 60-74, 75-99, 100+ hours] and variety of medical fields shadowed [1, 2, 3+].
- Non-clinical volunteeringrecommendedextra here
No published minimum
Scored in the final review with no floor: "Higher preference is given for candidates with more hours of volunteer experience in the following classifications [0-19 hours, 20-39 hours, 40-59 hours, 60-99 hours, 100+ hours]." The bottom band starts at zero, so this is preference, not a minimum.
Letters
- Science faculty letternot required here
No science faculty letter is named. Only the PA letter is specified.
- PA letterrequireddiffers
1 letter
Most PA programmes publish no minimum and list it as recommended.
"Three letters of recommendation, with at least one from a certified Physician Assistant." The other two writers are unrestricted, and the program scores letters on quality "with no concerns or red flags."
- Supervisor letternot required here
Augusta specifies only the PA letter among its three. A work supervisor may write one of the remaining two but is not asked for.
Also on the school’s page
Augusta publishes a list headed "Mandatory Prerequisites for the Master of Physician Assistant Program": biology I and II with labs (8 hours), general chemistry I and II with labs (8 hours), intro to psychology (3 hours), human anatomy and physiology I with lab (4 hours, grade B or higher), microbiology with lab (4 hours), organic chemistry I with lab (4 hours), and elementary statistics (3 hours). "All prerequisite coursework should be from within the past 10 years," and unfinished prerequisites are allowed if the supplemental application describes a plan to finish them before matriculation. Two GPA floors: 3.0 cumulative overall undergraduate and 3.0 biology, chemistry and physics (BCP). A standardized exam is required and either test satisfies it: "Official Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Physician Assistant College Admissions Test (PA-CAT) score report sent directly to both CASPA and Augusta University... The application is incomplete without the GRE or PA-CAT scores." The GRE minimum is 290 overall and the PA-CAT has no minimum, both within the last five years, and the program superscores the GRE, taking the highest quantitative and highest verbal percentile from any attempt in five years. CASPer is also required of every applicant and must be completed before acceptance. Augusta will not accept health science based science courses toward the science prerequisites, and "All science prerequisite coursework is expected to be at the level of what would be required for a science major," naming its own BIO 1107/1108 as acceptable and BIO 1101/1102 as not. Grade forgiveness from another institution is not honoured, and AP or CLEP credit earns no grade so it cannot count toward the admission GPA. Enrolment is 48 per class year, the CASPA cycle runs July 1 to January 15 with all supporting documents due to Graduate Admissions by January 31, and interviews run from late August through March with virtual interviews offered this cycle. Meeting each minimum is explicitly not enough: "if they only meet the minimum in every category, the overall strength of the application will not be sufficient to be invited for an interview." A voluntary GRIT Pathway supplemental application is open to interviewees only. The program notes it "accepts more Georgia residents due to the high number of in-state applications received," which is a statistical observation rather than a stated preference.
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Augusta still needs from you.
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