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PA · Potsdam, New York · private

Clarkson University Physician Assistant Program prerequisites

What Clarkson asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 10 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.

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Coursework

  • Biology with labrequiredextra here

    2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

    "General Biology I (with lab) - 4 credits" and "General Biology II (with lab) - 4 credits," required on top of the anatomy and physiology sequence.

  • General chemistry with labrequired

    2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

    "General/Inorganic Chemistry I (with lab) - 4 credits" and "General/Inorganic Chemistry II (with lab) - 4 credits."

  • Biochemistryrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    One line, either course: "Biochemistry/ Organic Chemistry - 3 credits."

  • English or writing-intensivenot required here

    No English or writing course appears on the prerequisite list; the humanities line is a general social sciences and humanities elective.

  • Statisticsrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Statistics (Psychological Statistics/Biostatistics) - 3 credits."

  • Psychologyrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "General Psychology - 3 credits."

  • Geneticsrequiredextra here

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Genetics/ Eukaryotic Genetics - 3 credits."

  • Anatomy and physiologyrequired

    2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

    "Anatomy & Physiology I/Anatomy (with lab) - 4 credits" and "Anatomy & Physiology II/Physiology (with lab) - 4 credits." Either the combined A&P sequence or separate anatomy and physiology courses, each with lab. Ten year recency window applies.

  • Microbiologyrequireddiffers

    3 credits

    Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 4 credits · lab.

    "Microbiology - 3 credits." No lab is listed for this line, unlike the biology, chemistry and A&P lines.

  • Medical terminologynot required here

    Not among Clarkson's twelve prerequisite lines.

  • Social sciences and humanitiesrequiredextra here

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Social Sciences/Humanities - 3 credits," a separate line from the general psychology requirement.

Experience hours

  • Patient care experiencerequired

    500+ hours

    Two floors. "A minimum of 500 hours of patient care experience must be completed, documented and verified at the time of application submission," and "a minimum of 1,000 hours of documented and verifiable patient care experience must be completed by the time of matriculation." Quality "is defined as hands-on responsibility for the patient," compensated hours are preferred, and "shadowing or observation experiences are not accepted as patient care experience." Evidence is a letter from a supervisor or HR department on official letterhead.

  • 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.

    "A minimum of 40 hours of in person clinical observation is required for enrollment in the PA program. At least 10 hours must be completed with a Physician Assistant, and the remaining 30 hours can be completed with another licensed medical professional (PA, MD, DO, NP, etc)." Verification on official letterhead signed by the PA is uploaded before the interview, and applicants offered an interview must already have the 10 PA hours plus a separate PA observation form.

Letters

  • Science faculty letterrecommendeddiffers

    1 letter

    Most PA programmes publish no minimum.

    "It is recommended though not required to have a reference letter from a professor." Any discipline, not science specifically.

  • PA letterrecommendeddiffers

    1 letter

    Most PA programmes publish no minimum.

    Not required by name. "One letter must be completed by a clinician (MD/DO, NP, PA)," so a PA letter satisfies the clinician line but a physician or nurse practitioner does equally.

  • Supervisor letterrequireddiffers

    1 letter

    Most PA programmes publish no minimum and list it as recommended.

    Clarkson's ask is a clinician, not a work supervisor: "Three letters of reference are required. One letter must be completed by a clinician (MD/DO, NP, PA)." Recorded here because the clinician who supervised your patient care hours is the natural writer; the letter need not come from an employer.

Also on the school’s page

Clarkson publishes twelve required prerequisites in credits and holds them to a higher grade floor than most programs: "A minimum prerequisite GPA of 3.0 is required, with a grade of B or higher in all prerequisite courses." The overall GPA and overall science GPA must each be at least 3.0, including all undergraduate and graduate coursework. "All prerequisite courses must be completed within 10 years of application," no more than two may be in progress at application, advanced placement credit is not accepted for any prerequisite, and pass/fail grades are not accepted outside the spring 2020 to fall 2021 COVID exception. The admissions page does not mention the GRE or the PA-CAT at all, so no exam policy is recorded here. Three letters of reference are required, one from a clinician (MD/DO, NP, PA); a professor letter is "recommended though not required." Patient care hours are staged: 500 verified at application, 1,000 by matriculation, with a supervisor or HR letter on letterhead as evidence. Applications run through CASPA on a rolling cycle open April to March; the program begins in January with a cohort of 30. One bonus point each is added for honorably discharged or active duty military, Clarkson graduates, first generation students, residents of St. Lawrence, Jefferson, Lewis, Franklin, Herkimer or Hamilton counties, and applicants from a medically underserved area.

School

clarkson.edu/graduate/physician-assistant-studies

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