PA · Round Rock, Texas · private

Franklin Pierce University Physician Assistant Program Round Rock prerequisites

What Franklin Pierce TX asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 9 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.

Read from the school’s pageCheck it with the school

Coursework

Biology with labrequiredextra here
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
"Biological science w/ lab (4)." The program does not name a specific biology course, so any lab biological science satisfies it.
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.
Biochemistryrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Organic chemistry OR Biochemistry (3)." Either course satisfies the requirement, and only three credits of one of them is needed.
English or writing-intensiverecommended
2 semesters · 6 credits
English composition, usually two semesters where it is asked for at all.
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.
Psychologyrecommendeddiffers
1 semester · 3 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 3 credits and list it as required.
"Psychology (3)" sits on the recommended list, not the required one. Franklin Pierce is among the minority of PA programs that does not require it.
Geneticsrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Genetics (3)," on the recommended list.
Advanced biologyrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
The recommended list also names "Immunology (3)" and "Cell biology (3)," both upper-division biology. Neither is required.
Anatomy and physiologyrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
The full A&P sequence with lab, the one course essentially every program names. Recency windows bite hardest here: several programs expire A&P specifically, one at three years, while leaving the rest of the list alone.
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 terminologyrequireddiffers
1 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 credits and list it as recommended.
"Medical Terminology (1)." Required here, not merely recommended, and one credit is enough.
Nutritionrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Nutrition (3)" appears on the 15 credit recommended list alongside psychology, genetics, immunology and cell biology. Not required.

Experience hours

Patient care experiencenot required here
"We do not require that you have health care experience." No patient care hours minimum exists at this program, which is rare on the PA path.
Healthcare experiencerecommended
500+ hours
"We do not require that you have health care experience." No hour figure of any kind is published, and the program does not split patient care from healthcare experience. Experience still matters at the margin: applications are "ranked for interview according to GPA, personal statement, letters of recommendation, and clinical experience(s)." The FAQ confirms medical scribe and medical assistant work counts.
PA shadowingrecommended
20+ hours
"Shadowing is not required, but highly recommend[ed]." No number is published. The program expects candidates to show solid knowledge of the PA role, which PA shadowing is the ordinary way to build.

Letters

Science faculty letterrecommended
No published minimum
Only a handful of programs require a science faculty letter by name. An academic letter is welcome nearly everywhere and mandatory almost nowhere.
PA letterrequireddiffers
1 letter
Most PA programmes publish no minimum and list it as recommended.
"Yes, we require three (3) letters of recommendation," and at minimum "one of the letters is from a physician (MD/DO) or physician assistant (PA)." A physician's letter satisfies this line just as a PA's does. The other two writers are unspecified.
Supervisor letternot required here
No work supervisor letter is named. Three letters are required and only one writer is specified, a physician or PA.

Also on the school’s page

Franklin Pierce's Texas hybrid program publishes a 33 semester credit required prerequisite list and a separate 15 credit recommended list. "All prerequisite courses must be passed with a grade of 'C' or better and be completed prior to matriculation," so unlike many programs the coursework does not have to be finished at the time of application. On recency: "We strongly recommend that coursework be recent, at least within the last 10 years," and for older work the program suggests "you may want to consider taking a refresher course." This is a recommendation, not a cutoff. GPA floors are an overall science GPA of at least 3.2 and a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, the science floor being the higher of the two, which is unusual. The GRE is not required, the FAQ answering simply "No," and the PA-CAT is not mentioned anywhere on either page. "Advanced placement is not granted to prospective students." Applications go only through CASPA, must be verified before October 1, and are "reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis," then "ranked for interview according to GPA, personal statement, letters of recommendation, and clinical experience(s)."

School

franklinpierce.edu/academics/programs/physician-assistant/tx-hybrid

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