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PA · Boston, Massachusetts · private

MCPHS University Physician Assistant Studies Program, Boston prerequisites

What MCPHS Boston 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

    7 credits · lab

    Two rows: "General Biology I (3 semester credits)" and "General Biology II with lab (4 semester credits)." The lab is attached to the second semester only, so the pair totals 7 credits rather than the usual 8.

  • General chemistry with labrequireddiffers

    10 credits · lab

    Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.

    Stated as a block rather than a named sequence: "3 Semesters of Chemistry (one lab required), minimum 10 semester hour credits. At least one semester must be an Upper Level Chemistry course (3 credits)." Three semesters and 10 credits total, with only one lab needed across all three, and one of the three must be upper level.

  • Biochemistrynot required here

    Not required by name. Biochemistry would count as the upper level course inside the three semester, 10 credit chemistry block, but MCPHS does not name it.

  • English or writing-intensivenot required here

    No English or writing requirement appears on the admission requirements page.

  • 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

    6 credits

    Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.

    "Anatomy & Physiology I & II (6 semester credits)." MCPHS asks for both semesters but states no lab requirement on this line, unlike the general biology and microbiology rows where it names the lab explicitly. Six credits, not the more common eight.

  • 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

    Not among the prerequisite courses MCPHS lists.

Experience hours

  • Patient care experiencerequireddiffers

    250+ hours

    Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours.

    "Minimum 250 hours of patient care experience required (obtained after high school graduation)." A low published floor by PA standards, and a floor rather than a competitive figure; hours earned before finishing high school do not count.

  • 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 shadowingrecommended

    20+ hours

    "PA shadowing experience (recommended)." No number is published.

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 letterrecommendeddiffers

    1 letter

    Most PA programmes publish no minimum.

    Encouraged, not required, and not restricted to PAs: "Three recommendation letters, two are required for verification. A recommendation from a healthcare professional is strongly encouraged." Note the verification rule, which means two letters must be in before CASPA will verify the application.

  • Supervisor letternot required here

    MCPHS names no specific writer as required. Three letters are requested, two must be in for verification, and a healthcare professional's letter is strongly encouraged, but a work supervisor is not mandated.

Also on the school’s page

MCPHS publishes a short prerequisite list in semester credits for the Boston MPAS, and the requirements read the same for internal undergraduate-track applicants and external ones. Every prerequisite "must have been completed at a regionally accredited U.S. or Canadian college or university with a grade of C or better." Three GPA floors apply together: "Minimum overall CASPA verified GPA of 3.0," "Minimum overall CASPA science verified GPA 3.0" and "Minimum prerequisite GPA 3.0." The recency window is real and covers more than the sciences: "Math and science courses must be taken no more than ten years prior to the anticipated date of matriculation to MCPHS," which puts a clock on the statistics course as well as the biology and chemistry. On exams, the admission requirements page makes no mention of the GRE or the PA-CAT in either direction, so treat exam policy as unstated here and confirm with the program rather than assuming either is waived. Applications go through CASPA.

School

mcphs.edu/academics/programs/physician-assistant-studies-mpas

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