PA · Auburn Hills, Michigan · public
Oakland University Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Oakland asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 6 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- General chemistry with labnot required here
The general chemistry sequence is not on Oakland's prerequisite list. In practice it is the gateway to the biochemistry or organic chemistry course the program does require, but Oakland does not ask for it by name.
- Biochemistryrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Biochemistry or Organic Chemistry." Either course answers the requirement, so biochemistry is not compulsory; whichever you take needs a 3.0 or better.
- English or writing-intensiverequireddiffers
2 semesters · 6 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 6 credits and list it as recommended.
"English Composition," required rather than recommended, with AP credit accepted. Composition specifically, not any writing-intensive course.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Statistics," with AP credit accepted. Remember Oakland's own warning that CASPA does not fold AP credit into the GPA, so satisfying this by AP leaves your prerequisite GPA resting on fewer courses.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
Not introductory psychology: Oakland names "Developmental Psychology" specifically. A general psychology course does not answer this line.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
Oakland splits the sequence into two named courses, "Human Anatomy with Lab" and "Human Physiology," and publishes no credit hours for either. Only the anatomy course carries a lab requirement, and it must be a real one: the in-person lab is required and an online lab is not accepted, an exception having been made only for 2020 and 2021. Like every prerequisite here it needs a grade of 3.0 or better and must fall inside the 10 year window.
- Microbiologyrequireddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 4 credits · lab.
Listed simply as "Microbiology." Oakland does not attach a lab to it or publish a credit count, so the baseline's 4 credit with lab shape is not this program's.
- Medical terminologyrequireddiffers
1 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 credits and list it as recommended.
Required here rather than recommended, and listed as a course with no stated credit count or online allowance.
- Nutritionrequiredextra here
No published minimum
Required prerequisite at Oakland. Recorded here now that the vocabulary carries a nutrition key; it was previously described in this file's notes only.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequired
500+ hours
"Minimum 500 hours of direct patient care (paid work) experience" before the application is submitted. Three constraints tighten this well beyond the number: the work must be paid, it must have been "completed in the United States," and it must fall "within four (4) years of application submission." Older or volunteer patient care does not count toward the 500.
- 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
16+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 20+ hours and list it as recommended.
Required, not recommended, and unusually specific: a minimum of 16 total hours with at least two different Physician Assistants. It must be dedicated observational time rather than job duties at your place of employment, and it must be in person; virtual shadowing is not accepted.
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 letterrecommended
No published minimum
Fewer than a third of programs require a letter from a PA. Most ask for a clinician letter that a PA, physician or nurse practitioner satisfies equally, so a PA letter is usually sufficient and rarely necessary.
- Supervisor letterrecommended
No published minimum
A letter from a work supervisor is required by about a quarter of programs. Many name no writer category at all and simply ask for three letters.
Also on the school’s page
Oakland names its prerequisites as a list of courses without publishing credit hours for them, so the lines below carry the program's grade and recency terms rather than invented credit counts. Two things make this program unusual. First, the grade floor is high: "All courses must be completed with a minimum grade of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale," which is a B in every prerequisite, alongside a cumulative GPA minimum of 3.0 and a prerequisite GPA minimum of 3.0. Second, the recency window runs on the prerequisites themselves: coursework must be completed "within 10 years of the application deadline." AP credit is accepted for English Composition and Statistics, with the caveat the program flags itself: "AP credits are not calculated into the GPA by CASPA," so AP credit can hold down your prerequisite GPA even while it satisfies the course.On exams, Oakland requires the Casper Situational Judgment Assessment and takes no other test: "No other standardized tests...are required. Scores from these tests will not be considered in the admissions review, even if submitted," naming the GRE, MCAT and PA-CAT. The program page carries no statement about letters of recommendation, so the baseline letter lines stand unchanged rather than being contradicted; confirm the letter requirement in CASPA before you assume it.
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Oakland still needs from you.
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