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PA · Hershey, Pennsylvania · public

Penn State University Physician Assistant Program prerequisites

What Penn State 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

    3 credits

    "General Biology," no credit count or lab named. AP credit accepted by the undergraduate institution satisfies it.

  • General chemistry with labrequireddiffers

    3 credits

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

    "General or Principles of Chemistry," no semester count, credit count or lab named. AP credit accepted by the undergraduate institution satisfies it.

  • Biochemistryrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Biochemistry or Organic Chemistry." Either course satisfies this line.

  • English or writing-intensiverequireddiffers

    2 semesters · 6 credits

    Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 6 credits and list it as recommended.

    Required here: "English Composition (two semesters, or two writing intensive courses)." AP credit accepted by the undergraduate institution satisfies it.

  • Statisticsrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Statistics or Biostatistics." AP credit accepted by the undergraduate institution satisfies it.

  • Psychologyrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "General Psychology." AP credit accepted by the undergraduate institution satisfies it.

  • Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers

    6 credits

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

    "Anatomy and Physiology (two semesters or one semester each)." No lab is named. Seven-year currency applies to Anatomy / A&P I and Physiology / A&P II, waived for applicants working full-time and continuously in healthcare since the coursework.

  • Microbiologyrequireddiffers

    3 credits

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

    "Microbiology," no credit count or lab named. Seven-year currency, waived for continuous full-time healthcare work since completion.

  • Medical terminologyrecommended

    1 credits

    "Completion of a designated Medical Terminology course is not required as a pre-requisite course. However, all students who matriculate into the program will be required to pass a medical terminology exam during PAS 736." Self-study or a formal course before matriculation are both acceptable.

Experience hours

  • Patient care experiencerecommendeddiffers

    500+ hours

    Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as required.

    No separate patient care minimum; the 500-hour combined healthcare experience requirement is on the healthcare experience line. Interview selection reviews "patient care experience (type and hours)" among other factors.

  • Healthcare experiencerequireddiffers

    500+ hours

    Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as recommended.

    "Applicants must have a minimum of 500 healthcare experience hours (paid or volunteer) prior to matriculation into the PA program." Hours may be in progress or planned during the cycle. "Hours as a personal trainer or lifeguard are not accepted." Penn State publishes one combined number and does not distinguish patient care from other healthcare experience, so the minimum is recorded here.

  • PA shadowingrecommended

    20+ hours

    Under a fifth of programs set a shadowing minimum; among those that do the median is 20 hours and a handful ask for 100 or more. Several count shadowing inside their experience total rather than separately, and a few have dropped it from scoring entirely.

Letters

  • Science faculty letternot required here

    Three letters required, writers unspecified; no faculty letter is named.

  • PA letternot required here

    "Three letters of recommendation" are required with no writer types specified.

  • Supervisor letternot required here

    Three letters required, writers unspecified; no supervisor letter is named.

Also on the school’s page

Penn State College of Medicine names its prerequisites without credit counts or lab language: "Applicants must complete the following courses with a C or better: General Biology, Anatomy and Physiology (two semesters or one semester each), Microbiology, General or Principles of Chemistry, Biochemistry or Organic Chemistry, General Psychology, Statistics or Biostatistics, English Composition (two semesters, or two writing intensive courses)." "Online courses from regionally accredited institutions are accepted." Recency: "Three pre-requisite courses have a seven-year currency: Anatomy / A&P I, Physiology / A&P II, Microbiology. This currency requirement will be waived for any applicant who has been working full-time and continuously in the healthcare field since completion of coursework." "AP credits accepted by the undergraduate institution can be used to satisfy general biology, general chemistry, psychology, statistics, and English composition courses." Prerequisites and the degree may be in progress at application but must be verified before the May matriculation. GPA: CASPA-calculated overall cumulative GPA and overall science GPA each "greater than or equal to 3.0." Bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. or Canadian institution; health science majors preferred but not required. Applicants must be U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or have DACA status; international candidates are not eligible. Testing: "Completion of the GRE (no minimum score requirement): GRE school code 0900. In lieu of the GRE, applicants may provide MCAT, PCAT, or DAT scores. The program has not adopted using the PA-CAT test results as a substitution for the GRE. MCAT (old version) 29 or MCAT (new version) 505 required, PCAT total score 75th percentile rank or higher, DAT total score of 18 or higher." Experience: "Applicants must have a minimum of 500 healthcare experience hours (paid or volunteer) prior to matriculation into the PA program. These hours can be in progress or planned during the application and interview cycle. While the program is flexible in accepting a wide variety of hours to help satisfy the 500-hour requirement, hours as a personal trainer or lifeguard are not accepted." The program publishes one combined number and does not split patient care from healthcare experience, though interview review weighs "patient care experience (type and hours)." Three letters of recommendation, writers unspecified; a personal essay and release statement are required. Interview preference factors: rural or underserved residence, disadvantaged background, first-generation status, military service, Pennsylvania residency, Penn State graduation, Penn State Health employment, an advanced degree. No advanced placement or transfer credit. CASPA deadline December 1 and LionPATH registration by 11:59 p.m. Eastern December 15.

School

med.psu.edu/physician-assistant

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