PA · Ashland, Virginia · private
Randolph-Macon College Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Randolph-Macon asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 14 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- Biology with labrequiredextra here
7 credits · lab
"Two semesters of General Biology are required. One General Biology course must include a lab component. Other general and upper-level Biology courses will fulfill this requirement (excluding Botany) (7+ credit hours)." Only one of the two semesters needs the laboratory, and botany is the one exclusion.
- General chemistry with labrequireddiffers
7 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"Two semesters of General/Inorganic Chemistry* (7+ credit hours)", lab required. Inorganic chemistry is named as an acceptable form of the sequence.
- Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here
3 credits
"One semester of Organic Chemistry (3+ credit hours)." It carries no asterisk on RMC's list, so no laboratory is required, and it is required alongside biochemistry rather than as an alternative to it.
- Biochemistryrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
Roughly half the programs that ask for an upper chemistry accept either biochemistry or organic chemistry for the same single line, so one course often covers both entries on this list.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
English or writing coursework appears on neither the required nor the preferred list, and the required list is presented as complete: "The following coursework represents the minimum required for a completed application to the PA Program." The quantitative and symbolic reasoning course is the only general education style requirement RMC names.
- Statisticsrequireddiffers
2 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 3 credits.
"One semester of Statistics (2+ credit hours)." The two credit floor is lower than the usual three, so a short statistics course can answer it.
- College mathematicsrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"One semester of College Math or other quantitative and symbolic reasoning course (3+ credit hours)." This sits beside the statistics requirement, not in place of it, so RMC asks for two quantitative courses.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"One semester of General Psychology (3+ credit hours)" is required, and "One semester of Psychology elective (3+ credit hours)" appears on the preferred list, so a second psychology course strengthens the file.
- Geneticsrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
On the preferred list: "Successful completion of any of the following coursework will strengthen a candidate's application. One semester of Genetics (3+ credit hours)."
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
7 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"Two semesters of Human Anatomy and Physiology* (7+ credit hours)", and the asterisk means the lab is required. Seven credits, one below the usual eight.
- Microbiologyrecommendeddiffers
3 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 4 credits · lab and list it as required.
A real departure from the baseline: microbiology is preferred, not required, at RMC. It appears only under "Preferred Coursework" as "One semester of Microbiology (3+ credit hours)", with no lab marked.
- Medical terminologyrequireddiffers
1 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 credits and list it as recommended.
Required here rather than recommended: "Medical Terminology (1+ credit hour or equivalent)." The phrase "or equivalent" leaves room for a non-credit route; ask paadmissions@rmc.edu before assuming a particular course counts.
- Additional science creditsrecommendedextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Upper-level Biology, Chemistry, or Physics courses (3+ credit hours)" appear on the preferred list. RMC names the three departments and lets the applicant choose, so this is a flexible science block rather than an upper-level biology requirement.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerecommendeddiffers
500+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as required.
RMC sets no hours floor: "We do not require a baseline number of clinical experience hours, but we will give preference to applicants who demonstrate volunteer or paid experiences that include significant patient contact." What it publishes instead are class averages, which are not minimums: average patient care hours were "over 4000" for the Classes of 2024 and 2025 and "over 3000" for the Class of 2026. Those cohorts also averaged cumulative GPAs of 3.45, 3.61 and 3.65.
- 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
No number is published. "No, however it is strongly recommended that applicants find opportunities to spend meaningful time in healthcare environments with a PA, MD, DO, or NP." Time with any of those four providers counts, not PAs alone.
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 letternot required here
No PA letter is required. RMC asks for three letters from "colleagues, supervisors, professors, etc." and rules out only personal and family references. A PA letter is welcome, it is simply not named.
- Supervisor letterrecommendeddiffers
1 letter
Most PA programmes publish no minimum.
RMC requires three letters but names no required author: "Three letters are required, which will be submitted through CASPA. Letters can be submitted by colleagues, supervisors, professors, etc. We do not accept personal references, including those by family members." A supervisor is one accepted voice among several, so this drops from required to recommended here.
Also on the school’s page
RMC publishes a required prerequisite list and a separate preferred list, and the two differ sharply from the PA baseline: microbiology is only preferred here, while college math and medical terminology are required. The credit floors are lower than most, stated as "7+" for the two semester science sequences and "2+" for statistics. "Courses marked with a '*' must include a lab component", which marks general chemistry and human anatomy and physiology; the two semesters of general biology need only one lab between them, and organic chemistry carries no lab mark. All prerequisites need "a grade of C or better. Prerequisite courses of grades C-, D, or F will not be considered", pass/fail is not accepted, and community college, online and hybrid coursework is: "The PA Program will accept coursework from accredited 2- and 4-year institutions, including those who deliver coursework via online or hybrid environments." Unusually for this path there is no coursework recency window: "Most coursework and other requirements do not have expiration dates, except for the following: CASPer results must be from the year of application. GRE General Test results must be within 5 years of the application date." On exams, the GRE is required, not optional: "the RMC PA Program requires that applicants submit scores from the General Test of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE)", submitted through CASPA to code 3294, and "Although no minimum GRE score is required, higher scores are correlated with increased success in the program." The CASPer Situational Reasoning Test is also required, with "NEITHER the Snapshot nor Duet portions" needed. No PA-CAT is mentioned. Minimum cumulative and science GPAs are 3.0. Applicants must hold U.S. citizenship or permanent resident status and a baccalaureate degree. Admission is rolling through CASPA, matching the catalog row, and the cycle for the Class of 2028 opened April 30, 2026 and closed September 1, 2026, with matriculation in January 2027 into a class of at most 40. There is no in-state preference, which matches the catalog row, but there are stated preferences: applicants who are "First in family to attend college" or "From a medically-underserved area (MUA)* or health professions shortage area (HPSA)*", and "Randolph-Macon College graduates who meet all criteria for admission will be offered an interview during the year of application."
School
rmc.edu/departments/paCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Randolph-Macon still needs from you.
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