PA · Arvada, Colorado · public
Red Rocks Community College Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Red Rocks CC asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 16 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- General chemistry with labnot required here
General chemistry is not itself a prerequisite here. The only chemistry named is one semester of organic chemistry, though general chemistry will almost certainly be the institutional prerequisite for taking it.
- Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here
3 credits
"Organic Chemistry, 3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours." One semester, and no laboratory is stated as required. General chemistry is not itself a Red Rocks prerequisite, though most institutions will require it before letting you into organic.
- Biochemistrynot required here
Biochemistry does not appear on the prerequisite list. Organic chemistry is the chemistry requirement, and the two are not offered as alternatives.
- Physics with labrequiredextra here
3 credits
"Physics, 3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours," presented on the prerequisite list as algebra-based physics. One semester only, no calculus-based course needed, and no laboratory is stated as required. Physics is rare among PA prerequisites, so it is easy to arrive without it.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English, composition or writing requirement appears on the prerequisite list.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Statistics, 3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours." Required alongside college algebra, not instead of it.
- College mathematicsrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"College Algebra, 3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours." It sits beside the statistics requirement rather than replacing it, so Red Rocks wants two separate math courses, and no substitutions are accepted.
- Psychologynot required here
No psychology course appears on the prerequisite list.
- Geneticsrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Genetics, 3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours." No laboratory is stated and no human-genetics restriction is published.
- Advanced biologyrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Cell Biology/Cell Physiology, 3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours." A specific upper level course rather than a general biology sequence, and since "No substitutions of courses will be accepted," another advanced biology course will not stand in for it.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
6 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"Human/Mammalian Anatomy and Physiology, 6 semester credit hours or 8 quarter credit hours." Mammalian A&P is accepted, not just human, and no laboratory is stated as required, which is unusual on this path. Nothing on the prerequisite list names a lab at all.
- Microbiologynot required here
Microbiology does not appear on Red Rocks' seven course prerequisite list, and "No substitutions of courses will be accepted," so it cannot be swapped in for anything either.
- Medical terminologynot required here
Medical terminology does not appear on the prerequisite list.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerecommendeddiffers
500+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as required.
Red Rocks does not split patient care experience from healthcare experience and publishes no patient care minimum of its own. The single 2,000 hour requirement is written against "paid healthcare-relevant experience" and is recorded on the healthcare experience line instead. Hands-on roles clearly qualify, since what the program rules out are the roles furthest from patients.
- Healthcare experiencerequireddiffers
2000+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as recommended.
A high floor with a date window, and the number is recorded here because the program calls it healthcare experience rather than patient care: "The applicant must have acquired at least 2,000 hours of paid healthcare-relevant experience between September 1, 2021 and September 1, 2026." Two exclusions bite: "Hours obtained for academic credit or in volunteer capacities do not count towards the required 2,000 paid hours." The program deliberately does not list qualifying roles, saying "There are no specific jobs, titles, or professions that qualify for the healthcare-relevant experience," but it names roles it has "not typically accepted": lifeguard, personal trainer, yoga or pilates instructor, non-medical researcher, and administrative-only positions.
- 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 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.
Suggested rather than required: "The admission committee recommends requesting references from individuals capable of assessing suitability and preparation of the applicant for a rigorous academic program and demanding career. Such individuals might include physicians, PAs or other health care providers." "Three references are required to complete your application, but CASPA will accept up to five references for each applicant."
- Supervisor letternot required here
Three references are required but the program names no relationship any writer must have to you. It suggests "physicians, PAs or other health care providers" and otherwise asks only for people who can assess your suitability for the program and the career, so no supervisor letter is required.
Also on the school’s page
Red Rocks spreads its requirements over three pages: this one, the prerequisite list at https://www.rrcc.edu/pa/ and the FAQ at https://www.rrcc.edu/physician-assistant-program/faqs. The prerequisite list is short and unusual, seven courses with no general chemistry, no microbiology and no psychology: College Algebra, Statistics, Physics, Cell Biology/Cell Physiology, Genetics and Organic Chemistry at "3 semester credit hours or 4 quarter credit hours" each, plus Human/Mammalian Anatomy and Physiology at "6 semester credit hours or 8 quarter credit hours." No laboratory is stated as required for any of them. The list is rigid: "No substitutions of courses will be accepted." Grades and GPA: "All prerequisite courses must be completed with a final grade of 'C' or higher" and "Applicants must have a cumulative prerequisite GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale." Everything must be finished by the September 1 deadline, and "Successful applicants usually have significant additional science coursework" at the 200 level or above, which is an observation about who gets in rather than a requirement. There is no hard recency window on coursework: "There is no period of time previous to which prerequisites will not be accepted, however, experience has shown that students who have taken the prerequisites within the last five years perform better academically." The experience hours do carry a window, though, which is the trap here: the 2,000 hours must fall inside a five year band ending at the deadline. On exams the FAQ is one word. Asked "Are GRE, PA-CAT or CASP-er assessments required for the RRCC PA Program?" the program answers "No." The cohort is 32 students a year and the application runs through CASPA with a $100 non-refundable fee.
School
rrcc.edu/paCheck your transcript against this list
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