PA · Stamford, Connecticut · private
Sacred Heart University Physician Associate Studies Program prerequisites
What Sacred Heart 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.
Coursework
- General chemistry with labnot required here
General chemistry does not appear in Sacred Heart's prerequisite list. The chemistry requirement is stated entirely as organic chemistry or biochemistry, though those courses will normally carry general chemistry as their own campus prerequisite.
- Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
One of the two ways to answer Sacred Heart's chemistry requirement: "Organic Chemistry I with lab (4 credits) and Organic Chemistry II with lab (4 credits); or Biochemistry with lab (4 credits)." Take the full organic sequence or the single biochemistry course, not both.
- Biochemistryrequireddiffers
4 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 3 credits.
The single-course alternative to the two-semester organic sequence: "Biochemistry with lab (4 credits)." Note the lab, which most programs do not ask for on biochemistry.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English, composition or writing credits appear in the published prerequisite list.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Statistics (Biostatistics preferred)." Sacred Heart publishes no credit count for this line, so the baseline's one semester stands as the working figure.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"General Psychology or Introduction to Psychology." One introductory course, with no second psychology course asked for.
- Advanced biologyrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
"Any upper-level human biological science course with or without lab (3-4 credits)." A fourth biology course beyond microbiology and the two anatomy and physiology semesters, and the lab is explicitly optional on this one.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
Two named courses: "Human Anatomy and Physiology I with Lab (4 credits)" and "Human Anatomy and Physiology II with Lab (4 credits)." Sacred Heart also requires that "All prerequisite labs be in person," with an exception only for online labs completed spring 2020 through summer 2021.
- Microbiologyrequired
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
"Microbiology with lab (4 credits)," and the lab must be in person under the same rule that covers every prerequisite lab here.
- Medical terminologynot required here
Not among the prerequisite courses Sacred Heart names.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequireddiffers
1000+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours.
A stated minimum, and note the word paid: "A minimum of 1,000 hours of verifiable, paid, direct patient care experience in the U.S. health care system." Volunteer patient care and hours earned outside the United States do not count toward this figure.
- 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
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.
- Faculty letter (any discipline)requiredextra here
1 letter
"Three letters of reference, including at least one letter from a work supervisor and professor." The program names a professor without naming a discipline, so any faculty member who taught you answers this line.
- PA letternot required here
Sacred Heart names only two of its three writers, and neither is a PA: "Three letters of reference, including at least one letter from a work supervisor and professor."
- 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
Sacred Heart names each prerequisite course and its credit count rather than publishing subject blocks. The biological sciences ask is four courses: "Microbiology with lab (4 credits)," "Human Anatomy and Physiology I with Lab (4 credits)," "Human Anatomy and Physiology II with Lab (4 credits)," and "Any upper-level human biological science course with or without lab (3-4 credits)." The chemistry ask is an either/or: "Organic Chemistry I with lab (4 credits) and Organic Chemistry II with lab (4 credits); or Biochemistry with lab (4 credits)." Statistics, with biostatistics preferred, and general or introductory psychology complete the list. Two GPA floors both sit at 3.0, overall as calculated by CASPA and cumulative across the prerequisites, with a grade of C or better in every prerequisite. Unusually for this path there is no recency window: "There is no time expiration for these prerequisites." Labs must be taken in person, with an exception carved out for online labs completed between spring 2020 and summer 2021. On exams, "Scores from the Graduate Records Examination (GRE) are not required" and the PA-CAT is not mentioned. TOEFL applies only to applicants educated outside the United States.
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Sacred Heart still needs from you.
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