PA · Oakland, California · private
Samuel Merritt University Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Samuel Merritt asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 12 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- General chemistry with labrequireddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"Inorganic/General Chemistry" at 4 semester or 6 quarter units, one semester rather than the two-semester sequence, and with no laboratory requirement.
- Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here
1 semester · 4 credits
Organic Chemistry, 4 semester or 6 quarter units, inside the 11 unit math and science block. No laboratory is required, which is unusual for an organic chemistry line.
- Biochemistrynot required here
Not on Samuel Merritt's list. Its chemistry requirement is one general or inorganic course plus one organic course, with no biochemistry line.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
Not a prerequisite here. No composition or writing requirement appears in either prerequisite block.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
Statistics, 3 semester or 5 quarter units, the first line in the math and science block.
- Psychologynot required here
Not a prerequisite here. The two published blocks are biological sciences and math and science only.
- Advanced biologyrequiredextra here
4 credits
A "Biology elective" of 4 semester or 6 quarter units is the fourth line in the 16 unit biological sciences block, beyond anatomy, physiology, and microbiology. The program names no specific course, so an upper-division biology of your choosing answers it.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
2 semesters · 8 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
Two separate lines inside the biological sciences block: Human Anatomy at 4 semester or 6 quarter units and Human Physiology at the same, 8 semester units together. No laboratory is required, though the five year preference on recent coursework applies here as much as anywhere.
- Microbiologyrequireddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 4 credits · lab.
Microbiology, 4 semester or 6 quarter units, grade of C or better. No laboratory requirement is attached.
- Medical terminologyrecommended
1 credits
Required outright by nearly half of programs, which is more than its recommended level here suggests. Several refuse a certificate or a free online course and want transcript credit; a few teach it after acceptance instead.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequireddiffers
2000+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours.
"2,000 hours of direct patient care experience," complete at the time of application. Paid or volunteer clinical work both count so long as it is hands-on and you are directly responsible for patient wellbeing; medical assistant, CNA, EMT, paramedic, nurse, and respiratory therapist are named as examples, while administrative and front office work does not count. The program weighs certification, duties performed, quality of patient interaction, total hours, settings, and patient populations, and values both variety and continuity.
- Healthcare experiencenot required here
No separate healthcare experience figure is published. Samuel Merritt counts hands-on patient care toward its 2,000 hours whether paid or volunteer, and excludes administrative and front office healthcare work outright rather than crediting it to a second bucket.
- PA shadowingrecommended
20+ hours
No hour figure is published and shadowing is not an admission requirement, but the program states its view plainly: "we believe it is critical to understanding the role of physician assistants to shadow or work with PAs in person, and therefore we will no longer accept virtual shadowing experience." Virtual shadowing is worth nothing here.
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 letterrequireddiffers
1 letter
Most PA programmes publish no minimum and list it as recommended.
Three letters of reference. One must come from a medical provider, a PA, NP, DPM, MD, or DO, who directly observed you in patient care; the program adds that competitive applicants typically have at least one letter from a PA. Letters from personal friends, family members, or patients are not accepted.
- Supervisor letternot required here
Not required by name. The one letter Samuel Merritt specifies is from a medical provider who observed you in patient care, which a supervising clinician satisfies; the other two writers are your choice.
Also on the school’s page
Samuel Merritt groups its prerequisites into two blocks and gives both semester and quarter units. Biological sciences, 16 semester or 24 quarter units: Human Anatomy 4 or 6, Human Physiology 4 or 6, Microbiology 4 or 6, and a Biology elective 4 or 6. Math and science, 11 semester or 17 quarter units: Statistics 3 or 5, Inorganic or General Chemistry 4 or 6, and Organic Chemistry 4 or 6. Every prerequisite needs a grade of C or better, there are no laboratory requirements attached to any of them, and "No transfer credit is accepted, and no advanced placement is offered." The program states no hard expiration on coursework but is clear about what it favours: "Strong preference will be given to those who have completed these courses within the past five years," a preference it applies less strictly to applicants currently working in healthcare. Minimums are a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution and a cumulative and science GPA of 3.0 each. On exams this program is the unusual one on the California list: Casper is mandatory with "No minimum score is required," results due September 27, 2026 at 1:00 PM PDT, and "students without results will not be considered for interviews or admission"; the PA-CAT is "Recommended, but not required; no minimum score required"; the GRE is not named anywhere in the program's published requirements. The CASPA application fee is $184 and the non-refundable tuition deposit from 2027 is $1,500.
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Samuel Merritt still needs from you.
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