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PA · Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania · public

Slippery Rock University Physician Assistant Program prerequisites

What Slippery Rock asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 17 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.

Read from the school’s pageCheck it with the school

Coursework

  • Biology with labrequiredextra here

    3 credits · lab

    "General Biology with lab (3-4 credits)." One course.

  • General chemistry with labrequireddiffers

    6 credits · lab

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

    "General Chemistry I with lab (3-4 credits)" and "General Chemistry II with lab (3-4 credits)."

  • Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here

    3 credits

    "Organic Chemistry I (3-4 credits, lab recommended but not required)." One semester; organic is the required course and biochemistry is only recommended.

  • Biochemistryrecommendeddiffers

    1 semester · 3 credits

    Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 3 credits and list it as required.

    Not required. "Highly Recommended: one upper-level biology or biochemistry course with or without lab in addition to the required biology courses listed above." An upper-level biology course answers the recommendation just as biochemistry does; the required chemistry beyond the general sequence is Organic Chemistry I.

  • English or writing-intensivenot required here

    No English or writing course is on SRU's prerequisite list.

  • Statisticsrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Inferential statistics course (3 credits, any statistics course with inferential statistics embedded)."

  • Psychologyrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    "Psychology course (3 credits, introductory, developmental, or abnormal psychology)."

  • Geneticsrequiredextra here

    1 semester · 3 credits

    Required here: "Genetics (3-4 credits, lab recommended, but not required)."

  • Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers

    6 credits · lab

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

    "A&P I with lab (3-4 credits)" and "A&P II with lab (3-4 credits)," both marked with the five-year flag: "All Anatomy and Physiology courses and the Medical Terminology course must be taken within the past 5 years."

  • Microbiologyrequireddiffers

    3 credits · lab

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

    "Medical Microbiology or Microbiology with lab (3 credits)."

  • Medical terminologyrequireddiffers

    1 credits

    Most PA programmes ask for 1 credits and list it as recommended.

    Required here: "Medical Terminology (at least 1 credit)," and it "must be taken within the past 5 years." "If you are a non-native English speaker, regardless of citizenship, the Medical Terminology course must have been taught in English." Experience does not substitute: "The program does not make exceptions for any prerequisite course or admission requirement based upon experience."

Experience hours

  • Patient care experiencerecommendeddiffers

    500+ hours

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

    SRU publishes no separate patient care minimum. Its single 600-hour requirement is "health care experience or patient care experience hours" and is recorded on the healthcare experience line, with CASPA's definitions deciding what falls in each bucket.

  • Healthcare experiencerequireddiffers

    600+ hours

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

    "Completion of 600 hours or more of health care experience or patient care experience hours within the last five years. Please refer to CASPA website for complete definition of what is included in these experiences. It is strongly recommended that hours are completed prior to your interview." The program does not split the two for this number; either CASPA category counts, and only hours from the last five years.

  • PA shadowingrequireddiffers

    16+ hours

    Most PA programmes ask for 20+ hours and list it as recommended.

    "Completion of 16 hours or more of clinical shadowing within the last five years with two (2) different PA-Cs in two (2) different areas of medicine. Students must have some in-person hours."

  • Non-clinical volunteeringrequiredextra here

    100+ hours

    "Completion of 100 hours or more of community service and/or service learning satisfied through any type of purposeful volunteer activity or event that benefits the community within the last five years. It is strongly recommended that hours are completed prior to the interview."

Letters

  • Science faculty letternot required here

    The recommended instructor letter carries no science restriction; it is recorded on the any-discipline faculty line.

  • Faculty letter (any discipline)recommendedextra here

    1 letter

    Three letters are required; "it is recommended that the letters include: one (1) from a former college/university instructor, one (1) from a supervisor of a required healthcare experience or patient care experience, and one (1) character reference that can directly attest to the applicant's character." The instructor letter is this line, any discipline.

  • PA letternot required here

    No PA letter is named among the three; the recommended set is an instructor, a healthcare or patient care supervisor, and a character reference.

  • Supervisor letterrecommendeddiffers

    1 letter

    Most PA programmes publish no minimum.

    Recommended rather than required: one of the three letters should come "from a supervisor of a required healthcare experience or patient care experience." The third recommended letter is a character reference.

Also on the school’s page

SRU groups its prerequisites by department, each with a credit range: Biology (General Biology with lab, 3-4; A&P I with lab, 3-4; A&P II with lab, 3-4; Medical Microbiology or Microbiology with lab, 3; Genetics, 3-4, lab recommended but not required), Chemistry (General Chemistry I with lab, 3-4; General Chemistry II with lab, 3-4; Organic Chemistry I, 3-4, lab recommended but not required), Math (Inferential statistics course, 3), Psychology (3, introductory, developmental or abnormal) and Medical Terminology (at least 1 credit). "Highly Recommended: one upper-level biology or biochemistry course with or without lab in addition to the required biology courses listed above." "A grade of 'C' or better is required for all prerequisite courses." Recency is selective: "All Anatomy and Physiology courses and the Medical Terminology course must be taken within the past 5 years"; no window is stated for the other courses. "AP/IB courses are not accepted for any of the above requirements." "The program does not make exceptions for any prerequisite course or admission requirement based upon experience." Pass/fail grades are considered case by case only with an instructor's confirmation of a C or better. GPA: "A minimum CASPA calculated GPA of at least 3.25 on a 4.0 scale at the time of application" for cumulative, prerequisite and science GPA alike, and again as a program-calculated GPA to matriculate. A baccalaureate degree is required, or completion of the first three years of SRU's Pre-PA 3+2. Testing: the page does not mention the GRE, PA-CAT or CASPer; non-native English speakers must submit English proficiency scores by the deadline, and their medical terminology course must have been taught in English. Three letters through CASPA plus a 5,000-character essay and an interview. CASPA applications are accepted May 1 to December 1, 2026, for the cohort beginning June 1, 2027. "Preference is given to applicants who possess a higher cumulative GPA, science GPA, and pre-requisite GPA. Preference is also given to SRU 3+2 students, SRU graduates, other PASSHE school graduates, and veterans." No advanced placement is offered.

School

sru.edu/academics/graduate-programs/physician-assistant-studies-master-of-science

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