PA · Richmond, Virginia · private
South University Richmond Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What South University Richmond 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
- Biology with labrequiredextra here
No published minimum
"General Biology, 2 courses. Required: General Biology I (Lab recommended), General Biology II (Lab recommended)." The lab is recommended rather than required here, and the second semester is substitutable: "Alternative Substitution for Biology II ONLY: Cell Biology, Genetics, Molecular Biology, Immunology." South counts courses, not credit hours, so no credit figure is published.
- General chemistry with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
"General Chemistry and Labs, 2 courses. Required: General Chemistry I with lab, General Chemistry II with lab." Both labs are required and chemistry is one of the subjects where "Only courses with an associated lab will be given credit for fulfilling prerequisite requirements." No credit hour figure is published.
- Biochemistryrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Organic Chemistry or Biochemistry, 1 course. Lab recommended, not required." Either course satisfies the line, only one is needed, and biochemistry and organic chemistry are both named among the courses exempt from the lab rule.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English or writing course is required. Writing is assessed through the GRE analytical writing essay, which is part of the required General Test, and through the personal statement, where "writing quality, clarity, depth, and reflection are preferred."
- Statisticsnot required here
No statistics or biostatistics course appears on the prerequisite list. South's only quantitative screen is the CASPA calculated Biology-Chemistry-Physics science GPA of 3.0.
- Psychologynot required here
Psychology is not on South's prerequisite list, which the page presents as complete: "Applicants must complete all prerequisite courses listed below." Behavioral medicine is taught inside the curriculum instead, as PAS5124 Essentials of Behavioral Medicine.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
"Anatomy and Physiology, 2 courses (sequenced): Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II with Lab OR Human Anatomy with Lab and Human Physiology with Lab. No course substitutions are accepted for this requirement." South counts courses rather than credit hours, so it publishes no credit minimum, and the lab is not waivable by substitution.
- Microbiologyrequired
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
"Microbiology with Lab, 1 course. No course substitutions are accepted for this requirement." Stated as one course rather than a credit count.
- Medical terminologynot required here
Medical terminology is not listed as a prerequisite or a recommendation. The program teaches medical interviewing and documentation in the first quarter, as PAS5102.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerecommendeddiffers
500+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as required.
No minimum exists and the program says so twice: "Although clinical experience is not required, preference is given to applicants who have direct patient care experience (i.e., care that involves personal interaction with patients such as: physical therapist, respiratory therapist, emergency medical technician/paramedic, nurse, medical assistant, certified nursing assistant, or other similar professions)", and "there is no requirement for a predetermined number of hours (or months) of health care experience to be earned by an applicant." Direct patient care is nonetheless one of the scored selection factors.
- Healthcare experiencerecommended
500+ hours
No number is set: "there is no requirement for a predetermined number of hours (or months) of health care experience to be earned by an applicant." South's preference points go to direct patient care rather than to healthcare work generally.
- PA shadowingrecommended
20+ hours
Scored but unquantified: "Preference is given to applicants who participate in shadowing experiences in healthcare with additional preference given to PA specific shadowing. Virtual shadowing is not preferred." Shadowing also feeds the required clinician letter, which must come from someone the applicant "has worked or shadowed" with.
- Non-clinical volunteeringrecommendedextra here
No published minimum
Community service is a scored selection factor with no hours attached: "Preference is given to applicants with active involvement/contribution, continuity of participation, and/or those who hold leadership roles within community service."
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.
"At least one reference on the CASPA application must be from a physician (MD/DO), Physician Assistant, or Nurse Practitioner with whom the applicant has worked or shadowed and to whom the applicant is not related." Any of those three clinicians satisfies it, and "References from Physician Assistants (PAs) are preferred." Three letters are required in total. "Impressive, well-articulated, and unequivocal letters attesting to the applicant's motivation, communication and interpersonal skills, professionalism, and future contribution towards health care are considered competitive", while "References from peers, family members, or personal friends are not considered competitive."
- Supervisor letterrecommendeddiffers
1 letter
Most PA programmes publish no minimum.
South names only one required author, the clinician letter, and leaves the other two of the three open. A work supervisor is a reasonable choice for them, but no separate supervisor letter is required, so this drops to recommended here.
Also on the school’s page
South University counts prerequisites in courses rather than credit hours, and its list is short and chemistry heavy: anatomy and physiology (2 sequenced courses with lab), general biology (2 courses), general chemistry with labs (2 courses), microbiology with lab (1 course), and organic chemistry or biochemistry (1 course). No psychology, statistics, medical terminology or English is required. The timing rule is stricter than most: "Applicants must complete all prerequisite courses listed below with a grade of C or better at a regionally accredited U.S. college or university prior to submission of his/her application", so nothing may be in progress at the deadline. Format is flexible, "The PA program accepts prerequisite coursework completed in an online, virtual, or on-ground format", but course rigor is judged: "In general, prerequisite coursework with titles that include 'Essentials of,' 'Survey of,' or 'Introductory to,' unless specifically designed for science majors, are considered less competitive. Basic science courses should be those for science majors." Where a school does not offer a required lab, "applicants may request the lab requirement for that course be waived by contacting the program", at the Admissions Committee's discretion. AP credit is accepted, counting as one course credit toward the respective subject, with grades excluded from GPA; CLEP is not accepted. No prerequisite recency window is published. On exams, the GRE is required, not optional: "Official GRE scores for the General Test (verbal, quantitative, and written essay) are required to be electronically submitted to CASPA through ETS (Educational Testing Service) using the Richmond program GRE Code: 7147. Paper copies are not accepted." There is no cutoff score, since "No preference will be given for specific GRE scores." The PA-CAT is not mentioned. Applicants "must have an overall GPA as calculated by the CASPA service of 3.0 or greater" and "should have a Biology-Chemistry-Physics (BCP) science GPA of 3.0." A bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited U.S. institution is required "no later than August 1st of the year they apply." Applications run through CASPA, matching the catalog row, and applicants "must specifically designate the South University campus(es) to which their application should be submitted within the CASPA system." The cycle opens in late April, interviews run May to November, the completion deadline is August 1, and classes begin in January. Interviews are rolling in effect: "those who apply early in the admission cycle are more likely to be granted an interview than those who apply later." No in-state preference appears anywhere on the page, which matches the catalog row. On accreditation, the page states ARC-PA has granted "Accreditation-Continued status to the South University Richmond PA Program", with the next validation review approximately March 2031. The acceptance fee is $1000, of which $900 is refundable.
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