Touro University California Dual MSPAS/MPH Physician Assistant Program prerequisites

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

"8 semester/12 quarter units (including labs)" of "Biological Sciences (may be comprised of general biology, genetics, immunology, embryology, etc.)." The block is deliberately loose about which biology courses fill it, so an upper-division sequence counts as readily as the general biology year, but the labs and the eight unit total are not negotiable.

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

"8 semester/12 quarter units (including labs)" of "Chemistry (may be comprised of inorganic, organic, and biochemistry)." Touro counts any mix toward the eight units, so a year of general chemistry answers it, and so does general chemistry plus organic or biochemistry. Labs are required across the block.

Not required as its own course. Biochemistry is one of three subjects that can fill the eight unit chemistry block, which "may be comprised of inorganic, organic, and biochemistry", so a year of general chemistry alone satisfies the requirement without it.

Not a prerequisite here, though writing is assessed: the program reads the personal statement partly to judge whether an applicant can handle the MPH half of the curriculum. No English or composition coursework appears on the prerequisite list.

Not a prerequisite. Vallejo's published list is eight units of biological sciences, eight of chemistry, four each of human anatomy and human physiology, and three of microbiology, with no statistics or mathematics course anywhere on it.

Not a prerequisite. Unlike Touro's Los Angeles program, which requires six units of behavioral sciences, the Vallejo dual degree program lists only science coursework and asks for no psychology or social science course at all.

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

Two separate four unit courses, each with a lab: "4 semester/5 quarter units (including labs) of the following: Human Anatomy (must be completed within 6 years of acceptance to the program), Human Physiology (must be completed within 6 years of acceptance to the program)." Note that the six year window runs to acceptance, not to the application deadline, which buys a little room but not much. Human courses specifically.

3 credits

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

"Microbiology (3 semester/4 quarter units, lab not required)." The only science prerequisite here where Touro says outright that no laboratory is needed.

Not on the prerequisite list, which is published as a closed set of five science blocks. No medical terminology course or certificate is requested anywhere in the admission requirements.

1000+ hours

Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours.

"Candidates must have completed a minimum of 1000 hours of patient care experience either as a volunteer or in a paid position at the time of application submission." Hours still in progress do not count. Touro uses CASPA's definition, "Experiences in which you are directly responsible for a patient's care", and lists athletic trainer, CNA, dental assistant and hygienist, medic, medical assistant, LPN, LVN and RN, occupational and physical therapist, paramedic and EMT, phlebotomist, respiratory therapist and the EKG, ER, lab, mental health, ophthalmology, radiology and surgery techs. Two of its own rulings differ from CASPA's defaults and are worth reading before you log anything: CNA work splits, since "Monitoring vitals, wound care, and assisting with medical procedures are examples of patient care duties. On the other hand, helping patients with activities of daily living (ADLs) is considered health care by our program standards because it involves a lower level of responsibility", and medical assistant work splits too, since "CASPA suggests you report MA hours under Health care Experience. Our Joint Program recommends that candidates include back-office medical assistant (MA) responsibilities as patient care hours and front-office MA duties as Healthcare Experience." Split the hours rather than double counting: "you cannot repeat hours between experience types." Clinical hours earned as part of a degree or certificate do not count at all: "no direct patient care credit will be granted for student-related experiences required for your degree or certificate program." Quality is graded as well as quantity, on "specific duties performed, skill set needed, quality of patient interaction, total number of hours, specialty, setting, patient population served, and time frame of experience."

500+ hours

No floor: "There is no minimum requirement for health care experience." It still earns credit in the secondary review, particularly in the program's preferred settings. Touro uses CASPA's definition, "Paid or unpaid work in a health or health-related field where you are not directly responsible for a patient's care but may still have patient interaction", which covers scribing, home health aide work, clerical work and front-office medical assisting. These hours never substitute for the 1,000 patient care hours.

15+ hours

Most PA programmes ask for 20+ hours.

A small, specific number attached to a preference rather than a rule: "There is no minimum requirement for shadowing hours. However, candidates who shadow or work with a PA for at least 15 hours in any of the settings or fields of medicine listed below will be given preference." The program's reasoning is about the interview: "Applicants who have a detailed knowledge of the PA role tend to perform better during the interview." One firm exclusion, and it costs money to get wrong: "Virtual shadowing hours are not accepted as there are substantial limits to understanding the role of the PA in a virtual setting. We discourage applicants from paying for these types of virtual opportunities."

200+ hours

Not required, but the program publishes the number it rewards: "There is no minimum requirement for community service hours. However, preference is given to candidates who have 200 or more hours of volunteer work with community-based organizations." It also names the kind it wants: "We prefer to see experiences where candidates work with populations with limited access to essential services." One filing rule matters here: healthcare-related work, paid or unpaid, belongs in the patient care or health care sections, since "As outlined by CASPA, healthcare-related experiences do not belong in the Volunteer section."

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.

A PA letter specifically is not required, unlike at Touro's Los Angeles program. The requirement is one clinician letter from a wider set: "One letter must be from a licensed healthcare provider (i.e., PA, MD, DO, or NP)." A physician, an osteopathic physician or a nurse practitioner satisfies it just as well as a PA.

1 letter

Most PA programmes publish no minimum and list it as recommended.

One of the two named writers among three letters: "One letter from a supervisor or manager." A clinician supervisor can cover both named slots, but not the count: "If your supervisor is also a clinician, as previously defined, you may use a letter from that person to satisfy both the supervisor and the clinician's letter. You will still need to provide an additional two letters from any source." The third writer is yours to choose, and "We do not accept reference letters from friends, family, the applicant's healthcare provider, or patients/clients." CASPA will not start verification until two of the three have arrived.