PA · Detroit, Michigan · private
University of Detroit Mercy Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Detroit Mercy 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 labnot required here
The six required prerequisites are a closed list and general chemistry is not on it. No chemistry of any kind is required here.
- Biochemistrynot required here
Not on the six course prerequisite list, and neither is organic chemistry.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English or writing requirement appears among the six prerequisites.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Statistics," defined as statistical methods for research including probability and descriptive and inferential statistics. No credit count is published; the 3.0 grade floor and six year window apply.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Developmental Psychology," taken from a life span perspective from birth to death. Introductory psychology does not answer this line.
- Physiologyrequiredextra here
No published minimum
"Advanced Physiology," the functional organization of the organ systems, and the requirement is strict about level and subject: 300-level or greater, human or medical physiology only. A sophomore A&P course does not answer it, and neither does animal or plant physiology. This single course stands where most programs put an eight credit anatomy and physiology sequence.
- Anatomy and physiologynot required here
Not required. Detroit Mercy asks instead for one 300-level or higher human or medical physiology course, recorded on the physiology line. This is the sharpest departure from the PA norm on this page and the easiest to get wrong: an A&P sequence alone does not satisfy the advanced physiology requirement.
- Microbiologyrequired
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
"Microbiology with Lab," a survey of microorganisms with emphasis on pathogens, and the program states the laboratory must be included. No credit count is published.
- Medical terminologynot required here
Not on the six course prerequisite list.
- Social sciences and humanitiesrequiredextra here
No published minimum
"Medical Ethics," described as the moral issues specific to healthcare delivery and research. This is a named course, not a general humanities block: a philosophy or sociology elective does not substitute.
- Nutritionrequiredextra here
No published minimum
Required prerequisite at Detroit Mercy, described as covering physiologic requirements across the lifespan. Recorded here now that the vocabulary carries a nutrition key.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequired
500+ hours
No separate patient care minimum exists here. Hands-on patient care counts toward the single 1,000 hour healthcare or helping care requirement recorded on the healthcare experience line, and the program's emphasis on "increasing levels of responsibility" rewards it, but Detroit Mercy publishes no number for patient care specifically. Treat the 1,000 as the only figure it states.
- Healthcare experiencerequireddiffers
1000+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours and list it as recommended.
Detroit Mercy publishes one combined figure and does not split patient care from healthcare experience: a minimum of 1,000 hours of approved "healthcare or helping care experience" showing "increasing levels of responsibility, leadership and evidence of community service." Paid or volunteer, full or part time, and it must be CASPA-verified by the deadline. The program maintains an approved experience chart naming which roles qualify; the number recorded here is the combined one, not a patient care minimum.
- 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 letternot required here
The two letters are professional ones, from supervisors, co-workers or academic advisors, with a preference for a PA or physician. A science professor is not among the writers Detroit Mercy names.
- PA letterrecommendeddiffers
1 letter
Most PA programmes publish no minimum.
A preference rather than a requirement: the program prefers at least one of the two letters to come from a practicing PA or a physician familiar with the PA role. Either clinician satisfies it, so a PA letter is not compulsory.
- Supervisor letterrequireddiffers
2 letters
Most PA programmes publish no minimum and list it as recommended.
"Two professional recommendations" from supervisors, co-workers or academic advisors who can evaluate your professional skills. Detroit Mercy accepts a co-worker where most programs insist on a supervisor, and both letters go through CASPA's Letters by Liaison, submitted directly by the evaluators.
Also on the school’s page
Detroit Mercy's prerequisite list is short, closed and unlike almost anyone else's. It is exactly six courses, and the classic PA science block is not among them: no general chemistry, no biochemistry, no anatomy and physiology sequence. In its place sits a single upper-level physiology course, plus nutrition, medical ethics, statistics, microbiology with lab and developmental psychology.The program publishes no credit hours for any of the six, so the lines below carry no invented credit counts. Every prerequisite needs a grade of 3.0 or better and must be "completed within six years prior" to the admission year, the program's own worked example being January 2021 or after for a Fall 2027 start. A bachelor's degree and a cumulative undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0 are also required. On exams, this is one of the shrinking number of programs that still requires the GRE: a minimum combined score of 291 for exams taken after August 1, 2011, sent to CASPA under program code GI 0509, and waived only for an applicant holding a completed U.S. master's degree with a 3.0 or better cumulative GPA. Casper is required of everyone: "All applicants are required to complete CASPer as part of their application." Duet is not required, and the page says nothing about the PA-CAT. It also says nothing about shadowing, so the baseline's recommendation stands untouched. The application runs through CASPA with a January 15 deadline and rolling review; interviews are by invitation and "the class is selected only from among those interviewed."
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Detroit Mercy still needs from you.
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