PA · Baltimore, Maryland · public
University of Maryland Baltimore Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What UMB asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 10 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- General chemistry with labrequireddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
One chemistry course, and UMB lets you choose which: "General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry or Biochemistry," 4 credit hours with lab. That is a single semester, not the two-semester general chemistry sequence the baseline assumes, and the lab is required whichever of the three you take.
- Biochemistrynot required here
Not required on its own. Biochemistry is one of three courses, alongside general chemistry and organic chemistry, that satisfy the single 4 credit chemistry line.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English or writing prerequisite appears in the seven-row table. The only language requirement is TOEFL, and only for international applicants.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Elementary Statistics, Biostatistics or Statistics in Social and Behavioral Sciences," 3 credit hours, no lab. A social science statistics course counts here, not only biostatistics.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Introduction to Psychology, General Psychology or Developmental Psychology," 3 credit hours, no lab. Any one of the three answers it.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
"Anatomy and Physiology 1" and "Anatomy and Physiology 2," 4 credit hours each, both with a lab. This is the only prerequisite pair carrying a recency window: "Anatomy and Physiology prerequisites must be completed within seven (7) years of application submission." Both need a B or better.
- Microbiologyrequired
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
"Microbiology," 4 credit hours with lab. No recency window is attached to it, only to the anatomy and physiology courses.
- Medical terminologyrequireddiffers
3 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 credits and list it as recommended.
"Medical Terminology (3 credit hours)," required rather than recommended, and at three credits it is a fuller course than the one or two credit versions many programs accept. It carries the same B minimum as the sciences.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequireddiffers
1000+ hours
Most PA programmes ask for 500+ hours.
"1000+ hours of patient contact experience" completed before the application is submitted, not before matriculation. This is double the 500 hour floor at most Maryland programs and is the hardest line on the page to clear late. The program admission page does not publish a list of which roles it counts, so verify a borderline role such as scribing with the program directly.
- Healthcare experiencenot required here
UMB publishes one experience number, the 1000 hour patient contact minimum, and asks for no separate healthcare experience figure.
- PA shadowingnot required here
No shadowing requirement is listed on the program admission page.
Letters
- Science faculty letternot required here
Not named. None of the three letters is restricted to science faculty.
- PA letternot required here
"Three (3) letters of recommendation" are required with no writer specified by role, so a PA letter is not mandated.
- Supervisor letternot required here
The three letters carry no role restriction on the page. A supervisor letter is a sensible choice given the 1000 hour patient contact requirement, but it is not required.
Also on the school’s page
UMB publishes a compact seven-row prerequisite table, 25 credit hours in all, and a patient contact bar that is twice what most Maryland programs ask. A bachelor's degree from a nationally recognized institution is required, along with a "Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0" and a "Minimum science GPA of 3.0," the latter noted as a new requirement for the 2026 to 2027 cycle. Every prerequisite must be passed with a minimum grade of B, a 3.0, so a B- does not clear this program. The recency window applies to the anatomy and physiology sequence alone: "Anatomy and Physiology prerequisites must be completed within seven (7) years of application submission." Seven years is tighter than the ten most programs allow, and it is the single most common reason an otherwise strong career changer has to retake a course here. Three letters of recommendation are required with no writer named. International applicants need a TOEFL of 100 on the internet-based test and a course-by-course evaluation from ECE or WES. The program admission page states no GRE or PA-CAT requirement; it does not discuss admissions exams at all, so confirm with the program before assuming either is unnecessary.
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what UMB still needs from you.
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