PA · Mobile, Alabama · public
University of South Alabama Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What South Alabama asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 8 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- Biology with labrequiredextra here
1 semester · 4 credits · lab
Biology, 4 hours, "Lab required," with Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, Genetics or Immunology accepted in its place. This sits beside anatomy and physiology rather than inside it.
- General chemistry with labrequired
2 semesters · 8 credits · lab
The two-semester sequence with lab. Around a fifth of programs want only one semester or skip general chemistry entirely and start at organic or biochemistry.
- Biochemistryrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
This is one course, not two: the program names Organic Chemistry at 3 hours and accepts Biochemistry as an alternative. Taking biochemistry satisfies the line outright, and organic chemistry is the default naming rather than an additional ask.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
No English, composition or writing course appears in the published prerequisite table.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
Statistics, 3 hours, with Statistical Reasoning and Applications accepted. Required alongside the separate college mathematics line, not instead of it.
- College mathematicsrequiredextra here
1 semester · 3 credits
A mathematics course separate from and in addition to statistics: 3 hours, college algebra at minimum, with pre-calculus or calculus also acceptable. Statistics does not answer this line, and the program requires both.
- Psychologyrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
General Psychology, 3 hours. Human development courses may be accepted in its place.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
6 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
Human Anatomy and Human Physiology, 3 hours each. "Human Preferred," with comparative, vertebrate or mammalian versions accepted. The prerequisites table prints "Lab required" explicitly on the biology and general chemistry lines and does not repeat that label here, so confirm with the program whether a lecture-only A&P would be accepted before planning around it.
- Microbiologyrequireddiffers
3 credits · lab
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 4 credits · lab.
General Microbiology, 3 hours, with Infectious Disease, Molecular Microbiology, Medical Microbiology or Healthcare Microbiology accepted instead. As with A&P, the table does not carry the explicit "Lab required" label on this line.
- Medical terminologyrequireddiffers
1 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 credits and list it as recommended.
Required rather than recommended, 1 hour, and it "Must be for college credit," so a free or non-credit online module will not clear it.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencerequired
500+ hours
A minimum of 500 direct patient care hours, and the timing is strict: they must be completed before the CASPA application is submitted, not merely before matriculation. Paid or volunteer work both count. PA or physician shadowing does not count toward this requirement.
- Healthcare experiencerecommended
500+ hours
Many programs publish one combined healthcare figure instead of splitting patient care from healthcare exposure; where they do, the number lands here. Median published minimum is 500 hours.
- PA shadowingrecommended
20+ hours
Not required and no minimum published, but higher hours of PA shadowing experience strengthen an application in the holistic review. These hours are counted separately from the 500 patient care hours and cannot be used toward them.
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.
"Submission of three (3) reference letters, one of which must be from a Medical Doctor (MD), Doctor of Osteopathy (DO) or Physician Assistant (PA)." A PA letter clears this, and so does an MD or DO letter; one of the three must come from that group.
- Supervisor letternot required here
Three reference letters are required but only one writer is constrained, and that one must be an MD, DO or PA. The other two carry no stated relationship requirement, so a work supervisor letter is optional here.
Also on the school’s page
The course lines here come from the program's prerequisites page; the GPA, experience, letter, exam and residency facts come from its admissions page at https://www.southalabama.edu/colleges/alliedhealth/pa/admissions.html. Every prerequisite needs a grade of C or higher, "All science courses must be geared for science majors," and "All prerequisite courses for the Physician Assistant Studies program must be completed one semester prior to Matriculation." No expiration window is published for older coursework. GPA floors are "A minimum overall, science and last 60-hours GPA of 3.0" as calculated by CASPA. On exams the GRE IS required and carries a real cutoff: "Completion of the General Graduate Record Examination (GRE) within the past five (5) years from the October 1 deadline," with a minimum of 145 in both the Verbal and Quantitative sections. The highest complete exam is used and scores from different attempts are not combined, so there is no superscoring. The PA-CAT is not mentioned. Residency matters in the holistic read: Alabama residents and service area residents receive preference. The program matriculates in mid-May.
Check your transcript against this list
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