PA · Staten Island, New York · private
Wagner College Physician Assistant Program prerequisites
What Wagner asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 13 lines differ from the standard PA school set, marked below.
Coursework
- General chemistry with labrequireddiffers
2 semesters · 8 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"General Chemistry I" and "General Chemistry II." No lab or credit count is stated.
- Organic chemistry with labrequiredextra here
No published minimum
"Organic Chemistry I" is required, one semester. No lab or credit count is stated.
- Biochemistrynot required here
Not on Wagner's list; the chemistry ask is General Chemistry I and II plus Organic Chemistry I.
- English or writing-intensivenot required here
Not on Wagner's prerequisite list.
- Statisticsrequired
1 semester · 3 credits
"Biostatistics & Experimental Design or Statistics."
- Psychologynot required here
Not on Wagner's prerequisite list.
- Advanced biologyrequiredextra here
No published minimum
"Select two of the following:" General Pathology, Genetics, Microbiology. Two courses from that list of three. No lab or credit count is stated.
- Anatomy and physiologyrequireddiffers
2 semesters · 8 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.
"Human Anatomy and Physiology I or Anatomy" and "Human Anatomy and Physiology II or Physiology," completed within the last 10 years. A split anatomy course plus a physiology course satisfies it. No lab or credit count is stated.
- Microbiologyrecommendeddiffers
1 semester · 4 credits
Most PA programmes ask for 1 semester · 4 credits · lab and list it as required.
Microbiology is not required on its own; it is one of three options (General Pathology, Genetics, Microbiology) from which two must be taken, recorded on the advanced biology line.
- Medical terminologynot required here
Not on Wagner's prerequisite list.
- Social sciences and humanitiesrequiredextra here
No published minimum
"Medical Ethics" is a named prerequisite. Recorded on the social sciences and humanities line because the vocabulary has no ethics key; a general ethics or philosophy course is not what the page names.
Experience hours
- Patient care experiencenot required here
No patient care minimum: "Healthcare experience, either volunteer or work, is recommended but not required." The only hour figure is the 100 hours of healthcare or community service on the volunteering line.
- Healthcare experiencerecommended
500+ hours
"Healthcare experience, either volunteer or work, is recommended but not required." The department page adds: "For all applicants, previous health care experience is not required but strengthens the application." Wagner does not split patient care from healthcare experience and publishes no hour figure for either.
- PA shadowingnot required here
Shadowing is not mentioned on any of the pages read.
- Non-clinical volunteeringrequiredextra here
100+ hours
"Minimum of 100 hours of healthcare/community service activities." Healthcare and community service both count toward the same 100 hours.
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 letterrecommended
No published minimum
Fewer than a third of programs require a letter from a PA. Most ask for a clinician letter that a PA, physician or nurse practitioner satisfies equally, so a PA letter is usually sufficient and rarely necessary.
- Supervisor letterrecommended
No published minimum
A letter from a work supervisor is required by about a quarter of programs. Many name no writer category at all and simply ask for three letters.
Also on the school’s page
Wagner runs a five year BS/MS PA program that students enter as freshmen; applicants who already hold a degree come in as second degree students, and "Incoming transfer/second degree students must meet the same educational requirements and academic standards prior to admission." This file records the second degree prerequisite page, which asks for a "Bachelor of Science (or higher) degree with the following courses completed within the last 10 years": Human Anatomy and Physiology I or Anatomy; Human Anatomy and Physiology II or Physiology; General Chemistry I; General Chemistry II; Organic Chemistry I; Medical Ethics; Biostatistics & Experimental Design or Statistics; and "Select two of the following:" General Pathology, Genetics, Microbiology. The page lists no credit counts and no laboratory requirements for any course, so the lab flags below record only what is stated. "High School AP courses are not accepted to fulfill the prerequisite requirements." Academic standards: "Cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher," "Science GPA of 3.0 or higher," "Semester GPA of 3.0 or higher," and "Grade of C+ or above on prerequisite courses." Experience: "Minimum of 100 hours of healthcare/community service activities," while "Healthcare experience, either volunteer or work, is recommended but not required." Second degree candidates "are invited to interview prior to the beginning of the PA Program in June." The GRE, PA-CAT and CASPer are not mentioned on any of the pages read. The letters of recommendation policy for second degree applicants is not published on the prerequisite or admissions pages read (the three letter line on the department page belongs to the separate MS track for already certified PAs), so the letter lines are left at baseline and should be confirmed with the program.
Check your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Wagner still needs from you.
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