Admission Requirements

There are 143 accredited physician assistant (PA) programs in the United States. They are located at medical schools and centers, hospitals, two- and four-year colleges and universities, and in the uniformed forces. It is important to contact schools to discuss prerequisites and determine Wooster equivalents when necessary. Contact the Pre-Health Coordinator for access to a password-protected, online directory of PA programs.  

Coursework

Required college-level courses include basic sciences; math; English/writing; some specialized science courses, such as anatomy/physiology, microbiology, physics; computer sciences; and medical terminology.  

Example of Coursework Requirements - University of Toledo

• Human Anatomy (lab recommended) *
• Inorganic Chemistry with lab
• Organic Chemistry with lab
• Microbiology with lab
• Introductory Psychology Upper Level Psychology (Lifespan Psychology recommended) **
• College Algebra or higher mathematics
• Medical Terminology (minimum 1 credit hour or pass a medical terminology test) ***  

In addition to the above coursework, PA programs may either require or strongly recommend one or more advanced level undergraduate courses including, but not limited to: genetics, biochemistry, immunology, physics, psychology, physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, mathematics, statistics, nutrition.  

* The College of Wooster does not offer Human Anatomy. Students have taken Human Anatomy at Wayne College or over a summer at a local college or university.

** Check with the PA school to determine which of the Wooster psychology courses will be accepted.

*** Students have the option to take online medical terminology courses.  

Minimum GPA, Entrance Exam and Additional Requirements

Minimum GPA’s can range from 2.8 to 3.0 or above. Prerequisites generally require a grade of B- or better.  

PA programs typically require the GRE.  

Previous health care experience/exposure is strongly recommended.  Some schools require a certain number of observation hours (up to 40 hours) and/or a required number (up to 500) of total health care experience hours, including volunteer.  A current CPR certificate may also be required.   Two to three individual letters of recommendation are required. 

A student may submit a committee letter, but it would only count as one of the required letters of recommendation.  

All applicants apply via the Centralized Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA).