Physician Assistant

Physician assistants, also known as PAs, practice medicine on teams with physicians, surgeons, and other healthcare workers. Physician assistants work on teams with physicians, surgeons and other healthcare workers. Their specific duties and the extent to which they must be supervised differ from state to state.

Learn More About Physician Assistants 

Physician assistant programs generally expect students to have completed an undergraduate degree, and may specifically require a Bachelor of Science. Students must take introductory courses in chemistry, biology, physics and mathematics.

Admission requirements include a bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. college or university, with a curriculum including: 

  • General Biology and lab
  • Two semesters of General Chemistry and labs
  • Two semesters of Organic Chemistry and labs
  • Biochemistry
  • General Microbiology and lab
  • Anatomy & Physiology and labs
  • Genetics
  • Medical Terminology
  • Statistics 

It is the responsibility of the student to verify with their choice programs for specific course requirements. 

For a more in-depth list of required coursework consult our Pre-Physician Assistant Curriculum.

 

A GPA of 3.0 (overall and in science courses) is required for most programs. Use our GPA Calculator Spreadsheet to see where you stand. 

 

We also encourage students to begin thinking about their application timeline: 

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* Note: Additional requirements might be needed: CASPer 

It is the responsibility of the student to review all program requirements.