Program Overview

Pre-Physician Assistant Option

The Pre-Physician Assistant option is offered within the BioHealth Sciences major in the College of Science. This option is designed to meet most or all of the requirements for admission to Physician Assistant (PA) programs across the U.S. Satisfactory completion of the pre-PA option facilitates, but does not guarantee, admission to a PA program.

Overview

Admission to physician assistant school is very competitive and student selection is based on grades, GRE scores, clinical experiences, and more. Students are urged to carefully check admission requirements at their schools of interest and work closely with admission representatives to ensure they are meeting all requirements.

Requirements

Students may not study the Pre-Physician Assistant option alongside any other option offered with the BioHealth Sciences major. The Pre-Physician Assistant/BioHealth Sciences option includes courses that must be completed on campus to ensure that students fulfill the required and expected courses of Physician Assistant post-baccalaureate programs.

Course List

The following courses are required for the Pre-Physician Assistant option:

• BHS Major Core:
  • BI 221, BI 222, BI 223: Principles of Biology (12 credits)
  • CH 231, CH 261: General Chemistry and Laboratory for Chemistry 231 (5 credits)
  • CH 232, CH 262: General Chemistry and Laboratory for Chemistry 232 (5 credits)
  • CH 233, CH 263: General Chemistry and Laboratory for Chemistry 233 (5 credits)
  • MB 303: General Microbiology Laboratory (2 credits)
  • ST 201: Principles of Statistics (4 credits)
• Option Core:
  • BI 331, BI 332, BI 333: Advanced Human Anatomy and Physiology (9 credits)
  • BI 341, BI 342, BI 343: Advanced Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory (6 credits)
  • H 312: HIV/AIDS and STIs in Modern Society (3 credits) or H 320: Introduction to Human Disease
  • PSY 350: Human Lifespan Development (4 credits) or PSY 381: Abnormal Psychology
  • ST 202: Principles of Statistics (4 credits) Total credits: 59

Option Code

The option code for the Pre-Physician Assistant option is 597. Courses can double-count in the BHS Major Core and Bacc Core.