Prerequisites

Overall Prerequisite Summary

To be considered for admission to the OHSU PA Program, applicants must have:

Required courses must be taken at regionally accredited community colleges and/or universities.  We accept both upper and lower division credits to meet specific prerequisite courses.  Please refer to the information included below and within the prerequisite pages for additional details regarding the requirements.

For the 2019-20 application cycle, planned summer 2020 admission, applicants must complete the bachelor's degree and all prerequisite course work with a grade of C (2.0) or better by December 31, 2019.   All courses must be taken from a regionally accredited institution.  Unless otherwise noted, Pass/No Pass, AP credit, or IB credit will not be accepted to fulfill the prerequisites below.

The requirements indicate the MINIMUM required, competitive applicants will generally apply with more than the minimum.

If you are an applicant who has received their education from an international institution, please refer to the requirements detailed on the international applicants page.

Prerequisite

Requirement

Additional Information

Overall GPA
Minimum 3.0
  • Minimum science GPA of 3.0 is preferred.
  • Average for students admitted in the previous admissions cycle was 3.48.

Bachelor's degree

Complete by the end of fall term prior to matriculation

  • No specific major is required or preferred (science and non-science majors are accepted).
  • Degree must be granted from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or equivalent foreign institution (see the international applicants page for more information about equivalencies).
  • Degree may be in progress at the time of application, but must be complete by the end of fall term prior to matriculation.

Overall Biology, Chemistry and/or Physics (BCP) credits

Minimum of 30 semester credit hours or 40 quarter credit hours

  • Includes all coursework taken in the biology, chemistry, and/or physics departments that are medically, human, and/or animal science related.
  • Prerequisite coursework listed below can count towards fulfilling the credit requirement (biology, chemistry, microbiology, A&P).
  • Plant, marine, environmental, exercise science/kinesiology, nutrition, etc. coursework will not be counted towards the minimum credit requirement.

Human Anatomy and Physiology with Lab(s)

2 semester courses or 3 quarter courses of a combined A&P with lab

OR

1 semester Anatomy with lab and 1 semester Physiology with lab

  • Must have been completed within 5 years of planned PA program matriculation
    • For application during the 2019-2020 cycle (matriculation in June 2020) A&P coursework with labs must have been complete Spring 2015 or more recent.
    • Both Anatomy and Physiology with labs must be within 5 years of planned matriculation, whether taken as individual or combined courses.
    • If the last anatomy with lab and/or physiology and/or combined A&P with lab course was taken over 5 years ago (as of planned matriculation), then a refresher is required.  
  • Refresher course requirements:
    • The refresher can be taken as minimum of one term (quarter or semester) of combined A&P with lab or as individual terms of anatomy with lab and physiology.
    • Refreshing the full A&P with lab sequence is preferred and is the best preparation for PA school.
  • Labs are required.  Physiology without a lab can be considered if a separate physiology lab was not offered by your institution.  Anatomy only and combined A&P courses must be taken with labs.  If they are taken without a lab, it will not be accepted.
  • Preference is for an in-person lecture and lab. Online A&P labs are not accepted. However, a hybrid course with online A&P lecture and an in-person lab will be acceptable.
  • If applicant attended a WA or CA state school, the 2 quarter sequence of 5 credit courses (10 credits total) will be accepted to meet the minimum.  Two quarter sequences of courses that are less than 5 quarter credits each are not acceptable on their own and additional A&P coursework must be taken to fulfill the requirement.

Microbiology with Lab

One course with lab; minimum 3 credits (semester or quarter)

  • The lab is required.
  • Will not accept Bacteriology* to meet requirement.
*UCSD BIMM 120 (formerly titled Bacteriology) is acceptable when combined with BIMM 121 Microbiology Laboratory.

Biology

Two courses; minimum 3 credits each (semester or quarter)

Lab(s) highly recommended

  • The biology requirement can be fulfilled through a combination of the following courses:
    • General biology
    • Cell or molecular biology
    • Genetics
    • Introductory coursework accepted, but not preferred
  • The courses can be non-sequential, as long as the minimum credits are met.
  • Labs are highly recommended, but not required. 
  • Additional biology coursework is recommended (see highly recommended courses below).
  • Will accept AP or IB credit towards this requirement (AP or IB credit must show on college transcript as biology credit).

Chemistry

Two courses; minimum 3 credits each (semester or quarter)

Lab(s) highly recommended

  • The chemistry requirement can be fulfilled through any combination of the following courses:
    • General chemistry
    • Inorganic chemistry
    • Organic chemistry
    • Biochemistry
    • Introductory coursework accepted, but not preferred
  • The courses can be non-sequential as long as the minimum credits are met.  
  • Labs are highly recommended, but not required. 
  • Will accept AP or IB credit towards this requirement (AP or IB credit must show on college transcript as chemistry credit).

General or Developmental Psychology

One course, minimum of 3 credits (semester or quarter)

  • General Psychology, Human Development, or Introduction to Psychology. 
  • Will accept AP or IB credit towards this requirement (must show on college transcript as psychology credit).

Biostatistics or Statistics

One course, minimum of 3 credits (semester or quarter)

  • Will accept courses offered through math, stats, bio, psych, or soc departments
  • Business statistics will not be accepted. 
  • Will accept AP or IB credit towards this requirement (must show on college transcript as statistics credit).

Highly Recommended Courses

  • 300-400 level (upper division) Biology and Chemistry courses (in addition to prereqs listed above)
  • Genetics
  • Biochemistry
  • Pharmacology
  • Pathophysiology
  • Immunology
  • Other courses which may be beneficial to a future health care provider (e.g., epidemiology, medical terminology, etc.)
  • Spanish language course(s)

Questions?

Please refer to the prerequisites section of our FAQ page.

If you have specific questions about your coursework that have not been answered by our website, please email us at paprgm@ohsu.edu with the following information and the admissions team will evaluate if the course is acceptable. We are unable to review coursework over the phone.

  • Course number/title
  • Institution
  • Date taken
  • Course description
  • Syllabus, if available