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FAQ

Admissions Details

The baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university or equivalent must be submitted prior to the time of matriculation (with the exception of applicants from FranU’s 3+2 Accelerated Pathway to Physician Assistant Studies program).

Prerequisite Course Requirements

Prerequisite courses* for the MMS - Physician Assistant program include:

  • Human Anatomy with lab

  • Human Physiology (combined anatomy and physiology I and II with labs are acceptable alternatives)

  • General Microbiology

  • Organic Chemistry I

  • Organic Chemistry II (2000 level or higher) or Biochemistry (3000 level or higher)

  • General Psychology

  • Statistics

  • Genetics

  • Medical Terminology (certificate or other courses acceptable)

*Please note:

  • Applicants must make a minimum of C or higher in all prerequisite coursework.

  • "Survey" courses do not meet admissions criteria.

  • B or higher in all prerequisite coursework is preferred.

  • Repeated coursework negatively impacts the applicant.

  • No graduate, medical school or other transfer credit will be awarded as advanced placement/PA program credit.

  • While the program will not waive any prerequisite requirements, in some circumstances, the PA admissions committee may allow substitutions for equivalent or more rigorous previous graduate, medical school course work or professional experience(s) as satisfying prerequisite requirements ONLY. This may apply to prerequisite courses taken beyond seven years ago as well.

    • Applicants requesting such substitutions should email pa@franu.edu to request a copy of the prerequisite substitution form. The form must be completed by the applicant and submitted to the admissions committee for consideration. Applicants should include detailed descriptions of course work, professional experiences, a copy of the undergraduate transcript and any additional materials as requested by the committee. The committee will evaluate each request on a case-by-case basis and all decisions made will be final.

  • Example: A currently practicing licensed clinical social worker applies to the program. The applicant holds an undergraduate degree in psychology (2008) and a master's of social work (2011). She has conducted clinical research with several peer-reviewed publications. In this circumstance, the admissions committee will accept her Psychology 101 course taken in 2005 and her master's level Biostatistics course (taken in 2010) as satisfying the prerequisites because she has demonstrated evidence of continued knowledge and skills in those particular areas, despite the age of the courses.

GRE Requirements

  • For the next admissions cycle, the program will no longer be using the GRE as an admissions tool and is no longer required.

    Achieve a minimum of a combined 290 on the verbal reasoning and quantitative sections.

  • Achieve a minimum of 3.5 on the analytic writing section.

  • GRE scores must be submitted directly to CASPA (FranU CASPA GRE code: 7348).

  • DUE TO COVID-19, the GRE can be taken at home.

    For the next admissions cycle, the program will no longer be using the GRE as an admissions tool and is no longer required.

Letters of Recommendation

  • Letters should be from individuals who know the applicant well; former professors, employers and healthcare/professional colleagues are good choices.

  • Recommenders should consider and attest to the applicant's academic success, work ethic, maturity, professionalism, interest in the healthcare field, etc.

  • Letters must be submitted directly from the recommender through the CASPA portal (not mailed or emailed to program faculty or University administration).

  • While it may be tempting to ask "high-profile" community members to provide a letter of recommendation, these are not generally helpful unless the above criteria is met; no extra consideration is provided for such letters.