Leslie Mean is a 23-year-old single white female who presents to the PA school admissions committee on her second attempt to get into PA school.
She has a 3.68 overall GPA and a 3.61 science GPA. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. She never sat for the GRE, because most PA programs stopped requiring it.
She has two years of hands-on clinical experience working as a CNA and a long history of volunteer work, which exemplifies her desire to help her community.
She is kind and considerate and has reference letters that demonstrate her maturity and strong interpersonal skills.
She was accepted into PA school on her second attempt.
Who is Leslie, and why did she get into PA School?
When asking the question: What do I need to do to get into PA school? You would be smart to talk to Leslie.
Leslie is a hypothetical PA school applicant who went on to become a PA school student, an entirely average PA school student.
She also embodies what PA schools across the country are looking for at this very moment.
How do I know this?
Because PAEA publishes the numbers, and I went and got them. 35,280 people applied to PA school in the 2025–2026 cycle — the most ever. In the cycle before that, 34,625 applied and 13,195 matriculated. Those figures, and the profile of the students who got in, come straight out of PAEA's CASPA applicant and matriculation data files.
So when I tell you what the average admitted student looks like, I am not describing a stereotype. I am describing 13,195 real people who started PA school in the most recent class PAEA has counted.
As much as I like to talk about not being average and differentiating yourself from the pack, it's nice to know what average is. Average provides a baseline by which you can measure your progress, set goals, and develop an application timeline.
Does this mean you have to be just like Leslie to get into PA school?
Absolutely not, first, factors such as race, age, ethnicity, etc., are of no importance, and you certainly don't have to be female to get into PA school (I am living proof).
But it is safe to assume that most schools are looking to keep their graduation and certifying exam pass rates high. They have an incentive to take fewer risks, and because of this, anything below average is considered a risk.
Thus, take a good look at Leslie and focus on factors that you can control to differentiate yourself, like your academic standing, your experience, your volunteer activities, your references, and your essay.
If you set the bar at Leslie and end up being a Mother Theresa, I am fairly sure you will be accepted into PA school, although I have no data on religious preference and PA school acceptance rates. 🙂
What are your chances of getting into PA school?
- 35,280 people applied to PA school in the 2025–2026 cycle — up from 30,049 four cycles earlier. The applicant pool has grown every single year.
- In the last cycle with complete numbers on both sides, 34,625 applied and 13,195 started PA school — 38.1%. Careful with that figure: it is matriculants divided by applicants, not an acceptance rate, and PAEA does not publish it as one. I am doing that arithmetic for you.
- From a program's side of the desk it looks nothing like 38%. Applicants apply to an average of 8.45 programs each — roughly 292,000 applications chasing about 13,200 seats, or 22 applications for every single seat.
- Both pictures are true, and confusing them is the most common mistake I see pre-PAs make. You are not applying once. You are applying eight times. That is the whole reason your personal odds look so much better than any one program's.
- Matriculating students applied to a median of 8 programs and finished the cycle with a median of 1 acceptance. One yes is all you need.
- 29% of this year's applicants were re-applicants, up from 24% four cycles ago. Nearly three in ten people in the pool got told no before and came back anyway. If that is you this year, read that sentence twice.
So, what does an average PA school applicant who is admitted to PA school (i.e., student) look like?
Let's take a look:
In studies, the five most influential noncognitive factors known to have an effect on PA school admissions are faculty interactions, career motivation, knowledge of the PA profession, maturity, and professionalism. - Journal of Physician Assistant EducationClick To Tweet→ The average PA school student is 23 — and getting younger
- The median age of a matriculating PA student is 23, and the average is 23.71.
- 82.9% of matriculants are between 20 and 25. The single biggest misconception about PA school is that it is full of second-career thirty-somethings. It is not.
- But the range runs from 18 to 68. Read that again if you are a career-changer convinced you have aged out. Somebody started PA school at 68.
- The class is getting younger, fast. The average matriculant age has dropped from 25.67 to 23.71 in four cycles — nearly two full years. Pre-PAs are figuring this out earlier and applying sooner.
| Age at matriculation | Matriculants | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 19 | 43 | 0.3% |
| 20–25 | 10,932 | 82.9% |
| 26–30 | 1,517 | 11.5% |
| 31–35 | 378 | 2.9% |
| 36–40 | 150 | 1.1% |
| 41–45 | 68 | 0.5% |
| 46 and older | 38 | 0.3% |
| Did not report | 69 | 0.5% |
Median 23 · average 23.71 · range 18 to 68. Source: PAEA CASPA matriculation data, 2024–2025 cycle (n = 13,195).
→ Four out of five PA students are women
The PA profession skews heavily female, and the gap is widening. 81.45% of matriculating students are women, up from 77.27% four cycles ago.
- Female: 81.45% (10,747 students)
- Male: 18.48% (2,439 students)
- Declined to state: 0.07%
| Cycle | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|
| 2024–2025 | 81.45% | 18.48% |
| 2023–2024 | 80.33% | 19.56% |
| 2022–2023 | 78.52% | 21.39% |
| 2021–2022 | 78.30% | 21.39% |
| 2020–2021 | 77.27% | 22.52% |
Source: PAEA CASPA matriculation data (n = 13,195 in the most recent cycle).
So yes — the majority of your future classmates will be women, and more so every year. That mirrors healthcare broadly, where women make up most of the workforce.
I want to be careful here, because this is a place where people love to speculate. The data reports who matriculates. It does not report why. I have seen it claimed that women are "more likely to be accepted" than men — there is nothing behind that, so I am not repeating it.
If you are a man reading this and wondering whether you belong in a class that is four-fifths women: you do. I am living proof, and so are 2,439 of the students who started last year.
→ Two out of three admitted students hold a Bachelor of Science
Almost everyone who starts PA school already holds a bachelor's degree, and it is usually a BS. A small but real slice arrives with a master's already finished.
| Degree held at matriculation | Matriculants | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor of Science | 8,730 | 66.2% |
| Bachelor of Arts | 1,629 | 12.3% |
| Master of Science | 323 | 2.4% |
| Other bachelor’s | 131 | 1.0% |
| Bachelor of Arts and Science | 86 | 0.7% |
| Master of Public Health | 69 | 0.5% |
| Bachelor of Science in Education | 50 | 0.4% |
| Master of Arts | 46 | 0.3% |
| Bachelor of Applied Science | 35 | 0.3% |
| Bachelor of Science in Nursing | 33 | 0.3% |
Source: PAEA CASPA matriculation data, 2024–2025 cycle. Top 10 degrees only, so this does not account for every degree held by all 13,195 matriculants.
→ What do admitted PA students major in?
Biology dominates, but not as completely as people assume. Here are the ten most common majors among students who actually got a seat.
| Undergraduate major | Matriculants | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Biology | 3,602 | 27.3% |
| Health science | 1,503 | 11.4% |
| Psychology | 936 | 7.1% |
| Biological sciences | 762 | 5.8% |
| Biomedical science | 750 | 5.7% |
| Exercise science | 722 | 5.5% |
| Kinesiology | 604 | 4.6% |
| Neuroscience | 538 | 4.1% |
| Public health | 502 | 3.8% |
| Human biology | 378 | 2.9% |
Source: PAEA CASPA matriculation data, 2024–2025 cycle (n = 13,195). Top 10 majors only, so this does not capture every major.
Group the biology-flavored majors together — biology, biological sciences, biomedical science, human biology — and they account for about 42% of the entering class. That makes sense, because a bio degree quietly knocks out most of your prerequisites along the way.
But look at the rest of that list. Psychology is the third most common major in the country. Exercise science, kinesiology, public health, neuroscience. There is no such thing as a "PA major." Programs care that you finished the prerequisites and did well in them. They do not care what your diploma says.
I have said this for twenty years and I will keep saying it: major in something you will actually work hard at. A 3.8 in a subject you love beats a 3.1 in biology you slogged through, every time.
Here are some tips on how to choose the best undergraduate major for PA school.
→ Matriculating PA students had a median of 3,200 patient contact hours
PA school applicants come to the table with a variety of medical experiences, especially if they are strong applicants.
This is the single most misunderstood number in PA admissions, so slow down here. The hours a program requires and the hours the people who actually get in have are two completely different numbers.
| The two numbers people confuse | Hours |
|---|---|
| What programs require — median minimum direct patient care | 500 hours |
| What matriculants actually had — median direct patient contact | 3,200 hours |
Requirement: PAEA Curriculum Report 6 (2021–22); 67.4% of programs required direct patient care, median minimum 500 hours, range 80–2,500. Matriculant hours: PAEA Student Report 6, Table 53.
Meeting the minimum makes you eligible. It does not make you competitive. If a program says 500 and you show up with 500, you are bringing about a sixth of what the median admitted student brought. Aim for 2,000 hours as a floor, and 3,000+ if you can get them.
Experience in one of the following areas is common:
- Nursing
- Registered Nurse (RN)
- Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)
- Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)
- Allied Health
- Physical Therapist
- Occupational Therapist
- Registered Radiologic Technologist
- Athletic Trainer
- Emergency Services
- Emergency Medical Technician (EMT)
- Paramedic
- Emergency Room Technician
- Miscellaneous
-
- Phlebotomist (that was me!)
- Medical Researcher
- Medical Volunteer
-
Medical Experience Statistics for PA School Applicants
96.1% of admitted students had been employed in a healthcare field before PA school. The most commonly reported roles were medical assistant (34.8%), nursing assistant (33.0%), scribe (21.4%), EMT/paramedic (17.8%) and home health aide (10.3%). Students could pick more than one, which is why the column below adds to well over 100% — most people did two or three of these jobs on the way in.
| Health Care Employment Prior to PA School | Percent |
| Medical assistant | 34.8% |
| Nursing assistant | 33.0% |
| Scribe | 21.4% |
| EMT/Paramedic | 17.8% |
| Home health aide | 10.3% |
| Emergency room technician | 8.8% |
| Phlebotomist | 7.8% |
| Clinical research coordinator/assistant | 7.0% |
| Physical therapy assistant | 5.5% |
| Pharmacy technician | 4.0% |
| Medical reception/records | 3.8% |
| Medical technician | 3.7% |
| Ophthalmic technician/assistant | 3.2% |
| Surgical technician/assistant | 2.8% |
| Athletic trainer | 2.7% |
| Healthcare administrator | 2.7% |
| Medical lab technician | 2.3% |
| Dental assistant/hygienist | 1.3% |
| Radiologic technologist | 1.1% |
| Health services researcher | 1.0% |
| Source: PAEA Student Report 6, Table 52 (n = 3,117). Students could select more than one role, so these do not sum to 100%. |
How many patient contact hours do PA students actually have?
Here is the full spread of direct patient contact hours among students who started PA school in 2022. Notice how enormous the range is — the top 10% arrived with nearly ten thousand hours, while the bottom 10% got in with 840.
| Direct patient contact hours | Hours |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | 840 |
| 25th percentile | 1,750 |
| Median | 3,200 |
| 75th percentile | 5,600 |
| 90th percentile | 9,600 |
| Mean | 4,994 |
Student self-reported hours, derived from weeks worked × hours per week — which is why the mean (4,994) runs far above the median. A handful of second-career nurses and paramedics with 20,000+ hours drag the average up. The median is the number to plan against.
Admissions directors Q&A: What are some of the points that are extremely impressive to you in the application?
Commitment to community, overcoming adversity, a WELL written narrative, great letters of reference from someone that REALLY knows you, ability to juggle many responsibilities simultaneously, and activities that show a particular passion for something are what we look for in a PA school applicant - Penn State University PA ProgramClick To Tweet→ Do you still need to take the GRE for PA school?
For most applicants in 2026, no — and this is the biggest change in PA admissions since I first wrote this post.
The last time PAEA formally counted, reviewing program websites in 2021–22, 52.2% of PA programs required the GRE. Today it is a minority requirement. Our own running list of PA schools that don't require the GRE puts it at 92 of 338 programs (about 27%) as of July 2026, and an independent prerequisite tracker counted 86 of 318 (27.0%) in April 2026. Two people counting separately landed in the same place.
| Share of PA programs requiring the GRE | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 2021–22 — PAEA Curriculum Report 6 | 52.2% |
| July 2026 — program-by-program trackers | about 27%, or roughly 1 in 4 |
The 2021–22 figure is PAEA's own count. The 2026 figure comes from program-by-program trackers, not PAEA, which has not published an update — I am labeling it that way rather than dressing it up as official. Note too that "requires" and "accepts" are different things: another ~70 programs will look at a GRE score if you have one but do not ask for it.
So what does this mean for you? It means the GRE is now a targeting decision, not a rite of passage. Build your program list first, then find out whether anyone on it wants a score. Plenty of applicants never take it.
If you do need one: among the programs that published a GRE expectation in PAEA's last count, the average total was about 307 — roughly 153 verbal, 152 quantitative, and 4.1 on analytical writing. A composite around 300 is workable, and above 310 is genuinely strong.
A note on what I am not telling you. You will find tables all over the internet listing "mean GRE scores of matriculated PA students," often down to a decimal. PAEA's student survey does not ask matriculants for their GRE scores at all — the only GRE data in it is how much people spent on prep books. Any national matriculant GRE average you see, including the one that used to sit in this post, is not coming from where it claims to.
| Admission exam | Share of programs requiring it (2021–22) |
|---|---|
| TOEFL (international applicants only) | 97.0% |
| GRE | 52.2% then; about 27% in 2026 |
| CASPer | 17.2% |
| PA-CAT | 5.6% |
| MCAT | 4.9% |
Source: PAEA Curriculum Report 6 (February 2023; review of 273 accredited program websites, October 2021–February 2022, of which 268 had usable admissions data). This is the most recent national count PAEA has published.
Percentiles matter more than raw scores. Every GRE administration differs slightly in difficulty, which is exactly why the percentile exists. If your score sits above the 50th percentile, treat it as competitive and put your energy somewhere it will move the needle more — like your hours, your grades, and your personal statement.
→ What GPA do you need for PA school?
Students who got into PA school last cycle had a 3.68 cumulative undergraduate GPA and a 3.61 science GPA. Both have climbed every year for four straight cycles.
But here is the number almost nobody publishes, and it is the most useful one on this page. Compare the people who applied with the people who got in, in the same cycle:
| GPA, 2024–2025 cycle | Everyone who applied | Everyone who got in | The gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cumulative undergraduate | 3.47 | 3.68 | +0.21 |
| Science | 3.36 | 3.61 | +0.25 |
The science gap is bigger than the overall gap. That is the whole ballgame. Admissions committees are not just reading your cumulative number — they are pulling out your science coursework and reading that. A quarter of a grade point is the difference between the average applicant and the average admit.
| Cycle | Applicant GPA (cum. undergrad) | Matriculant GPA (cum. undergrad) | Matriculant science GPA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024–2025 | 3.47 | 3.68 | 3.61 |
| 2023–2024 | 3.47 | 3.67 | 3.60 |
| 2022–2023 | 3.45 | 3.64 | 3.57 |
| 2021–2022 | 3.43 | 3.62 | 3.55 |
Source: PAEA CASPA applicant and matriculation data files. Applicant GPAs for the 2025–2026 cycle are already in: 3.48 cumulative undergraduate, 3.37 science — the pool keeps getting stronger.
| What programs set as a minimum | Value |
|---|---|
| Median minimum overall GPA (97.4% of programs state one) | 3.0 |
| Range of stated overall minimums | 2.5 – 3.5 |
| Median minimum prerequisite GPA (94.1% state one) | 3.0 |
| Range of stated prerequisite minimums | 2.0 – 3.5 |
Source: PAEA Curriculum Report 6. A 3.0 gets your file read. A 3.68 gets you admitted. If you are sitting below the median right now, the fix is an upward trend and a strong recent science block — not despair. Programs read the trajectory, not just the number.
→ What is the racial and ethnic makeup of PA students?
Most matriculating PA students are white — but that is changing faster than almost anyone realizes.
White matriculants have fallen from 66.8% to 59.1% in four cycles. Every other group grew. This is one of the fastest demographic shifts in health professions education right now, and it is happening quietly.
| Race / ethnicity | Matriculants | 2024–2025 | 2020–2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 7,801 | 59.1% | 66.8% |
| Asian | 1,998 | 15.1% | 12.3% |
| Hispanic | 1,734 | 13.1% | 11.0% |
| Black or African American | 690 | 5.2% | 4.5% |
| Two or more races | 576 | 4.4% | 3.2% |
| American Indian | 23 | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Native Hawaiian | 8 | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Did not report | 365 | 2.8% | 1.9% |
Source: PAEA CASPA matriculation data, 2024–2025 cycle (n = 13,195). Unlike PAEA's student survey, these categories are mutually exclusive and sum to 100%.
The direction of travel is genuinely encouraging. PAEA also reports that applicants from groups underrepresented in medicine grew by about 35% over the same stretch, rising from 21.4% to 25.5% of all applicants. That matters — patients do better when the people caring for them reflect the communities they come from.
→ How many PA programs should you apply to?
- Matriculating students applied to a median of 8 programs (mean 8.6).
- They received a median of 1 acceptance (mean 1.8). Most people who get in, get in once.
- Across the whole applicant pool the average is 8.45 programs — so eight is genuinely the national habit, not a rule of thumb somebody made up.
My honest advice: eight to twelve well-chosen programs, where "well-chosen" means you actually meet the prerequisites and the mission fits you. Firing off twenty applications to schools whose minimum coursework you have not finished is expensive and does nothing. Build your list first, then count it.
→ Pucker up, baby. Most PA students are single!
80% of matriculating students are single (including engaged), and 20% are partnered.
91.4% have no legal dependents. For the 8.6% who do, the average is two dependents, with a maximum of five. If you are applying with kids at home, you are not alone, and you are not disqualified — roughly one in twelve of your classmates is doing exactly the same thing.
| Legal dependents | Percentage of matriculants |
|---|---|
| Without dependents | 91.4% |
| With dependents | 8.6% |
→ Where do PA students grow up?
Not where you would guess. Six in ten matriculants grew up in a town or small city of fewer than 50,000 people, and only 5.6% came from a metro area of over a million. PA education has deep small-town roots, and a lot of programs are actively looking for students who intend to go back.
| Size of the community where the student spent most of their life | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Isolated rural (under 2,500) | 8.0% |
| Small town (2,500–9,999) | 22.6% |
| Large town (10,000–49,999) | 30.1% |
| Mid-size city (50,000–99,999) | 18.1% |
| Large city (100,000–1 million) | 15.6% |
| Urban (over 1 million) | 5.6% |
→ Do you need money and connections to get into PA school?
I get some version of this question constantly: everyone applying seems to come from a medical family with money, and mine doesn't. The data says otherwise, and it is not close.
CASPA asks every applicant a set of questions about disadvantaged background. Here is how the students who got in answered them.
| Among students who started PA school last year… | Matriculants | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Went to a high school where many students got free or reduced-price lunch | 4,774 | 36.2% |
| Come from a Health Professional Shortage Area or Medically Underserved Area | 2,681 | 20.3% |
| Come from a family that receives public assistance | 2,021 | 15.3% |
| Went to a high school where few seniors earned a diploma | 448 | 3.4% |
| Took part in a Health Careers Opportunity Program | 148 | 1.1% |
Source: PAEA CASPA matriculation data, 2024–2025 cycle (n = 13,195). Students could answer yes to more than one.
More than one in three admitted PA students came from a high school where hunger was common enough to be measured. One in five came from a place without enough clinicians. Those students got in. Read that again if you have been quietly wondering whether people like you get into PA school.
And here is the part I care about most: those are exactly the PAs the country needs. Students who come from underserved places are far more likely to go back and practice in them. If that is your story, it is not a weakness in your application. It is the strongest thing you bring.
Admissions directors Q&A: Who is the perfect PA school applicant?
Our program will look to utilize a holistic approach to admissions. We look at academic success, life experiences, and community activities to evaluate all candidates. There is no one mold to fit the PA profession. However, PAs need strong communication skills, leadership, grit, and a willingness to support the community - Michigan State University PA ProgramClick To Tweet Students need to be well organized, know how to manage their time and outside influences, and have a genuine desire to help and care for people. PA school is rigorous, so we recommend honest conversations with family and friends ahead of your start. - CWRU PA ProgramClick To Tweet→ PA school students don't smoke pot and are not drug dealers or part of the Italian Mafia
Assume yes to both. Every PA program I am aware of requires a criminal background check, and the large majority require drug screening before you can start clinical rotations — hospitals demand it of the program, so the program demands it of you.
I am giving you that as my read of the landscape rather than a statistic, because the percentages that used to sit here were attributed to a PAEA student report that does not measure this at all. Check the program's own admissions page — that is the only source that binds them.
If you have something in your history, disclose it early and honestly. I have watched applicants with old convictions get into PA school. I have also watched applicants get pulled from a class over something small they tried to hide. The offense is almost never the thing that ends it. The nondisclosure is.
Some Important Points
It's Not Rocket Science: It is important that a candidate demonstrates reasonable aptitude in the hard sciences such as anatomy, physiology, chemistry, and biology. It is more likely that the committee may overlook a grade of C in U.S History or Spanish I. They will be less tolerant of a marginal grade in the sciences.
Show compassion: Your GPA is stellar, and you've amassed an impressive amount of medical work experience in the little spare time you have while keeping your grades pristine, but you still get that dreaded rejection letter. Why?
You didn't do enough volunteer work. Volunteering exemplifies your desire to help your fellow man—the attribute identified by schools as one of the most integral to becoming a successful PA.
Students who have had experience in working with underserved populations, rural or diverse populations, performing volunteer service or disaster relief, or other experiences that illustrate a drive and compassion for others often stand out to the admissions committee!
The view from the top isn't that crowded
It's an easy race to the bottom, so set your sights on the top.
People deflate when they read that only about a third of applicants get in each year. I think that is exactly backwards. Being in the top third of any field is not nearly as hard as it sounds — because most of the competition is not doing the work you just did by reading this far.
You have just read the whole thing. You know what the median actually is on hours, on GPA, on how many programs to apply to — and you know which "statistics" floating around the internet are made up. That already puts you ahead of most of the people you are competing with.
If you aim high, you will be competing with a much smaller minority, and your odds of getting an acceptance letter will increase dramatically. It also helps if you apply to 12 programs. 😉
What is new for the 2026–2027 CASPA cycle
- The cycle opened April 30, 2026 and closes April 1, 2027.
- The COVID-19 impact essay is gone. In its place is a new situational question asking how future PAs should use emerging technology — AI, telemedicine, wearables — while keeping care patient-centered.
- There is now an AI attestation. You confirm the application is your own work. Write your own essay. I mean it.
- Fees are $185 for the first program and $65 for each additional one. Fee waivers are available at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines, cover your first two programs, are first-come first-served, and the submission window is now 21 days.
- There are 330 ARC-PA accredited PA programs as of May 2026, and eight more were granted provisional accreditation at the April 2026 meeting. The number of places to apply keeps growing.
Sources — so you can check my work:
- Applicant counts, applicant GPAs and re-applicant share: PAEA CASPA Applicant Trend Numbers, cycles 2021–2026 (posted May 2026). This is where the 35,280 applicants for 2025–2026 comes from.
- Matriculant counts, GPA, science GPA, age, gender, race, majors, degrees and disadvantaged-background data: PAEA CASPA Matriculation Data, 2020–2025 (posted March 2026), covering the 2024–2025 entering class (n = 13,195).
- Programs per applicant and URiM growth: PAEA, "PA Program Applications Show Growth, Persistence."
- Admission exams, minimum GPAs and minimum patient-care hours: PAEA Curriculum Report 6, a review of 273 accredited program websites.
- Patient contact hours, prior healthcare roles, programs applied to, marital status, dependents and where students grew up: PAEA By the Numbers: Student Report 6, PAEA's most recent national student survey. CASPA's data files do not measure these, so this is the only national source for them.
- Accredited program counts: ARC-PA, Currently Accredited Programs.
- Cycle dates, fees and application changes: PAEA 2026–2027 CASPA Applicant Guide.
Where a number is my own arithmetic on PAEA's figures rather than something PAEA publishes directly — the 38.1% matriculation rate, the 22-applications-per-seat figure — I say so in the text. Where a number simply does not exist, I say that too instead of filling the gap. Numbers on this page were last verified in July 2026.
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My daughter who will be 20 years old when she graduates from UT Austin in May 2016.She has know medical experience. I would like some advise on how she should get her medical experience. Should she go on and become an RN, or something else. Before she applies to PA school.
Thank you
Hi Karen,
There are many options. Take a look at my article regarding this topic here: https://www.thepalife.com/hce-paschool/. Also, I would recommend reading this comprehensive post by Paul Gonzlaes PA-S. I would not recommend going on to get her BS in nursing if she is interested in PA school, if she were to go this route it would probably be best to continue on and become a Nurse Practitioner (which is a viable option). Many people get their certification as an EMT, MA, CNA, Phlebotomist etc. etc. All while volunteering and shadowing and building a reference base. You want a certificate you can get fast and inexpensively. The goal is to quickly build experience with an eye on the prize of PA school admissions. But, if you read the above articles, you will see there are many roads to get there. I think CNA is very good option for many in your daughters situation. She should begin volunteering and finding opportunities anywhere she can while she is still in College and while on summer break. The more the merrier, and campus health centers/hospitals are often a very good place to start. She will have an advantage as a student.
– Stephen
Any experience with online degree holders getting into a PA program?
Hi Nick,
I can’t say I do, but I have a feeling online degree holders are equally competitive! The prerequisite educational requirements hold much less weight than other parts of your application. If you have decent grades and show a lot of determination with strong HCE and good letters of rec along with a strong personal statement…. You will be competitive regardless of how you completed your prerequisite coursework.
– Stephen
Stephen-
I am a combat veteran from the special operations community and am currently attending a prestigious private university pursuing a BS in Biology. Would my 8 years of active duty be considered “volunteer” service in the manner that PA schools would expect? Or should I expect to do additional volunteering in the areas listed in earlier threads in addition to my summer EMT job? I’m just trying to make efficient use of my time. And here’s a silly question which stems from a rumor in my community: are admission boards (PA) required to interview veterans with a certain disability rating? I would suspect not. Thank you sir.
-Dan
Hi Dan,
Although your military time will not count towards volunteer experience, your combat experience will be looked highly upon and will provide you with some advantage. Just think of the perspective this gives you and your vast amount of training and life experience! You will find your personal statement is the key to expanding upon this and letting the admissions committee truly understand your background and how it has prepared you for the PA profession. Your summer EMT job will give you the HCE you need as long as you have enough hours. If you can find time to pursue other volunteer activities that interest you it never hurts, along with accumulating all the HCE you can. But, like you said, you have to make the most efficient use of your time.
And as far as the “disability rating” is concerned, that sounds like a bad rumor to me. I imagine the admissions committee truly values US Military Veterans and understand the nature of the job, the discipline and the life skills this provides to it’s applicants. The military vets I know who are now PAs are among the very best, hell that is where the PA profession got it’s start!!!
You sound like you have a very good plan in place.
Drop me a line if you ever have any more questions, I am happy to try to help.
Thanks for your service and dedication to our country, I will be rooting for you!
Stephen
Thanks for the information. I have a question about prerequisites, is it okay to take them at a community college or do PA programs prefer to see them done at a university?
Thanks!
It is absolutely OK to take your prerequisites at a community college and will not reflect poorly on you whatsoever.
– Stephen
Hey Stephen. I applied to PA school last cycle, I have a 4.0 science GPA, a 3.6 undergraduate GPA, and a 3.86 graduate school GPA. I was advised by 2 doctors to apply solely as a Black-African American applicant, even though I am half black and half Asian. I listened to their advice, and I got no interviews despite applying to pa schools all across the United States. Comparatively, I know 3 white students (who I took prerequisites with) with worse grades, far less Direct patient hours, and whose essays were full of platitudes and empty statements. I am wondering if I should apply to the next cycle as a half black-half white, or possibly as Hispanic (since I can pass due to my complexion). What do you think? I have visited the class statistics page of over 100 pa programs, and there are usually 0, 1, or at most 2 black students out of 30-70. Please help. I don’t want my race to hinder me from getting in
Hi Jack,
I would like to say that race plays no part in the PA school admissions process, but I am an idealist. I am also a realist who understands that schools may like to have diversity in their PA program and if two candidates are neck to neck with race being the only difference would they chose one over the other in hopes of having a more diverse student body? The truth is, you don’t know and you never will.
If it were me I would check both boxes Asian/Black (if possible) because that is the only honest answer and in my experience “the truth will set you free” both from a mental and application standpoint. If you choose Mexican you may be surprised when you show up for your interview and they start speaking Spanish. 🙂 I would advise you to be brutally honest here, this way you will have no regrets and you will feel confident knowing that you did the right thing. You will have been honest with yourself, the admissions committee, and you will avoid chasing any perceived advantage. If you find any statistical data proving otherwise then maybe you will have a case for a different decision.
Great question!
Stephen
hi I’m about to graduate from undergrad major in health sciences, minor in bio. I have a 3.57 GPA, science GPA of 3.48. I applied last year (CASPA), got two interviews but into none (still had 4 prereq to take). I have taken summer and winter classes to get all prereq in that had nothing to do with major or minor. In between all of this I have accumulated about 500 hours of PA shadowing and to date about 300 hours of patient care (working in pediatrician office and as a patient care tech in a hospital.
When I apply this year (CASPA) I will have finished all of my prereqs for the various PA admissions school with the exception of calculus which will be “in progress” when I apply. All this said, how can I compete with the nurse or EMT or lab technician who has way more “medical” experience.
Comparison is deadly, yet it seems to be inherent in human nature. If we look at what other applicants have to say, or their grades, experiences or backgrounds and value it above our own, we create a barrier, It’s a paralyzing barrier.
The healthiest type of comparison is to compare our work, our grades and our experience with our previous efforts and try to build on that.
You already had two interview which proves you deserve to sit right alongside anyone in that room! Your personal statement, your letters of recommendation, your shadowing hours (which you probably know are way above average) your passion and drive, your knowledge of the program and your ability to present this to the admissions committee. The question is how can an RN or an EMT compete with you?
Hang in there, be confident in your experience, your skills and your burning desire to help people. If you can show the committee who you truly are and why you deserve to be there, they will have little choice but to admit the person who can embody their programs ideals and be an integral part of the class dynamic. And that of course will be you. Don’t fall into the comparison trap, it is a zero sum game.
I wish you the very best!
Stephen
Hi Stephen,
Thanks for the article. I am a pre-PA student who has been feeling a bit discouraged lately, but this gave me some motivation to kick my butt into gear. I am working on getting my GPA up from a 3.0 after a very rough semester. It is and will continue to be hard work as I have a young child, but I’m hoping with my volunteering experience at a memory cafe (for those early onset dementia) and through working as an emergency medicine scribe I will have better chances. I’m hoping to make chief scribe by the time I am applying to schools.
Thanks again!
Hi MLN,
I love hearing stories like yours, what a wonderful experience it must be to volunteer at a “memory cafe” I have never heard of such a thing and it sounds like such a great idea. This combined with your experience as a Scribe is excellent. You hang in there! As a parent of 2 I know how difficult it is to stay the course, I am so impressed by your determination and drive! You sound as though you have a sense of purpose, hold onto this and never let it go, use it as your motivation through the tough times, working, volunteering and being active in patients lives, they are what the profession is all about, keeping this in mind will take you very far indeed!
Cheers,
Stephen
What type of medical experience can I get started on if I haven’t taken any PA pre-req classes? I plan to finish them in a community college once I graduate with my bachelors degree. Would volunteering at a camp for children with cancer be of any substance, or does it need to be more clinical?
Yes working with children with disabilities or certain types of medical conditions (cancer) is great experience. Volunteering at your local food shelter or women’s shelter, delivering meals, building homes in Costa Rica, working with international or local medical teams, assisting with a health health fair… Getting out in your community and being active in whatever one way or another is a great start. Go out to your local hospital and ask how you can help, volunteer at the senior center, play guitar for kids in the cancer ward, hold somebody’s hand who needs some love and attention. There are opportunities everywhere you just have to go out and make yourself available. Of course starting to acquire the skills to find paid employment is a good idea as well… CNA, phlebotomy, EMT, and a host of other options await you.
Stpehen
I’ve been considering here recently on going back to school. I would love to be a PA but i’m afraid I won’t be able to get into any programs. I currently have a Bachelors of Science in Athletic Training and i’ve been working in that field for 2 going on 3 years. However, when I was in school my grades weren’t the greatest, which is the part the makes me most nervous. Given that in our program we had to make a B- or better in all our core course, I still graduated with 2.9. I know I would still have to take a few prerequisite classes but should I just go in a different direction or take those courses and see how I can improve my GPA.
Thanks for the article!
Amber
Hi Amber,
I wish I could answer this question for you, but it is one you have to answer for yourself. I have been in your exact same shoes, and I was very close to throwing in the towel in desperation. But I am glad I hung in there. If you want something bad enough you will figure out a way to get there. Are there other options? For sure, but are those options what you want? Or do you really want to be a PA? Dig deep, I think you will know the answer, if your question is whether or not you can still get into PA school with your GPA and experience, the answer is yes. The admissions committee takes everything into consideration.
Stephen
Please excuse typos typing to fast.
Good evening, I am hoping someone might be able to help me out. I m a bit old to be starting this journey (38) and starting at the bottom. I am an Ophthalmic Technician and a reservist in the AF I am starting to look at programs for my BS degree an one I was looking at was AMU American Military University for class schedule and the fact that it works so well with the military. That said the more research I do the bigger my trepidation becomes with an online program being accepted by a PA program. Has anyone had experience with online universities and getting or not getting accepted.
Thank you in advance for any insight
Elizabeth
I am currently a junior at Florida State University. I have the plans of working as a EMT for a couple of years after graduating next Spring. I am also interested in receiving a Masters degree. My only issue is deciding what would be the best degree to pursue prior to applying to PA school?
Thanks,
Simone.
Hi Simone,
I think the key to deciding on your major lies at the intersection of what interests you the most and also allows you to complete your prerequisites in an appropriate amount of time. What are you considering?
– Stephen
You were a phlebotomist? That’s a relief to hear! I always worry that it’s not as quality experience as some others, but that’s good to know it works!
Thanks for the great post!
Yes, I know many PAs who were phlebotomists prior to PA school. To this day, I think it is wonderful healthcare experience for PA school. Just think about all the aspects of medicine that go into drawing a blood sample or collecting a specimen. From patient privacy, to helping patients overcome fears to the ability to work in hospital and clinic environments as part of a larger healthcare team, understanding/interpreting lab values, educating patients, etc. etc. etc. You work one on one with patients and their families every day, often when they are extremely vulnerable. Take note of all this, don’t understimate the value of these patient encounters, they can be a very strong foundation upon which to build your entire application.
Cheers,
Stephen
It seems that race is a factor in acceptance for medical school programs but not in PA programs (when comparing average gpa and acceptance rates), what do you think is the reason behind that discrepancy?
Hi Cameron,
I was actually not aware of this discrepancy. It is a great question, what do you think is the reason?
Stephen
This was a very interesting article. I would like to think that if I can become a PA, anyone can. The key to success is the correct mindset and perseverance. Although my first year applying I was rejected, I continued to work in the field of medicine, all the while, enrolling in challenging semesters, also keeping my GPAs competitive. As a single mother working 3 jobs while attending undergrad, the challenge of keeping a high GPA, while not “completely” losing my mind, showed the selection commity, that my commitment and determination was ever present. All programs are accelerated and the commity wants to know you have what it takes to handle the stress of the PA program. Not a day goes by that I m not thankful to work and a PA. Going on 14 years and still love my job.
Thanks Candie,
I think people really need to hear this. My wife and I did not have children until after I graduated from PA school. Now that our kids are 7 and 4 I have even more respect for moms and dads who not only make it into and through the rigors of PA school but who do it while working and raising kids… Especially as a single mom! This is a testament to your grit and any PA program would be crazy not to take you 🙂 It is also great to hear that 14 years later you continue to love what you do. I feel this is common among us PAs. Thank you for sharing your inspiring story and I wish you the very best in life as a PA and a pretty cool mom!
Best,
Stephen
Goodness. Committee! Not sure how is overlooked that, twice. :0)
Hi everyone one,
This was a great article. I just wanted to share my brief story for some of those who may be feeling discouraged or nervous about getting into PA school. I am a black male in my early twenties with a bachelors and a masters. My undergrad was grade point average was barely a 3.0 and my GRE was just above average. I made up for it with post bach an graduate school classes and volunteered and worked as a tech in a hospital. I also scribed. Don’t be afraid to go back and improve your grade point average or get a masters because it definitely works. I applied to one school my first year and didn’t get in. I got my masters and did post bach classes and applied again and was rejected from 9 schools and accepted to 1. I got zero interviews from the 9 schools that rejected me. That being said I’ve listed some things below that I think are helpful.
1. Don’t be afraid of rejection, because statistically it’ll happen. 2. Apply broadly and research the schools you want to go to to see how well you fit their standards. 3. Don’t forget to apply to non-caspa schools. There are plenty of schools that have their own application process and you don’t want to miss out on those! 4. Live out of your imagination and not your memory because you can’t fail in your imagination. If you believe you can do it then it’s only a matter of time until it’s done.
Wow, John thank you so much for sharing your story, would it be OK if I shared this as part of a post on the blog? I think what you said here is wonderful advice for everyone applying to or thinking of applying to PA school. I can relate completely.
– Stephen
Hey Stephen,
Sure I’d love to have it on part of the blog. Feel free to clean up my typos. I just typed it and clicked send. Now that I’ve reread it I see there are a few glaring ones ha. Thanks again for the article.
I enjoyed reading your comment. I am in a similar situation and this gave me some greatly needed motivation. Thanks 😉
This really set my mind at ease. I observed the other day in the surgical rooms, and I was hooked!! Loved the surgical atmosphere!!! I have already had a visit with a head dean of admissions for Medical School (just to talk about the school), i will be visiting the surgical center more, and visiting oral surgeons, and many other doctors, and coaching for a local track team. But after i had the visit in the surgical center, it has really kicked my butt in high gear because that is where i want to be! And after reading this, it has pushed me but with my mind at ease.
Thank you!!
(Fingers crossed for the future)
Stephen,
This post was very eye opening…thank you so much for sharing! I am a mid-thirties AA female who was introduced to the PA profession about 15 years ago! I’ve enjoyed a 10+ year career in public health and my interest in a PA career has grown more and more these past few years. One of my primary motivating factors is the under-representation of people of color within the profession. I believe more PAs of color are needed to provide quality care to families in urban/underseved communities. I work within those communities now and I want to extend my sevices to the clinical side of healthcare. Thank you again for developing such a great resource for Prospective PA Students!
I read some of this yesterday and then read all of it today. I sent the link to one of our clients this morning. Seventy-two percent are women is a concern. What happened to balance in the PA profession? Nice for the women, but it could be discouraging for men. I really like your emphasis on it isn’t necessarily that hard to be in the top 5%.
The key question is what percentage of applicants to PA school are female versus male? Just like what percentage of applicants are non-white? If you look at college enrollment in general you will see a similar trend http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/03/06/womens-college-enrollment-gains-leave-men-behind/. Why is this happening? It is a good question that probably has many factors, I am sure many of which would be very surprising. In general, the 2007 economic decline had a far greater toll on men vs. women, women have recovered at a faster rate http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=246154500. What does this mean for the next gen of men? I guess time will tell.
– Stephen
Oh no… a field that isn’t dominated by straight, white men! What tragedy!
There is no tragedy here, straight, white men have held court for a long time, and honestly I don’t think the results have been that impressive.
Love your comment!
Stephen
Quick note here: Mafia not Mofia, no idea how that made it past spell check but I am pointing it out now! 🙂 Great post!
Thanks Lauren,
Your last name isn’t by any chance Corleone? 🙂 I really appreciate your editing help. The WordPress spell check has gotten better over the years, but as you can tell, it is far from perfect as am I… Thanks again!
– Stephen