Admission Requirements

Prerequisites

Qualified applicants will show evidence of academic strength by GPAs and prerequisite coursework

 

Bachelor's Degree

Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher learning in the United States MUST be completed at the time of application

Exception: Those candidates who received their baccalaureate degrees from colleges and institutions outside of the United States must complete an international transcript evaluation by an approved foreign credential evaluating company and meet US equivalency. For UVU’s approved evaluating companies, please see the transfer credit website at UVU. In addition to the international four year degree equivalent, international applicants must complete at least one year (30 semester hours) of additional undergraduate or graduate study at a US regionally accredited college or university. All the required program prerequisites MUST be completed in the United States. All the required program prerequisites and/or the 30 hours of US university study MUST be completed within the last five years at the time of application and must be verified by CASPA.

To determine if your university or college is a regionally accredited institution of higher learning, please see this website.

 

Cumulative
GPA of 2.8*

If the cumulative GPA is below a 3.0, but no lower than a 2.8, then a calculation on the last 60 hours (90 quarter hours) of undergraduate work will be conducted. This calculation must be a 3.0 or better to qualify the application to be reviewed by the admissions committee. However, a cumulative GPA above a 3.0 is strongly encouraged to be a competitive UVU PA Program applicant.

*as determined by CASPA

 

Science
GPA of 2.8*

If the science GPA is below a 3.0, but no lower than a 2.8, a calculation on the last 30 hours (45 quarter hours) of undergraduate science coursework will be conducted. This calculation must be a 3.0 or better to qualify the application to be reviewed by the admissions committee. However, a science GPA above a 3.0 is strongly encouraged to be a competitive UVU PA Program applicant.

*as determined by CASPA

Coursework Prerequisites

All required prerequisite coursework must be completed at time of application submission

Exception: Human Anatomy and Human Physiology prerequisites that fall outside of the seven year deadline are the only exception to prerequisite coursework that can be in progress prior to application or matriculation.

Coursework must be completed for a letter grade that is published on the official transcript and verified by CASPA by August 15, 2024 verification deadline, for the January 2025 start.

There is a seven year deadline for Human Anatomy and Human Physiology.

Human Anatomy and Human Physiology coursework will only be accepted if taken and completed between January 2017 through July 15, 2024, for the current admissions cycle.  If classes are outside of this range, they are considered expired.

Applicants can apply and currently be working on retaking the Human Anatomy and Human Physiology requirement if these courses are disqualified due to the seven year deadline. Anatomy and Physiology courses that are expired must be repeated or in progress no later than the Fall 2024 semester and must be completed before December 31, 2024. There is no need for repeated coursework (Human Anatomy and Physiology) to be verified by CASPA, or to be completed before applying. However, if invited to interview with the program, coursework must be completed by the spring or summer of 2024, or a verification of enrollment for the Fall 2024 semester will be requested. When retaking a course, it is not required to retake the corresponding lab. Online coursework from a US regionally accredited institution is accepted. When retaking these classes, applicants must get a B (a B- will not be accepted) or better to be considered complete and counted towards admission. If applicants are retaking these courses after applying, please inform the director of admissions via email or in your CASPA application.

Human Anatomy and Human Physiology are the only prerequisites courses that expire.

Information Related to the Coronavirus Outbreak:

The UVU PA Program accepts online coursework from regionally accredited institutions. Transitions to online learning in response to the Coronavirus has had very little impact on applications. The UVU PA Program will accept "pass" or "credit" marked on transcripts to meet prerequisites for applicants whose institution's standard was a pass/credit grading system for the Spring/Summer 2020 semesters. The institution's grading standard must be a pass/credit for courses that are a C or higher. A letter grade is required for prerequisites, except for Spring and Summer 2020 semesters.

Prerequisite Grades

All coursework must have a letter grade of C or better. A letter grade of less than a C, such as a C- will not be accepted for the prerequisite requirement. All prerequisite coursework must be completed at the time the application is submitted. Online courses are accepted, if taken from a regionally accredited institution. Courses for which credit was awarded by examination, such as AP/CLEP courses, are not accepted toward any of the prerequisite courses.

Advanced Placement

Advanced placement is defined as a waiver of required professional coursework in the UVU Physician Assistant Program, and it will not be granted under any circumstance. All students who enter the program must fulfill all program requirements. All courses within the curriculum are required. No transfer credit is accepted. No credit is granted for preadmission experiential learning, prior coursework, degrees, certifications, or advanced training.

Prerequisite coursework

  • Human Anatomy with lab: 4 semester hours (6 quarter hours) are required and must be completed within seven years of the current admissions deadline of July 15, 2024. The UVU PA Program will accept a 3 semester hour Human Anatomy class in lieu of the 4 semester hour requirement (such as that offered by BYU Provo), but only if a lab was taken as part of the class and the class is accepted for science majors.
  • Human Physiology with lab: 4 semester hours (6 quarter hours) are required and must be completed within seven years of the current admissions deadline of July 15, 2024. Must be human; no other physiology courses are accepted.
  • A 2-semester combined Human Anatomy and Human Physiology course series is acceptable instead of a separate Human Anatomy and Human Physiology course provided the total credits received is a minimum of 8 semester hours (12 quarter hours) and is a combined full-year series. A mixed combination will not be accepted. Applicants must take Anatomy and Physiology I and II OR Human Anatomy and Human Physiology separately to meet the requirement.
  • Chemistry with lab: 8 semester hours (12 quarter hours, this can vary from state to state) required. Lower-level, introduction to chemistry courses will not accepted
  • Biology with lab: 4 semester hours (6 quarter hours,this can vary from state to state) required. Lower-level, introduction to biology courses will not be accepted.
  • Microbiology with lab: 4 semester hours (6 quarter hours, this can vary from state to state) required. Lower-level, introduction to microbiology courses will not be accepted.
  • Statistics: 3 semester hours (4.5 quarter hours, this can vary from state to state) required. A class that is considered a broad introduction to statistics and not a true statistics class will not be accepted. Statistics classes from departments outside of math are eligible for review.  

Human Anatomy and Human Physiology courses taken from Exercise Science, Sports Science, or Kinesiology departments are not accepted.

Entrance exams

The UVU PA Program does NOT require standardized exams such as the GRE, PA-CAT, and MCAT. The UVU PA Program uses a holistic admissions approach.

International Students

Applicants that completed their baccalaureate degrees from colleges and institutions outside of the United States and Canada must complete ALL prerequisites at regionally accredited institutions in the United States.

We cannot accept international students into the program at this time who are not U.S. citizens. If you feel your situation may qualify your application for review, reach out to [email protected] for clarifying information.

All prerequisites for international students outside of the United States or Canada must be COMPLETED at a US regionally accredited institution of higher learning in the US within the last 5 years at the time of application. No exceptions.