General Program Admissions Requirements | Applicant Selection Process | Technical Standards | Guaranteed Interview Pathway
Application Review
The PA program reviews all applications holistically and evaluates multiple factors in assessing the qualities an applicant may bring to the program. These factors include:
- Academic background
- Overall GPA as calculated by CASPA
- Science GPA as calculated by CASPA
- Patient care experience
- Service mindset (leadership experiences, volunteerism)
- Personal statement
- Letters of recommendation
The application review process involves tiered scoring of the above listed items.
- Candidates earn the highest scores in the application review process for the following:
- Earned master’s degree in science-related or public health field AND/OR undergrad degree/major in basic sciences
- Credit load at least 15 semester credit hours per semester for most semesters
- Overall GPA of 3.5 or greater
- Science GPA of 3.5 or greater
- 500 or more hours of patient care experience
- Recent (within past year) leadership AND volunteer experience over several years
- Personal statements that are clearly written and well organized without grammatical errors AND reveal experiences or characteristics that will serve applicant well in the PA profession
- Letters of recommendation all strongly support the candidate’s application, and NONE are written by family members
- Candidates earn mid-range scores in the application review process for the following:
- Earned bachelor’s degree in discipline outside of basic sciences (i.e. Exercise physiology, kinesiology, health science, public health)
- Credit less than 15 semester credit hours for most semesters
- Overall GPA 3.0 to 3.4 OR less than 3.0 but meets criteria for consideration as per requirements
- Science GPA 3.0 to 3.4
- 200-499 hours of patient care experience
- Recent (within past year) volunteer OR leadership experiences over several years
- Personal statements that are clearly written and mostly organized without grammatical errors AND reveal experiences or characteristics that may somewhat serve applicant well in PA profession
- Regarding letters of recommendation: One recommends, but not highly recommends, applicant OR one reference comes from a family member
- Least competitive applications, while still meeting minimal requirements, will depict any of the following:
- Relating to academic history (regardless of major)
- Unexplained gaps in education
- Academic dishonesty
- Dismissal from an institution of higher education
- Previous withdrawal/dismissal from a health professions program
- Less than 200 hours of patient care experience
- Distant or no volunteer or leadership experiences
- Personal statements depicting ideas that are not clearly communicated, poorly organized, contain grammatical errors OR communicate characteristics that are contradictory to expectations of PAs
- More than one recommends (not highly) OR at least one does NOT recommend OR multiple references come from family members
- Relating to academic history (regardless of major)
Special consideration is given to the following applicants*:
- All Austin College (AC) graduates or current AC students in good academic standing are awarded an addition point on the application scoring rubric
- Students entering Austin College as freshman may gain admission through the Guaranteed Interview Pathway as described on the program’s website
- Applicants with a legal residence in Texas, or in a U.S. state adjacent to Texas, are given priority review without being awarded an additional point on the application scoring rubric
*This does not guarantee acceptance, rather this special consideration is part of the holistic review.
Interview Review
An interview is required for acceptance into the program and is by invitation only. Applicants are selected for interviews based on a holistic evaluation of their application and supporting materials.
Candidates interviewing for admission into the PA Program will be evaluated on attributes that support educational success including communication skills, readiness to enter PA school, attributes of persistence, problem-solving abilities, and alignment with the program’s established values of excellence, accountability, engagement, and introspection. Interviewees’ attributes in these categories are evaluated using a tiered scoring rubric.
Offer of Admission
An interview is required for acceptance into the program and is by invitation only. Applicants are selected for interviews based on a holistic evaluation of their application and supporting materials.
Candidates interviewing for admission into the PA Program will be evaluated on attributes that support educational success including communication skills, readiness to enter PA school, attributes of persistence, problem-solving abilities, and alignment with the program’s established values of excellence, accountability, engagement, and introspection. Interviewees’ attributes in these categories are evaluated using a tiered scoring rubric.