Freshman Applicants

The first-year dual degree program is designed to provide students with the opportunity to earn both the BS and MS degrees in five and a half years. First-year dual degree students first complete the pre-professional phase, consisting of three years of collegiate instruction including all prerequisite courses, followed by a two and a half year graduate or professional phase of the curriculum. The graduate phase of the curriculum is described below.

Admission and Progression Requirements

Physician Assistant (PA) Studies Program is a dual-degree program designed to provide students with the opportunity to earn both the BS and MS degrees in five and a half years. Admission to this program is open only to first-year students and is highly selective.

Applicants Applying With Test Scores
Applicants must have an overall high school GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale in order to be considered for admission and a combined SAT score of 1300* on the evidence-based reading and writing + math sections (or an ACT score of 27).

Please note: Advanced Placement (AP) credits cannot be applied to direct entry courses that begin with BIO or CHEM.

Progression Requirements: Students admitted directly to the dual-degree program as incoming freshman students will be admitted automatically to the professional phase of the program beginning the fall semester of his/her senior year, provided they fulfill the following requirements:

• Complete a successful interview during the junior year;
• Successful completion of a background check without any convictions during the junior year;
• Attend Hofstra University for all undergraduate course work;
• Achieve a minimum cumulative overall grade point average (GPA) of 3.30 for each of the six semesters prior to beginning the professional phase of the PA program curriculum. Should a student not achieve the minimum cumulative GPA, the student will be placed on academic probation and will have one semester to raise their cumulative GPA to 3.30. If the student does not achieve the minimum cumulative GPA within one semester, the student will be dismissed from the dual-degree program;
• Initially achieve a minimum cumulative science GPA of 3.30 at the end of the fall semester of the second year. Subsequent science GPAs will be reviewed at the end of each fall and spring semester. Students not achieving the minimum science GPA will be placed on academic probation and will have one semester to raise their cumulative science GPA to 3.30. If the student does not achieve the minimum cumulative science GPA requirement within one semester, the student will be dismissed from the dual-degree program;
• Commensurate with the above requirements, the overall cumulative and science GPA must be a 3.30 by the end of the spring semester of the third year;
• Obtain a letter recommending admission to the graduate phase of the program from a faculty member from one of the PHA classes at the end of the spring semester of the student's junior year;
• Follow the prescribed pre-professional curriculum and remain in the Dual-Degree Physician Assistant Program;
• Submit a $1500 deposit (applied to tuition once enrolled) to reserve a seat in the graduate phase
• Complete three-years in residence before entering the professional phase of the program;
• Meet with a pre-professional science adviser (and the PA program adviser, if appropriate) at least once each semester;
• Document 50 hours of health care experience.

Students who do not meet every condition for the first-year direct entry option may apply to the program via the CASPA process as a post-baccalaureate candidate.

Application

First-Year students must apply by completing Hofstra's First-Year Student Application for Undergraduate Admission or the Common Application . Qualified applicants will receive a supplemental application that must be completed to be further considered.

The supplemental application suggested deadline is five calendar days after made available in your my.hofstra.edu portal

Curriculum

For first-year students (Freshman), please visit the Undergraduate Hofstra Bulletin for the most up-to-date curriculum information.