Pharmacy Information

• Helpful Links
• FAQs
• Career Description
• Admission Requirements
• Pre-requisite Classes
• Application Process

Helpful Links

• American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy
• Pharmacy College Application Service
• Links to all PharmCAS participating schools

Pharmacy FAQs

What is a Pharmacist?

• Pharmacists dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health care practitioners and monitor patient health. They advise physicians and other health care practitioners on the selection, dosages, interactions, and side effects of medications.

What is the work week like? What are the working conditions?

• Most full-time salaried pharmacists work about 40 hours a week; some (self employed) work more than 50 hours a week. Some may work evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays.

What is the average salary?

• The average salary of pharmacists is around $90,000/year.

What are the admission requirements?

• A combination of science and non-science classes
• PCAT for many schools
• Average GPA about 3.2-3.8
• Shadowing experience if possible
• Well rounded students

What should I major in?

• What ever you'd like to! No particular major is required; do something you like and that you can do well in and then make sure you complete the required classes in addition to that major.

How long is the schooling to become a Pharmacist?

• Almost all pharmacy programs are 4 years.

How do I contact the BYU Prepharmacy Club?

• To contact them you can email them at byupreharm@yahoo.com

Career Description

Pharmacists dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health care practitioners and monitor patient health. They advise physicians and other health care practitioners on the selection, dosages, interactions, and side effects of medications. Pharmacists must understand the use; clinical effects; and composition of drugs, including their chemical, biological, and physical properties. They protect the public by ensuring drug purity and strength. The goal of pharmacy care is to maximize positive health care outcomes and improve patients' quality of life with minimum risk. Most pharmacists work in a community setting, such as a retail drug store, a hospital or clinic.

The average salary of US pharmacists is around $90,000/year. Pharmacists usually work in clean, well-lit, and well-ventilated areas. Many pharmacists spend most of their workday on their feet. When working with sterile or potentially dangerous pharmaceutical products, pharmacists wear gloves and masks and work with other special protective equipment. Many community and hospital pharmacies are open for extended hours or around the clock, so pharmacists may work evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays. Consultant pharmacists may travel to nursing homes or other facilities to monitor patient's drug therapy. Most full-time salaried pharmacists worked about 40 hours a week. Some, including many self-employed pharmacists, worked more than 50 hours a week.

Admission Requirements

Most pharmacy schools are considered graduate programs, and therefore, they require undergraduate coursework to be completed before admittance. A bachelor's degree is not always required, but it is almost always recommended. Some students may be able to complete the requirements and gain early admission, but it is not common. Some pharmacy colleges and schools offer "early assurance" (also known as "early admission") status for selected students. Students who enroll under an "early assurance" program and successfully complete their first 2-years of pre-professional study, are guaranteed admission into the 4-year professional pharmacy program. The majority of students enrolled are admitted as "transfer" students after completion of at least 2-years of college. For a list of schools that have this type of program, please go to http://www.aacp.org.

There is no particular major required to be eligible for admission to a pharmacy degree program. Students pursing pharmacy come from a wide variety of educational back grounds; choose a major you enjoy and you will likely be more successful. If the pharmacy prerequisite courses are not required as part of your undergraduate major, you will need to complete these courses as electives. Contact your designated pharmacy programs directly to determine whether the admissions office distinguishes between classes taken at a community college versus a four-year institution.

Approximately two-thirds of U.S. colleges and schools of pharmacy require the PCAT for admission. To determine whether a college requires the PCAT, you may contact each program individually or review table 9 on admission policies for schools (provided as an appendix in this packet). The average GPA required by pharmacy schools ranges from about 3.2-3.8.

Pharmacy colleges almost always require applicants to have volunteer or paid experience working with patients in a pharmacy or health-related setting (hospital, nursing home, etc.). On-going work or volunteer experience in a pharmacy setting may be an important factor in the admissions process. If you are unable to gain work or volunteer experience directly related to pharmacy, contact your selected pharmacy admission offices to determine what other experiences they might accept that will adequately demonstrate your knowledge of the profession.

Pre-requisite Classes

There are no standardized class requirements for all pharmacy schools. Many schools require some common classes; however, they often vary on required hours and specialty classes. Be sure to investigate the schools you plan on applying to; make sure you have completed the pre-requisites for each of them.

Listed below are some of the classes required by many pharmacy programs. Not all of them are required by all schools; check the schools you are interested in to verify requirements.

Application Process

• PharmCAS is a centralized application service for schools and colleges of pharmacy. It offers a process that allows students to apply to multiple colleges and schools of pharmacy using one application. To see which schools participate in PharmCAS, please go to http://www.pharmcas.org/advisors/schoolpages.htm. From here you can surf to the school of your choice and you can see their specific requirements and some information about each school.
• In order to ensure that you meet the deadlines required by your schools of choice and by PharmCAS, go to http://www.pharmcas.org/collegesschools/AAGDeadlinePCT.htm to view when your application must be complete and submitted.

Revised March 2008