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Pharmacy

Pharmacy is a licensed health profession in which pharmacists provide information regarding medication to consumers and health care professions. Pharmacists are concerned with disease state management and safe guarding the public's health in matters relating to medication distribution and use.

Pharmacist responsibilities include dispensing medications and monitoring patient health and progress to maximize their response to the medication. Pharmacists also educate consumers and patients on the use of prescriptions and over-the-counter medications, and advise physicians, nurses, and other health professionals on drug decisions. Pharmacists also provide expertise about the composition of drugs, including their chemical, biological, and physical properties and their manufacture and use. They ensure drug purity and strength and make sure that drugs do not interact in a harmful way.

There are 88 schools and colleges of pharmacy; 65% of pharmacy students are female.

Job Outlook

Although there are 200,000 pharmacists in the United States, the Dept. of Health and Human Services reported in Dec., 2001, that there is a nationwide shortage of pharmacists, a shortage that is expected to last into the foreseeable future. This translates into excellent opportunities for pharmacy school graduates, who are receiving multiple job offers, high salaries, great benefits, and flexible work schedules. The average salary of a pharmacist is in excess of $70,000.

2004 Application Statistics

PHARMCAS

Since May 2003, 39 pharmacy schools have been participating in PharmCas, a web-based application format.

Pharmacy College Application Test (PCAT)

Approximately half of all colleges of pharmacy require the PCAT for admission.

Education

As of Fall 2004, there are 88 colleges and schools of pharmacy that offer accredited professional degree programs; all offer the six year Pharm.D., or Doctorate of Pharmacy. At least two years of undergraduate college is required before admission to the four year programs; the majority of students enter pharmacy school with three or more years of college study. Nationally, there were 7 applicants per position. 66%of all first year pharmacy students were women. 13% were underepresented miority students. The admission requirements for pharmacy schools are similar, and usually include:

General Chemistry Organic Chemistry
General Biology Microbiology
Human Anatomy & Physiology Calculus
Physics Social Sciences
English Composition & Literature Humanities

Small variations of these requirements occur from school to school, and students interested in pharmacy should check the exact requirements of specific pharmacy schools on the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy website or in NAU's Office of Biomedical Professions.

There are two colleges of pharmacy in Arizona, one in Tucson and one in Glendale.

The following NAU courses meet the admission requirements for The University of Arizona College of Pharmacy in Tucson, Arizona

Course NAU Course Number
General Chemistry CHM 151-152 with labs
Organic Chemistry CHM 235-238 with labs
General Biology BIO 181-182 with labs
Microbiology BIO 205 or BIO 220 with labs
Physics PHY 111-112 or PHY 161-262-263 with labs
Calculus MAT 136 or MAT 131
3-4 unit science with labs CHM, BIO, PHY or nutrition with lab
English (6 credits) ENG 105 and ENG 205
Economics ECO 284 or ECO 285
Literature / Fine Arts (3 credits) Any literary form or author or music, theatre or art
Humanities Electives (6 credits) 2 courses from HUM, PHI, REL, ANT, HIS
Social Behavioral Sciences (6 credits) 2 courses from POL, PSY, COM, SOC, WST, AIS

Total Credit Hours: 67

For More Information About The U of A College of Pharmacy Contact

The following NAU courses meet the admission requirements for the Arizona College of Pharmacy at Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona:

Course NAU Course Number
General Chemistry (8 credits) CHM 151-152 with labs
Organic Chemistry (8 credits) CHM 235-238 with labs
General Biology (8 credits) BIO 181-182 with labs
Human Anatomy (3 credits) BIO 201
Physics (3 credits) PHY 111 or PHY 161
Calculus (3 credits) MAT 136 or MAT 131
Speech (3 credits) COM 111
English (6 credits) ENG 105 and ENG 205
Economics (3 credits) ECO 284 or ECO 285
Electives (14 credits) Social & Behavioral Sciences, Humanities, Fine Arts, Foreign Language, Business, Computer Science

Total Credit Hours: 59

For More Information About Arizona College of Pharmacy Contact

For More Information About Pharmacy and Other Pharmacy Schools Contact