The Oregon State University College of Pharmacy has updated its list of required prerequisite courses. These changes take effect for students applying for admission for Fall 2014.
You can read the list of prerequisites on the College of Pharmacy website. The website also has useful information about optional but valuable coursework that can further prepare you for the Pharm.D. program.
As always, if you have any questions, email us at pharmacy@oregonstate.edu or ask on Formspring.
Short answer – yes.
Oregon State does not require a bachelor’s degree for admission to our Pharm.D. program – only the completion of certain prerequisite courses listed on our website.
However, our admissions committee has found that finishing a bachelor’s degree helps students develop a broad academic preparation that includes strong communication skills and the ability to work with diverse patients – all important traits for pharmacists. Therefore, candidates who finished their degree (or who are about to finish it) are favored in our admissions process. Spending that fourth year in college to finish your degree also gives you more time to take advanced science courses, which can impress our committee if you do well in them. You could also use that time to gain more healthcare experience, improve your writing ability, or do other things that would make you a better candidate for pharmacy school admission.
The numbers tell the story best. In recent years, 70% to 80% of admitted students have held bachelor’s degrees when they started the Oregon State Pharm.D. program.
No. Oregon State’s anatomy, physiology, and microbiology prerequisites must be met with coursework taken at the upper-division level. “Upper-division level” means advanced courses designed for college juniors and seniors. Such courses often have substantial prerequisites and 300- or 400-level course numbers (or 100-level course numbers if you’re in California). Community colleges do not offer such courses, which means these prerequisites cannot be completed at a community college.
You can complete all of the other prerequisites at a community college, as long as the college offers appropriate coursework. Email pharmacy@oregonstate.edu for more information on course equivalencies or if you’re not sure how to meet a particular prerequisite.
The College feels that requiring these advanced prerequisites will enable us to go further in educating you about the pharmaceutical sciences once you’re in the Pharm.D. program!
