[1] Introduction
Students are strongly encouraged to complete a four-year baccalaureate degree prior to entering pharmacy school. Increasingly, pharmacy schools will admit students before they have finished a regular degree. A completed baccalaureate degree is a broadly recognized, marketable accomplishment, increasing the student’s competitiveness, job skills, and employability, whether or not the student eventually finishes a pharmacy degree.
Depending on the professional institution, the prerequisite course work for pharmacy school ranges from approximately 60 to 64 credit hours. These include basic science and mathematics courses as well as elective courses. Pre-pharmacy at UCA is a non-degree program.
In Arkansas a four-year professional program is available at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) School of Pharmacy in Little Rock and at Harding University in Searcy. The pre-pharmacy program for UAMS is currently a minimum of 60 semester hours, whereas the program for Harding is 64 hours. The successful student will receive a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree upon graduation from pharmacy school.
The following courses are those offered at UCA which specifically fulfill the requirements for admission to UAMS. A student who decides on a school other than UAMS or Harding should contact that particular school to find out the pre-professional course requirements.
PCAT (Pharmacy College Admissions Test) requirements vary by school. UAMS no longer requires the PCAT, and Harding applies the PCAT conditionally.
Pre-Pharmacy requirements do change, and students should consult the admissions office of their school of choice.
[2] Required Courses (UAMS Example)
Core Courses
Mathematics (3 hours): MATH 1390
Chemistry (16 hours): CHEM 1450 College Chemistry I and CHEM 1451 College Chemistry II; CHEM 2401 Organic Chemistry I and CHEM 3411 Organic Chemistry II.
Biology (12 hours): BIOL 1440 Principles Biology I and BIOL 1441 Principles Biology II; and BIOL 2411 Microbiology or BIOL 3420 General Microbiology [Note 1].
Non-Core Courses
Selectives (minimum of 9 hours, minimum of 3 classes) [Note 2]: Anatomy/Physiology BIOL 2405, Biochemistry CHEM 4320, Cell Biology BIOL 3402, Genetics BIOL 2490, Quantitative Analysis CHEM 3520, Physical Chemistry CHEM 4450 or CHEM 4460, Calculus 1 MATH 1496 or Applied Calculus for Life Sciences MATH 1491, College Physics 1 PHYS 1410 or University Physics 1 PHYS 1441, Critical Thinking PHIL 2305, Logic PHIL 3310
General Electives (20 hours): Selected in consultation with the student’s advisor.
Note 1
Note 2