Academic and Career Information
Updated December 2022
Nature of the Work, Earnings and Occupational Outlook
The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) reports the principal goal of pharmaceutical care is “to achieve positive outcomes from the use of medication which improves patients’ quality of life. These outcomes include: cure of a disease, elimination or reduction of symptoms, arresting or slowing a disease process, prevention of disease, diagnosis of disease, and desired alterations in physiological processes, all with minimum risk to patients.” As a result of society’s changing health and social issues, pharmacists today do much more than simply compound and dispense medication. Their roles have broadened to include direct patient care, education, and case management duties. Pharmacists can be found in a variety of settings including community and consultant pharmacies, hospitals and institutions, managed care organizations, the pharmaceutical industry, academics and research, government agencies and many more. The most common setting is community pharmacies, which include independent, prescription only pharmacies, such as those found in medical office buildings, and chain pharmacies (local drug stores), which generate income from the sale of other merchandise. Opportunities are becoming increasingly available for pharmacists with advanced training to work as clinical pharmacists in recognized pharmacy practitioner specialties such as ambulatory care, clinical pharmacokinetics, geriatrics, oncology, psychopharmacology, drug information, and nutrition support. The advanced training for such programs usually requires a fellowship or residency after the Pharm.D.
According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, the number of pharmacist jobs in 2020 was 322,200 with a decreasing demand of -2% (decline) in jobs from 2020-2030. Despite declining employment, about 11,300 openings for pharmacists are projected each year, on average, over the next 10 years. The median annual of wage-and-salary pharmacists in May 2017 was $128,710. The top 10% earned more than $164,980. Salaries vary by work setting and geographic location (Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2020).
Pre-Pharmacy Preparation
The majority of students who enter a pharmacy program have completed a minimum of three years of pre- pharmacy courses or a bachelor’s degree. Coursework completed includes calculus, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, physics, and additional courses in the humanities and social sciences. Many programs outside of California require applicants to take the Pharmacy College Admissions Test (PCAT). This test is offered during select times of the year. Please visit the PCAT website for more information. Most California Pharm.D. Program currently requires the PCAT (AACP, 2020). Programs select applicants based on a variety of characteristics, including academic background, clinical experience, personal statement, interview, letters of recommendation and personal qualities including motivation, communication, critical thinking skills, and empathy. Most schools expect applicants to gain first-hand paid or volunteer experience in a pharmacy setting to confirm their interest in the pharmacy profession. Communication and interpersonal skills are important to demonstrate as pharmacists are involved in educating patients. Some schools set minimum prerequisites and cumulative GPA requirements; in fall 2020, the mean GPAs varied from 3.0 to 3.50.
Major
No particular major is required or preferred for pharmacy school admissions, thus students are advised to select a major they find interesting and in which they can excel. Students should also consider a major that may lead them to an alternate career, should they decide not to pursue the field of pharmacy. Whichever major a student declares, their course of study must incorporate the required pre-pharmacy requirements. Many students who select a science major find a great deal of overlap between their major requirements and those required for pharmacy school. Regardless of the choice in major, pharmacy schools prefer that students have a well-rounded liberal arts education
Application
PharmCAS is a centralized web-based application service for applicants to pharmacy colleges and schools allowing applicants to submit one application and apply to multiple first-year professional pharmacy degree programs. Applicants to programs that do not participate in PharmCAS should apply directly to each institution using the traditional application process. All of the California pharmacy programs participate in the PharmCAS application service. For more information and a list of schools participating, please visit the PharmCAS website. For more information about Pharmacy, visit www.aacp.org.
Course Requirements
Below is a list of requirements for the various Pharmacy programs available in California. For further information on these programs or programs outside of California, consult the Pharmacy School Admissions Requirements book, available at www.aacp.org.
*The information above is reprinted with permission from CSULB’s Health Professions Advising Office.
This is NOT a comprehensive list of prerequisites for all programs. Students maintain responsibility for verifying course selection with individual programs.