Good Online/DL Masters/Undergrad degree to become a Pharmacist.

To be a pharmacist you need a PharmD now. Here is an online option - http://spahp2.creighton.edu/admission/Pharmacy/Pharmacy_Distance.htm

 

Thanks for your reply. I saw this one on another thread and forwarded it on to her this morning. I wonder if there are any other schools similar to this one. Thanks Randell!

 

Nope. Creighton is the only game in town for a partially online PharmD for people without a B.S. in Pharmacy (and an RPh).

 

This is correct. If you want to become a pharmacist these days, you must have the PharmD, and if online is the only option, the ONLY option available in the U.S. is Creighton University.

In my opinion, it would be faster and easier in the long wrong for her to bite the bullet and do a B&M program in her local area. I read not too long ago that the Creighton online PharmD program only takes about a dozen or so students a year, so getting into the program is extremely competitive.

 

Hey guys back again with another question. I asked about an online PharmD program for a buddy of mines wife who is looking to take over her father's business. He owns a pharmacy and at some point in the next few years she is wanting to take over and run the place (as a pharmacist). I know that it seems that all places (Like CVS, Rite Aid, etc.) are moving toward the PharmD as the minimum qualification for hiring new pharmacists but being that this is a family business would it be possible for her to get her master's instead? Are there specific regulations restricting her from working as a pharmacist without the PharmD? Also she contacted Creighton and was advised via email that the online PharmD is for people already with an undergrad in Pharm. Does anyone have a listing of Australian or UK master's or PharmD's? I know next to nothing about this type of degree but I'm trying to help a friend out and since I frequent the distance education boards I don't mind asking a few questions. Also as always thanks for your help!

 

Hi - I've never researched this but I can almost guarrantee that this will come down to a licensing issue. This means it will become a state law question. You friend needs to contact the licensing authority (maybe the dept of public health) in her state and make some very careful and specific inquiries about the requirements for licensure. Will a non-US degree qualify? etc.

 

Thanks Kizmet. I suggested she do this and she said that she will call. In my research so far I haven't found any Australian or UK online PharmD's because it seems that they only require a bachelor's or master's in Pharmacy to practice. I think this might be the limitation in searching overseas. Thanks!

I just looked up the regulations online and here is what it says:

§1202. Qualifications for licensure by examination
A. To obtain a license to engage in the practice of pharmacy, an applicant for licensure by examination
shall:
(1) Be at least twenty-one years of age.
(2) Be of good moral character and temperate habits.
(3) Meet the following educational requirements:
(a) Have graduated and received a professional degree from an approved college of
pharmacy.
(b) Have graduated from a foreign college of pharmacy, completed a transcript
verification program, taken and passed a college of pharmacy equivalency examination program, and completed a process of communication ability testing as defined by the board in order to assure that the applicant meets the standards necessary to protect public health, safety, and welfare.(4) Supply proof, substantiated by proper affidavits, of a minimum of one year of service and
experience through an internship or other program that has been approved by the board under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist, which service shall be predominantly related to the provision of pharmacy primary care and the dispensing of drugs and medical supplies, the compounding of prescriptions, and the keeping of records and the making of reports as required under state and federal law.


This is good news if I can find an online PharmD outside of the US. Any suggestions?

 

ok well i'm a little confused now. in regards to section 3a., what is the definition of a "professional degree?" Does that mean a Masters? or is a Pharm D actually required. I'm thinking that a Masters will do. Could this be true?

 

The PharmD is the first professional degree in the United States nowadays. My father has a pharmacist friend (now about 80 years old) who did his studies shortly after the Korean War at a time when the pharmacy degree in the US was the BS in Pharmacy (a four-year degree that one can do straight out of high school). As the requirements for the degree became more extensive and started to require 5-6 years, the degree title was changed to BPharm. Now that it requires 7-8 years, one gets a BS with Pre-Pharmacy curriculum and the PharmD. Elsewhere in the world, the first professional degree in pharmacy is still the BSc in Pharmacy. So, the law is written that way so as not to exclude old guys and foreigners (those whose degrees carry the bachelor's title) from licensure.

 

The only U.S. qualification for becoming a Pharmacist is the Pharm.D. Pharmacy Schools no longer offer a B.S. in Pharmacy. There are M.S. in Pharmacy programs out there (e.g. UF's online programs), however, they are non-clinical in orientation, and therefore do not allow one to practice Pharmacy.

If you can find a foreign school that offers a DL pharmacy program, that might be an option. However, as Kizmet suggested, it is best to as your local and state govt. for specifics regarding this. Heck, it might even be possible for her to run a pharmacy without being a Pharmacist (provided that she hires appropriately qualified individiuals, of course).

IF it turns out that she is permitted to operate a pharmacy without a pharmacy license, then perhaps this program would be of interest to her:

http://pharmreg.dce.ufl.edu/partner.html


Cheers!

 

Thanks guys. I put a call into the Pharmacy board myself because now I want to know the answer as well. When I find out I'll post it here so it may help other people as well. Do any of you know of any Master's or PharmD's in either Australia or the UK that are online/distance? If so I'll relay them to her and let her ask about them.

 

I did not look at the requirements in depth but it looks like for California one has to pass a state licensre examination.

The requirements to become eligible to take the licensure examination will
remain the same. Specifically, to take the pharmacist licensure examination for
California, you must:
1. Be at least 18 years of age
2. Be a graduate of a domestic school of pharmacy or be a graduate of a
foreign school of pharmacy and have been certified by the Foreign
Pharmacy Graduate Examination Committee (FPGEC)
3. Have completed at least 150 semester hours of collegiate credit, 90 of
which must be from a school of pharmacy
4. Have earned at least a baccalaureate degree in a course of study
devoted to pharmacy
5. Have 1,500 hours of approved pharmaceutical experience as a
registered intern or one year of experience as a licensed pharmacist in
another state.
Source: http://www.pharmacy.ca.gov/forms/exam_info_update.pdf

So it appears that a DPharm is not mandatory for CA pharmacists.

After passing the state exam there is a requirement to take 30 hours (probably not semester/quarter hours) of additional educatuion every two years.

 

Ok guys I have a lot more information. I'm not stating that this is fact so I'll post what I have and you can determine what it means. According to a rep from the state board of pharmacy a U.S. citizen that wants to be licensed as a pharmacist must have the PharmD unless their degree was conferred before a certain date. I didn't ask the date because it did not apply to my firend's situation. The "professional degree" designation is exactly as someone suggested here. It states "professional degree" to include bachelor's, master's etc. which would have been conferred prior to the new rules for a PharmD. I was also told that a person who has a foreign pharmacy degree (bachelor's, master's, PharmD) must contact the NABP (National Association of Boards of Pharmacy) http://www.nabp.net/ and register to take the FGPEC (Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Examination Committee Certification) examination (yes it's redundant) and complete 1500 hours of supervised internship under a licensed pharmacist. After that you will be granted licensure as a pharmacist.


In researching the examination it shows this: http://www.nabp.net/ftpfiles/bulletins/FPGECAppRegBulletin.pdf

"Definition of a Foreign Pharmacy Graduate
The FPGEC defines a “foreign pharmacy graduate” as a pharmacist whose undergraduate pharmacy degree was conferred by a recognized school of pharmacy outside of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. US citizens who have completed their pharmacy education outside the US are considered to be “foreign pharmacy graduates,” while foreign nationals who have graduated from schools in the US are not."

"Qualifications for FPGEC Certification Program
As a candidate for the FPGEC Certification Program, you must have graduated from a recognized or accredited school of pharmacy of a foreign country or jurisdiction. The FPGEC requires that if you graduated prior to January 1, 2003, you must have completed at least a four-year pharmacy curriculum at the time of graduation to be considered for FPGEC Certification. However, if you graduated on or after January 1, 2003, you must have completed at least a five-year pharmacy curriculum at the time of graduation. Coursework and internships completed after graduation will not be considered in determining the minimum required curriculum length. Post-baccalaureate degrees will not be considered except under limited circumstances where the degree obtained and coursework completed to obtain the degree satisfactorily show that the candidate obtained experience in patient care in a clinical pharmacy practice setting. Consideration of post-baccalaureate degrees and whether they may be applicable to determine the minimum required curriculum length will be made on a case-by-case basis at the sole discretion of the FPGEC. The change from a four-year to a five-year educational curriculum requirement has enabled the FPGEC Certification Program to be consistent with the revised standards of US pharmacy school curriculum.

As the candidate, you must also provide documentation that you are licensed and/or registered for the unrestricted practice of pharmacy in a foreign country or jurisdiction. Please refer to page 17 for complete details on providing documentation.
You must submit a completed application form, fees, and supporting documentation in accordance with the procedures established by the FPGEC and as described in this Application Bulletin before you will be considered for approval to sit for the FPGEE. It is your responsibility to provide all required materials. There is no deadline to apply for the FPGEE. For more details on the FPGEE see page 21."

"If you were not a citizen of the country or jurisdiction where your pharmacy degree was earned and would have been eligible to obtain licensure and/or registration to practice pharmacy there, however, neither was obtained, you must submit1. official proof of licensure and/or registration in whichever country or jurisdiction it was obtained; and
2. an official statement, issued by the appropriate government official of the country or jurisdiction where your degree was earned, confirming that you would be eligible for licensure and/or registration.If neither a license and/or registration are required to practice pharmacy in the country or jurisdiction where you earned a pharmacy degree, you must submit
1. a request for an “Affidavit for Failure to Obtain Licensure in a Foreign Jurisdiction” with the application materials (The FPGEC will provide further information concerning this procedure to eligible candidates.); and
2. official documentation verified by the pharmacy school or the applicable government agency that neither licensure nor registration was required to practice pharmacy."


Ok now I know this is a long section to read but if I read this correctly you need a master's degree in pharmacy minimum which is the "5 year degree" and need to be licensed in the country you received your degree in. If you were not licensed in that country you have to provide documentation that you could have been licensed.

Again I would do some major research before jumping into this which is what my buddies wife is going to do but it does seem doable. Lots of hoops to jump through but if you cannot go full time B&M this could be your way in.

You guys read through and give me your thoughts as well. I know a few of you are better readers and can interpret what this says better than I can.

 

I do have a collection of non-traditional PharmD. But I haven't updated it for almost 3 years. Here is the link.

http://sites.google.com/site/aggietechie/home/dlpharmd

 

Just how busy is this pharmacy? Instead of her trying to become a pharmacist (at least 4 years and a lot of expense), when doesn't she take over the business, but hire a pharmacist just to fill the prescriptions? Just a thought.

 

Well she grew up in the pharmacy and would love to be a pharmacist. From my understanding it's a family business with just a few people working there but they do serve a good portion of the community. I guess she's interested in a career change. She already has a bachelor's and master's degree and has all the prereq's for the PharmD except for Calculus I and II. This is according to the reps at Creighton that she spoke with. It's crazy because what's holding her back is the lack of a first degree in pharmacy. I'm having a tough time finding any master's in Australia, UK, Canada, etc. that don't require the bachelor's first so I may suggest she finish her bachelor's since she appears really close and then move on to the master's. I believe all in all she just wants to run the business but also be the pharmacist as well.

 

This thread lead me to thinking about my local area (in Southern California); there are at least 10 pharmacies within a 5 mile radius of my home plus there are dozens more within ten miles. Most are offering $4 prescriptions to compete with Wallmark and Costco. Plus there are regular bus trips to Mexico where people purchase drugs.
This leads me to think that there must be an ample supply of pharmacists to staff all these pharmacies (some 24 hr/day).
Does this mean the end of small family pharmacies is in sight.

 

Ok I found out today her exact degrees are a Bachelor's in Dietetics and a Master's in Dietetics. Looking at her curriculum for the bachelor's she took Biology, Microbiology, Human Anatomy and Physiology, Pharmacology in Nutrition, and Organic and Biological Chemistry. I imagine she wouldn't have too much left for entry into an online BS Pharm and could move into a master's quickly. She might even be able to petition for entry into a master's because she currently holds both a bachelor's and master's degree already and just takes the missing courses needed for entry. If that's the case it would be pretty easy considering the number of BS Pharm degrees there are in Australia and the UK. What do you think?

 

Pharmacy has a lot of hands-on lab courses as well (like compounding, not to mention a year of clinical rotations), so I don't think you will find an online overseas option. Even Creighton requires you to go to labs.

I think the only option, if not Creighton, would be to find a local B&M option.

 

That's what I suggested in an earlier post. If there are no state or local regulations against a non-pharmacist running a pharmacy, then this could certainly work. If this is the case, then I suggested that she take a look at the MS in Pharmacy - Pharmaceutical Business program from your alma mater.