Prerequisite Coursework

Prospective candidates are encouraged to major in their area of greatest interest, as no specific undergraduate major is required for admission to the College of Pharmacy. Regardless of the choice of major, highly competitive applicants will have completed advanced coursework in the sciences and math.

Professional students must possess the analytical ability and competency to produce effective written communications both independently and collaboratively. As such, a technical and professional communications course is recommended but not required.  Further, because of the relevance of a broadly based education to success in pharmacy school, the Admissions Committee is particularly impressed by students whose education has provided a range of intellectual experience, including opportunities for analytical thinking and independent study.

Applicants may submit their PharmCAS application prior to completing all prerequisite courses. Although a student may be given conditional admission, no student will be enrolled who has not finished all required courses prior to enrollment.

All prerequisite courses must be completed by the end of the spring semester unless granted permission to take summer courses following an offer of admission.

 

Admission to the College requires the completion of a minimum of 62 hours of pre-professional coursework, distributed as follows: 

Science

NOTE - Not all introductory courses in the sciences, calculus, or statistics will be accepted in fulfillment of pre-pharmacy requirements. All science, calculus, or statistics courses the prospective student pharmacist takes should be courses which are suitable for science majors intending graduate study or for pre-medical/pre-dental students. 

Course	Number of Courses	Number of Semester Hours
General Chemistry	2	8
Organic Chemistry	2	8
General Biology/Zoology	2	8
Microbiology	1	3
Anatomy-Physiology	2	8

Mathematics

NOTE - Not all introductory courses in the sciences, calculus, or statistics will be accepted in fulfillment of pre-pharmacy requirements. All science, calculus, or statistics courses the prospective student pharmacist takes should be courses which are suitable for science majors intending graduate study or for pre-medical/pre-dental students. 

Course	Number of Courses	Number of Semester Hours
Calculus	1	3
Statistics	1	3

Communications Skills

Course	Number of Courses	Number of Semester Hours
English Composition	2	6
Communications/Speech	1	3

Electives

Elective courses must conform to the following distribution and requirements

• At least two (2) courses totaling 6 semester hours must be taken in the Humanities (including, but not limited to: arts, literature, history, language, philosophy).
• At least two (2) courses totaling 6 semester hours must be taken in the Social Sciences (including, but not limited to: sociology, psychology, anthropology, political science, economics).

Students unsure whether a particular course will be accepted by the college should contact the admissions office at pharmadmissions@uthsc.edu.

• Human Anatomy and Human Physiology may be taken as separate courses totaling 8 hours. If your pre-pharmacy institution requires Comparative Anatomy and/or Physiology for your degree requirement, that will be accepted.
• A 3 hour microbiology course will be acceptable, however a 4 hour microbiology course with lab is preferred.

Chemistry (16 hours): A minimum of 16 semester credit hours of chemistry is required. A minimum of two (2) courses must be in general chemistry, which may include inorganic or analytical chemistry, and two (2) additional courses must be in organic chemistry. Each of these courses must be a complete, standard college-level course for science majors and each must be associated with a lab experience. In instances where students feel uncertain of their preparation in chemistry and wish to take additional work, such courses as advanced analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, biophysical/biological chemistry, or chemical instrumentation should be considered.

General Biological Sciences or Zoology (8 hours): Courses totaling a minimum of eight semester credit hours in the biological or zoological sciences are required. Each course must include a lab experience. Many students may benefit from additional study in the biological sciences and should consider courses in genetics, cellular biology, embryology, and molecular biology.

Anatomy and Physiology (8 hours): At least two courses that are accompanied by a lab experience. This may be a two part Anatomy and Physiology series or may be separate courses in Human Anatomy and Human Physiology. Collectively, the courses should be a review of the basic principles of human structure (anatomy) and function (physiology) and their relationship to human disease.

Microbiology (3-4 hours): The microbiology course may be three or four credit hours and it is recommended that student select a Microbiology course that includes a lab experience if available. This course should be a study of microbes important to man, including human pathogens and diseases. Laboratory work should include methods of culturing, staining, and identification of common microbe forms.

Calculus (3 hours): A one semester calculus course with a minimum of three semester credits is required. Calculus courses offered by departments other than math are not accepted to satisfy this requirement and pre-calculus will not satisfy this requirement.

Statistics (3 hours): The Statistics course should be a research-based course. We accept a general statistics or psychology, education, or business statistics course.

Social and Behavioral Science Electives (6 hours): At least two courses totaling six semester hours must be taken in the Social Sciences: sociology, psychology, anthropology, political science, economics.

Humanities (6 hours):At least two courses totaling six semester hours must be taken in the Humanities (e.g., arts, literature, history, language, philosophy). Students seeking the Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Science will need to take six semester hours of United States History if they did not take one year of United States History in high school.

English Composition (6 hours): Competency in the use of written English is considered essential to the successful study and practice of pharmacy. At least two courses emphasizing writing skills are required. The usual college-level introductory courses in freshman English composition and literature will meet six semester credit hours of this admission requirement. Writing intensive courses are recommended.

Communication Skills (3 hours): Competency in the use of the English language is essential to successful study and practice of pharmacy. One course with an emphasis on verbal skill is required.