PharmD Prerequisites
For PharmD applicants, thoughtfully crafting a prerequisite course plan is the first step in cultivating a competitive pre-health portfolio. This holistic portfolio – which should include not only academic work but also clinical experiences, shadowing, volunteerism, leadership, and other extracurricular activities – will ultimately yield a stellar application.
There are currently 142 accredited schools of pharmacy in the United States. The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) is the organization that initially and periodically evaluates PharmD programs to ensure that each one is meeting stated goals, educational standards, and continued advances in knowledge and practice. The ACPE is recognized by the United States Department of Education.
Linear thinking would lead us to believe that if all PharmD programs exist under the same accrediting body (i.e., ACPE), then all PharmD programs must require the same prerequisite courses, correct? The answer to that, however, is false.
This is why the PharmCAS application portal and program directory are invaluable tools. PharmCAS is the Pharmacy College Application Service and is a centralized application portal currently used by 133 of the country’s 142 PharmD programs. On the organization’s home page, you can locate a tab entitled “School Directory,” which links to a central repository of participating PharmD programs. From here, you can do a deeper dive on program-specific prerequisite courses.
In the following table, I offer a list of subject areas and note the percentage of PharmD programs that have a course prerequisite in that area. I also present some examples of courses within each study area. Be sure to always check both PharmCAS and your target PharmD program’s website for an exact list of required course prerequisites.
| Subject Area | % of PharmD Programs with Course Prerequisite in Subject Area | Prerequisite Course Examples |
| Chemistry | 99% | Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry |
| Math | 98% | Calculus |
| Biology/Biological Sciences | 95% | General Biology 1 & 2 w/Lab, Cell Bio |
| English Composition/Writing | 84% | Introduction to Writing, English Literature |
| Statistics | 76% | Statistics (or Biostatistics) |
| Microbiology | 71% | Microbiology w/Lab |
| Physics | 61% | General Physics (minimum of one semester) |
| Communication/Speech | 58% | Introduction to Public Speaking |
| Anatomy and Physiology | 51% | Number of semesters and labs vary |
| Economics | 45% | Introduction to Economics, Public Health Care Delivery |
| Humanities | 42% | Sociology, History, Philosophy, Foreign Language, Political Science |
| Biochemistry | 31% | Biochemistry (w/ or w/o lab) |
| Psychology | 11% | Introduction to Psychology |
| Ethics | 4% | Introduction to Ethics |
As the former assistant dean of student affairs and career development at the William Beaumont School of Medicine, Dr. Valerie Wherely worked directly with the dean of the School of Medicine, the associate dean of student affairs, the associate dean of clinical curriculum, and the assistant dean of admissions, as well as with Year 4 students on both residency application reviews/critiques and mock interview preparation.
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