UND offers excellent preparation for pharmacy school.  The Pre-Pharmacy advising offered through the College of Arts and Sciences sets guidelines and timetables for students to successfully complete the prerequisite coursework and other requirements relating to the NDSU College of Pharmacy or the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy.  If you are planning to go to somewhere other than NDSU or UM, please check with the Health Sciences Advisor regarding entrance requirements and prerequisite coursework.

We encourage you to meet with the Health Sciences Advisor, Mrs. Kimberly Ruit, as early in your UND undergraduate education as possible.  Mrs. Ruit can help in all aspects of your preparation for Pharmacy school from scheduling to study skills.  Together, you can plan the curriculum that is right for you.

Competitive Applicant Profile
The table below summarizes what students need to be accepted into the NDSU College of Pharmacy or the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy.  (If you are planning to go to somewhere else, please check with the Health Sciences Advisor regarding entrance requirements and prerequisite coursework).
 

Requirements	NDSU		University of Minnesota
Undergraduate Preparation	Minimum of 65 semester credit hours from an accredited college or university.		Undergraduate degree preferred
GPA	Avg: 3.78 in core courses A minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 = A) or above is required. The actual admission cutoff is much higher.		Avg: 3.53 Applicants must have an overall GPA of 3.00 to qualify for admission. In 2006, 139 applicants applied with a GPA in the range from 3.80 - 4.00. Only 44 of those students were admitted.
PCAT	Required - Avg PCAT Composite percentile rank: 81% Must be taken in either June or October.		Required - Avg PCAT Composite percentile rank: 83%
Application Deadline	January 1 (Available October 1) Students not previously enrolled at NDSU must apply both to NDSU and to the College of Pharmacy, Nursing, and Allied Sciences.		February 1 Uses a rolling admissions process (they accept and review applications on a continual basis beginning when the supplemental application becomes available in August).
Supplemental Applications	January 1		March 1 (Available August 1)
Admission Stats	Class entering Fall 2009 Applications received: 220 Interviews granted: Admitted: 85		Class entering Fall 2009 Applications received: 1039 Interviews granted: 358 Twin Cities admitted: 107 Duluth admitted: 60
Pharmacy Experience	•  Obtain pharmacy experience. This can show the committee that you have firsthand knowledge of the working life of a pharmacist. Examples: your local community pharmacy, clinical pharmacy, pharmaceutical care, hospital pharmacy, pharmaceutical research lab. This experience can be working experience, job-shadowing, volunteering, or informational interviews. •  Research the profession. Read about Pharmaceutical Care, learn about the direction that the profession is going and be prepared to discuss this. Shadow pharmacists working in different roles and learn about the profession from them.
Community Service	•  Be sure to have experience in volunteering, community service, extracurricular and/or leadership roles. Examples: Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, fraternities/sororities, tutoring, band/choir, academic or social clubs, team sports. •  The U of M Admissions Committee expects community service & volunteerism to be part of a lifestyle, not just part of an application.  List only genuine volunteer service on the application. "Padded" volunteer/extracurricular experience often goes discounted by the admissions committee.
References	Three recommendations required: forms are available from and submitted to PharmCAS		Three recommendations required: a health professional, an employer, and a third from another area of your life.
Residency	Residents of North Dakota are given primary consideration		Percentage of MN residents admitted Fall 2009: ~75%
Interviews	An on-site interview is part of the admission process for the professional program.		The highest-ranking applicants according to the selection criteria will be notified of a scheduled interview date and time. Applicants may not reschedule interviews, or choose the campus on which they interview.
Background Checks	Required Certain criminal offenses may be a cause for denial of a license to practice in the profession of pharmacy, nursing, or allied sciences. Students should be aware that certain conditions and criminal conduct or offenses may cause an individual to be ineligible to qualify for the program, internship, and/or licensure. The departments in the college require periodic background checks on students enrolled in the professional curriculum. Information from these background checks will be provided to institutions where students receive clinical experience.		Required Minnesota law requires that any student who provides services that involve unsupervised direct contact with patients and residents at hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care facilities licensed by the Minnesota Department of Health undergo a background study conducted by the state. The study covers civil agency findings related to maltreatment of children or vulnerable adults and a range of criminal convictions. A student who is disqualified from having direct patient contact as a result of the background study, and whose disqualification is not set aside by the Commissioner of Health, may not participate in a clinical placement in these licensed health care facilities. Failure to pass the background study is grounds for dismissal from the doctor of pharmacy program.
Required Courses	Credits	Courses at UND	Credits/Courses	Courses at UND
Biological Sciences	12	Bio 150 + L* MBio 302 + L or MBio 202 + L* Anat 204 + L* Physio 301 + L*	3 courses: Anatomy, Bio, Microbio	Bio 150 + L MBio 302 +L or MBio 202 +L Anat 204 + L PPT 301 + L
General Chemistry	8	Chem 121*, 122* and labs*	OChem prereqs	Chem 121, 122 and labs
Organic Chemistry	7	Chem 341*, 342* and labs*	Entire sequence	Chem 341, 342 and labs
Physics/Biophysics	3	Physics 211 and lab	Entire sequence	Physics 211, 212 and labs
Math - Calculus	8	Math 165*, 166*	1 course	Math 165
Statistics			1 course	Psych 241 or Soc 326
English	6	Engl 110*, 120*	2 courses	Engl 110, 120
Speech	3	Comm 110*	1 course	Comm 110
Econ	3	Econ 201	1 course	Econ 201 or 202
Wellness	2	Nutr 240 or PEXS 110	-	-
Behavioral/Social Sciences and Arts/Humanities	12	Psych 111, Soc 110, Soc 115, etc.	2 courses	psychology or sociology
	The College of Pharmacy, Nursing, and Allied Sciences requires 26 credits of General Education courses in order to meet ACPE (The American Council on Pharmaceutical Education) requirements. These credits are partially met through the University requirements. Additional courses must come from Category 4 or 5 (Arts/Humanities and Behavioral/Social Sciences - see General Education Requirements in the NDSU handbook). All students must meet the ACPE requirements prior to graduation with the BS degree.		In addition to the pre-pharmacy course requirements, students must complete at least 30 semester credits of general education (non-science, non-mathematics, non-professional, non-physical education) courses before graduation. Pre-pharmacy credits earned in behavioral sciences, English composition, economics, and public speaking apply toward the general education requirement. It is recommended that this requirement be completed before entering the College.
Grades, S/U and Online/Correspondence Courses	Selected pre-pharmacy core courses (courses designated with an asterisk*) will be used for selection criteria to determine GPA used in calculation for admission to the professional program. No more than three of these core courses may be repeated and none may be repeated more than once.		•  General education courses that do not fulfill pre-pharmacy requirements may be taken S/U. •  Pre-pharmacy courses must be at least 3 semester credits, taken A-F, and completed with a grade of C- or better before enrollment. The College strongly advises applicants not to take courses with labs instructed via distance learning or on the web.
AP Test Scores for Prerequisite Pharmacy Courses	Selected pre-pharmacy core courses (courses designated with an asterisk *) must show evidence of letter grade, or other means of demonstrating acceptable competency (i.e. AP - CEEB).		• AP test scores must be '3' or higher in order for credit to be given for a prerequisite course. • If the AP test credits AND the test subject AND the test score do not appear on your college transcript, you need to have an official AP score report sent to the College of Pharmacy if you want the credits to count towards a specific prerequisite course. Do not send the AP test score report to PharmCAS. PharmCAS does not report AP test credits to us unless they are detailed (subject and score) on a college transcript.

Remember...admission to Pharmacy school is highly selective and competitive.
It is imperative that you take your studies very seriously from the first day of your freshman year!!

Pre-Pharmacy Handouts

Bulletin Board

Pre-Pharmacy Links
Check out these links to sites of interest for Pre-Pharmacy students: