Degree Requirement:

Applications for admission into the first professional year (P1) of the Doctor of Pharmacy program will be accepted from students who have completed or plan to complete the prerequisite coursework.

The minimum degree that is required to enter the first professional year of the Doctor of Pharmacy program is a high school diploma/equivalent, in addition to the prerequisite coursework. A bachelor’s degree is not required, but may be earned at ACPHS, alongside the PharmD. All prerequisites must be completed at the college/university level and credit awarded from those institutions (such as a dual enrollment course offered in the high school). AP and IB coursework is also allowable.

International student applicants are those who have completed coursework outside the United States/US Territories and those who are not citizens or permanent residents of the US. The information below may pertain to you depending on your current academic or personal status. Please review thoroughly or email [email protected] with further questions.

• International English Language Testing System (academic or immigration) or DuoLingo or Test of English as a Foreign Language (Internet Based)

Prerequisite Coursework

Required coursework and semester/quarter hours for entry into the first professional year (P1) of the Doctor of Pharmacy program are outlined below.

Prerequisites may be outstanding during the application process, provided there is an appropriate amount of time prior to matriculation for the prerequisites to be completed.

If prerequisites are outstanding at the time an acceptance is offered, the acceptance will be conditional until a final transcript showing completion of the prerequisite(s) is submitted.

Only grades of a C- or better are permissible to fulfill a prerequisite. C- is below the minimum requirement, and would require remediation if it is a specific prerequisite. Please reach out to [email protected] if you have any questions.

• General Chemistry with lab – eight semester hours or 12 quarter hours
• General Biology with lab – eight semester hours or 12 quarter hours
• Biology (generally 200-level) – three semester hours or four quarter hours
• Organic Chemistry with lab – eight semester hours or 12 quarter hours
• Statistics – three semester hours or four quarter hours
• Calculus – three semester hours or four quarter hours
• Microbiology with lab – three semester hours or four quarter hours
• Physics with lab – three semester hours or four quarter hours
• Public Speaking or equivalent
• Applicants for Fall 2027: Public Speaking or a Writing Intensive course will satisfy the requirement.
• Applicants for Fall 2028 and beyond: There will be a Writing Intensive course. Public Speaking will no longer satisfy the requirement.
• Humanities – nine semester hours or 13 quarter hours
• Social Science – three semester hours or four quarter hours
• General Electives (at least six of nine credits should be Liberal Arts) – nine semester hours or 13 quarter hours

No credit will be accepted for grades lower than a “C-”.

Physical education courses cannot be used to fulfill prerequisites.

1. Science courses should be those required of science majors and should include labs
2. Public Speaking may be fulfilled through any course with a significant public-speaking component as demonstrated by the course syllabus
3. Examples of Humanities are English literature, composition, U.S. history, Western civilization, foreign language, philosophy, and cross-disciplinary humanities courses
4. Examples of Social Sciences are psychology, anthropology, sociology and economics
5. Examples of Liberal Arts electives are art, music, sociology, history, psychology, anthropology, foreign language, political science, economics and English

Interview Requirements

All applicants invited to interview for the PharmD program are required to participate in an in-person interview at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS) in Albany, New York.

Virtual interviews are offered only on an occasional, limited basis to a select group of applicants who reside a significant distance from campus and for whom travel to Albany would require air transportation. Virtual interview availability is determined by the Admissions Office and is not available by request.

Applicants should plan accordingly and be prepared to travel to campus if invited to interview.