- About the PharmD
- Admissions
- Admissions Overview
- Policies and Disclosures
- Financial Aid and Cost
- Application Process
- Application Process Overview
- Step 1: Minimum Eligibility Requirements
- Step 2: The Application
- Step 3: Interview Process
- Step 4: After Applying
- Frequently Asked Questions and Tips
- Applying Without U.S. Citizenship or Permanent Resident Status
- PharmD-PhD
- Post-Baccalaureate Program
- Student Life
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Academic Prerequisites
In order to be eligible for admission, you must satisfactorily complete a minimum total of 88 quarter units (equivalent to 59 semester units) of academic course work at another college. Our prerequisites are a part of this required minimum number of units.
Prerequisite course requirements can be in-progress when you submit the application, as well as planned after you submit the application, but all prerequisites must be satisfactorily completed by July 1 of the year of entry into the program. Our admissions director's blog provides more on this topic, Finishing Those Prerequisites!
Overview of academic prerequisites
Information for 2023-24 applicants
Pass/Fail grades
UCSF School of Pharmacy does not have a policy regarding pass/fail grades. We have always dealt with this issue/question on a case-by-case-basis. At this time, we will accept pass/fail grades, without prejudice, for courses taken during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has always been our practice to consider grades in the context of numerous other aspects of the application, and an international crisis certainly provides a unique and compelling context.
Online courses/labs
Most undergraduate schools moved to online instruction during the pandemic. Many have continued to offer online courses. UCSF School of Pharmacy will accept online courses/labs, at this time, while the pandemic continues to affect the delivery of in-person courses. If you are uncertain about the suitability of your specific plans, please contact us at [email protected].
One semester unit is equivalent to 1.5 quarter units. To convert semester units to quarter units, multiply the semester units by 1.5.
Min qtr units |
Subject |
Must include |
More info |
---|---|---|---|
12 |
General Chemistry |
1 year of lecture and lab |
|
12 |
Organic Chemistry |
1 year of lecture and lab |
|
12 |
Biology |
1 lab |
|
4 |
Physiology |
mammalian (whole animal or human) |
|
4 |
Microbiology |
1 course in microbiology including lab |
|
4 |
Calculus |
1 course in calculus |
|
4 |
Statistics |
1 course in statistics |
|
8 |
English |
2 courses in college composition |
|
28 |
Humanities and/or Social Sciences Course Work Questions? See our blog post Humanities & Social Sciences. |
1 course in economics (macro- or micro-), and |
|
1 course in public speaking or debate, and |
|
||
1 course in psychology, sociology, or cultural anthropology, and |
|
||
courses in the humanities and/or social sciences |
|
||
88 quarter units total |
Course substitutions
We rarely accept petitions for course substitutions.
These are minimum units only
The number of units listed above is the minimum number of units required in each subject area. There are several factors that are used to determine if a course, or series of courses, may be used to fulfill a prerequisite. As such, in order to fulfill the content requirement of a prerequisite subject area, some applicants may be required to complete more than the number of units listed.
Why must I verify prerequisite course work?
The descriptors provided for the prerequisites are only some of the factors considered to determine if a course is acceptable to meet a prerequisite. When fulfilling these prerequisites with course work from your college or university, there may be differences in the names of courses, the number of courses you are required to take, and the number of units you must complete.
The only absolute way to ensure that you are taking course work that will meet these prerequisites is to only take course work approved by the Office of Student Affairs.
How to verify prerequisite course work
To determine if you’ve met our prerequisites, see Verifying Your Prerequisite Course Work.
More on this topic in our admissions director’s blog
Although not required reading, you’ll find additional comments in Humanities & Social Sciences, a blog post by Admissions Director Joel W. Gonzales.