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Doctor Of Pharmacy:

I am here with one such course of medical science that has not only created its value in the medical fraternity in a relatively short time but also has created a little confusion among students due to its somewhat similar abbreviated name to another much-in-demand course of medical Science.

I suppose you must have got some clues about the course. Pharmacy course and the course it is confused with is D.Pharm i.e Diploma in Pharmacy Course. In this article, I am going to tell you each minute detail about the Pharm D course. What exactly Pharm D course is? What are the eligibility conditions to join Pharm D course? How to join Pharm D Course? What are the top institutes for Pharm D courses? What are the tuition and fees for the Pharm D program?  What are career and Job Opportunities for Pharm D holders? What are the top recruiters of Pharm D degree holders? What is the expected salary or pay packages after the completion of the course and before you start working?

Let me clear you that there is a huge difference between D.Pharm and Pharm D course as D.Pharm is a Diploma level course of 2 years where you study the basic concept of Pharmacy and accepted in a specific country only whereas Pharm D is 6 years Post Graduate level course where you do an in-depth study of pharmacy and is accepted across the world. So let us start with the very basic question about the Pharm D course.?

This course enables one to practice the profession of a Pharmacist under the Pharmacy Act. D.Pharmacy is the profession that engages in the art and science of preparing and dispensing medicines. The course has been designed to train eligible candidates in the clinical practice of pharmacy, pharmacy practice, and pharmaceutical care. Upon successful completion of the course, students gain skills in diagnosis and treatment of diseases, selection and therapeutic usage of medicine, monitoring of patients, etc.

Doctor of Pharmacy Programs focus on classroom theory, penetrative laboratory experiments, and motivated research projects. It is a post-graduate qualification and hence Pharm.D graduates can register directly for a PhD. The course is designed for students with an interest in clinical research and who want to learn more about pharmacy practice concepts. MBBS graduates are not the only professionals who can monitor patients, and diagnose diseases, but also the Pharmacy graduates can also do this. 

Now when you are much aware of the Pharm D course and the confusion between D.Pharm and Pharm D is also clear you would like to know the Eligibility Conditions required to join this course. As far as the educational qualification is concerned the aspiring candidate must have cleared their 12 examinations with at least 65% in science subjects. Some institutes may demand a certain minimum percentage of marks at this level which can be anywhere between 50% to 60% for general category candidates and 5% less for reserved category candidates.

Skills Required To Complete Pharm D:

Along with fulfilling these eligibility conditions, you must have a certain set of required skills to complete Pharm D successfully like:

• Medicinal and scientific research aptitudes
• Adaptation ability to dynamic circumstances
• Business abilities like advertising, arranging
• Communication skills & Interpersonal aptitudes
• Curiosity & Persuasive abilities
• Determinant and consistency skills
• Medical writing and ethics skills
• Science wizard and technical skills
• Sharp memory and comprehensive knowledge and
• Therapeutic and counselling skills

Pharmacy Syllabus:

If you have all these skills then you are pretty fit to complete this course successfully. Now I would like to let you know about the syllabus of this 6 years Pharm D degree course. If we go by semester-wise. 

In the first semester, you usually learn subjects like

• Human Anatomy & Physiology

• Pharmaceutics

• Medicinal Biochemistry

Whereas the second semester consists of subjects like –

• Pharmaceutical Organic Chemistry

• Pharmaceutical Inorganic Chemistry

• Remedial Mathematics/Biology

The third semester  consists of subjects like 

• Pathophysiology

• Pharmaceutical Microbiology

• Pharmacognosy & Phytopharmaceuticals

The fourth semester consists of –

• Pharmacology 1

• Community Pharmacy

• Pharmacotherapeutics 1

In semester 5th you study subjects like –

• Pharmacology 2

• Pharmaceutical Analysis

• Pharmacotherapeutics 2

Whereas semester 6 consists of –

• Pharmaceutical Jurisprudence

• Medicinal Chemistry

• Pharmaceutical Formulations

In Seventh Semester you will study

• Pharmacotherapeutics 3

• Hospital Pharmacy

• Clinical Pharmacy

The eighth semester usually consists of subjects like

• Biostatistics & Research Methodology

• Biopharmaceutics & Pharmacokinetics

• Clinical Toxicology

In the ninth semester of Pharm D, you will study subjects such as

• Clinical Research

• Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmacoeconomic

• Clinical Pharmacokinetics & Pharmacotherapeutic

Medicine Monitoring Tenth-semester consists

• Clerkship

• Project work

In Year VI, which is also the last year of the course, candidates have to pursue internships or training, including postings in special medical units. Students are responsible for providing clinical pharmacy services to the allotted wards without assistance.

Training is done for –

• 6 months in the General Medicine department

• 2 months in each of the speciality areas

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How to get Admission to Pharm D Course?

The majority of Pharm D courses offered by reputable institutes are based on the student’s rank in a written entrance examination conducted by the institute, university, or state and national levels by various governing bodies.

Some institutes may even hold group discussions and personal interviews as part of the counselling procedure for the written exam qualified candidates Some institutes in Pakistan offer the Pharm D based on FSc results. Besides these, some institutes in the country also have their own admission criteria in place and offer admission based on the candidate’s score in such qualifying examinations.

Top Institutes In Pakistan For Pharm D courses:

What are the top institutes for Pharm D courses?

If you want to go for Government/Public Institutes, then there are Institutions like-

S.No	Institutions offering Degree Programs	Recognized Programs	Admission Allocation
	Public Sector		Morning	Evening
1	University College of Pharmacy, University of the Punjab, Lahore.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	160	150
2	Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Karachi, Karachi.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	200	100
3	Faculty of Pharmacy, Sindh University, Jamshoro.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	100	0
4	Faculty of Pharmacy, Islamia University, Bahawalpur.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	100	100
5	Department of Pharmacy, Peshawar University, Peshawar.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	60	60
6	Faculty of Pharmacy, BahauddinZakriya University, Multan.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	100	100
7	Faculty of Pharmacy, Gomal University, Dera Ismail Khan.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	70	70
8	Department of Pharmacy, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	140	Nil
9	Department of Pharmacy, Sargodha University, Sargodha.	Pharm. D.	60	60
10	Department of Pharmacy, Balochistan University, Quetta.	B. Pharmacy. & Pharm. D.	100	Nil
11	Department of Pharmacy, Federal Urdu University, Karachi.	Pharm. D.	60	50
12	College of Pharmacy, GC University, Faisalabad.	Pharm. D.	60	Nil
13	Department of Pharmacy, University of Malakand, Butkhela, Malakand	Pharm. D.	50	Nil
14	Department of Pharmacy, Kohat University of Science & Technology, Kohat.KPK	Pharm. D.	50
15	Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore	Pharm. D.	50	50
16	College of Pharmacy, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi.	Pharm. D.	100	50
17	Abbottabad University of Science & Technology. Abbottabad	Pharm. D.	50	NIL
18	University of Swabi, Swabi	Pharm. D.	50	NIL
19	Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad	Pharm. D.	60	NIL
20	University of Poonch, Rawalakot	Pharm. D.	50	NIL
21	Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University, Sheringal, Dir Upper, KPK	Pharm. D.	40
22	Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan.	Pharm. D.	100
23	Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur	Pharm. D.	50
24	Jinnah Sindh Medical University, Karachi	Pharm. D.	100
25	Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Jamshoro	Pharm. D.	80
26	Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University, Layari, Karachi	Pharm. D.	60

 Source; Pakistan pharmacy council 

If you want to go to Private Institutes, then there are some Institutions like-

Private Sector                                                          Programs                Morning
1	Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Baqai Medical University, Karachi.	B. Pharmacy  &  Pharm. D.	100	NIL
2	Lahore College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lahore.	B. Pharmacy  &  Pharm. D.	100	100
3	Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lahore, Lahore Campus, Lahore.	B. Pharmacy  &  Pharm. D.	100	100
4	Faculty of Pharmacy, Jinnah University for Women, Karachi.	B. Pharmacy  &  Pharm. D.	100	100
5	Faculty of Pharmacy, Hamdard University, Karachi Campus, Karachi.	B. Pharmacy  & Pharm. D.	60	0
6	Hamdard University, Islamabad Campus, Islamabad.	B. Pharmacy &  Pharm. D.	2 sections of 75, annually	NIL
7	Faculty of Pharmacy The University of Faisalabad, Faisalabad.	Pharm. D.	60	NIL
8	Faculty of Pharmacy, Sarhad University, Peshawar.	Pharm. D.	60	40
9	Faculty of Pharmacy, Ziauddin University, Karachi.	Pharm. D.	100	NIL
10	Riphah Institute of Pharmacy, Riphah International University, Islamabad.	Pharm. D.	160	–
11	Faculty of Pharmacy, Hajvery University, Lahore	Pharm. D.	75	NIL
12	Jinnah College of Pharmacy, Sohail University, Karachi Change of name is also required (the previous name is School of Pharmacy, Jinnah Medical & Dental College, Karachi.)	Pharm. D.	100	NIL
13	Women Institute of  Learning, Abbottabad	Pharm. D.	100	NIL
14	Department of Pharmacy, The University of Lahore, Islamabad Campus.	Pharm. D.	100	NIL
15	Department of Pharmacy, Abasyn University, Peshawar	Pharm. D.	50	50
16	Department of Pharmacy, COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Abbottabad.	Pharm. D.	50	50
17	Akhtar Saeed College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lahore.	Pharm. D.	100	NIL
18	Superior University, Lahore.	Pharm. D.	50 + 55 of two sections, annually	NIL
19	Lahore Pharmacy College, Lahore	Pharm. D.	60	NIL
20	Margalla Institute of Health Sciences, Rawalpindi	Pharm. D.	75	NIL
21	University of Central Punjab	Pharm. D.	4 sections of 50, annually	NIL
22	Mohi ud Din Islamic Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Mirpur, AJ&K	Pharm. D.	50	50
23	RIPHAH International University, Lahore Campus.	Pharm. D	50	50
24	Akson College of Pharmacy, Mirpur.	Pharm. D	60	NIL
25	Islam College of Pharmacy, Sialkot	Pharm. D.	80	NIL
26	Rashid Latif College of Pharmacy, Lahore	Pharm. D.	100
27	Shifa College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, ShifaTameer-i-Millat University, Islamabad.	Pharm. D.	2 sections of 50, annually
28	Leads College of Pharmacy, Lahore.	Pharm. D	100
29	Johar Institute of Professional Studies, Lahore.	Pharm. D	150
30	Nazeer Hussain University, Karachi	Pharm. D.	50
31	Abasyn University,  Islamabad	Pharm. D.	100
32	Southern Punjab Institute of Health Sciences, Multan	Pharm. D.	100

Source; Pakistan pharmacy council 

Tuition Fee For Pharm D:

What are the tuition and fees for the Pharm D program?

Being provided by a few institutes and mostly private institutes across Pakistan. The fee for this course is a little higher than the other courses in the field. So, if you go to Government Pharmacy Institute then you may have to shell out between PKR 60,000 to PKR 1 Lakhs per annum whereas, In Private universities, the fee varies from PKR 1.2 Lakh Per annum to 1.5 Lakh.

Job Opportunities:

Now you would like to know about the career prospects and job opportunities after completion of your degree. Pharmacy has been established as an independent branch of medical science dealing with all aspects of medicinal and pharmaceuticals. Pharm. D. degree holders can find many employment opportunities in both the national and international arenas in areas such as academia, management, research, and administration.

Some prominent employment that you can look for are:

• Pharmaceutical Company

• Healthcare centres

• Healthcare Industries

• Retail outlets

• Private and Government Hospitals

• Franchise and Retail outlets

• College/University 

• Self-Employment

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Some of the popular job profiles offered to successful Pharm D degree holders can be

As Clinical Pharmacist 

This job requires providing direct patient care to promote optimal medication management, healthcare, wellness, and disease prevention. A clinical pharmacist needs to be knowledgeable about the therapeutic use of medications to provide patients with accurate information about how to use them safely.

As Medicine Inspector 

They are in charge of keeping tabs on the duplicity and piracy of medicines. They must check chemist shops and pharmaceutical companies from doing any illegal work against medicine rules, and take action against chemists who deal in duplicate medicine which is harmful to patients

As Analytical Chemist

To become an analytical chemist, the individual must be well versed in bio-analysis, forensic science, environmental analysis, clinical analysis, and materials analysis. Their job is to study the test, chemical composition, and behaviours of many different salts.

As Researcher/Research Scientist

To work with team members to identify the goals of the project, research methods, variables, and other test parameters.

As a Retail Pharmacist 

A retail pharmacist who is commonly seen around us provides healthcare advice and supplies prescription and non-prescription items medication to the consumers. Most retail pharmacists are recruited by independent pharmacies, pharmacy chains, and other organizations.

As Medical Writer 

A medical writer writes scientific documents on medicines and/ or diseases according to their research. They may write for publication in articles, promotional literature, and content for healthcare websites, magazines, or news articles. A medical writer must be up to date on the advancements in medicine and healthcare.

Now I would like to tell you about some of the Top recruiters that you can think of joining after completing your Pharm D course Pharm D degree holders get opportunities in the Product Development, Technical, and Marketing departments of pharmaceutical companies. Here are some of the top pharmaceutical companies:

• Amgen
•  Aurobindo Pharma
• Abbott Laboratories
•  AbbVie
•  Cipla
•  Dr Reddy’s Laboratories
•  Emcure
•  Glenmark Pharma
•  GlaxoSmithKline
•  Johnson & Johnson
•  Lupin
•  Merck
•  Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc.
•  Meijr Inc.
•  Piramal
•  Pfizer
•  Sun Pharmaceuticals
•  Sanofi
•  Walgreen Pharmacy and
•  Zydus Cadila

Salary Prospects:

Here, the most eagerly asked question is salary prospects after the Pharm D course. An aspiring candidate with a Pharm D degree can expect to get anything between Rs. 8.5 lakh to Rs.12 lakh per annum to start with, depending on the job or scale of business that the candidate has started. With some on-the-job experience and acquiring the terms of the trade, this Pay Package can go as high as Rs.28 lakh per annum. In the government sector, the pay varies according to the post one has joined and the state one is working in. On average the Salary can be anything between Rs.12 Lakh to 18.8 Lakh per annum.

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Conclusion:

Pharm D has a bright future because it is more connected to others than any field. In my opinion, Pharm D will be a life-changing option for those who left behind the MBBS & BDS. That is all for this article. I Hope, the details provided here will be helpful for the candidates who are interested in joining the Pharm.D course. We will try our best to provide you with updated information to you soon. If you like this article please share it with others. Thanks