2025-2026 Doctor of Pharmacy Curriculum - 4.0

Contents

• Overview - 4.1
• Elective Courses - 4.2
• Course Descriptions - 4.3
• Interprofessional Education - 4.4
• Experiential Education - 4.5
• Co-Curricular Expectations and Policies - 4.6
• Additional Program Options - 4.7

Overview - 4.1

Elective Courses - 4.2

Pharm.D. students are required to complete elective courses throughout the curriculum. A wide variety of courses (within the College of Pharmacy and other departments around campus) are acceptable elective options for Pharm.D. students. A complete list of approved Pharm.D. elective courses is available on the Electives section of the College’s website. Elective options may change. Changes will be posted to the College of Pharmacy website. 

Please be aware of the following as you select your elective each year: 

• 2 credits of elective must be taken each year (P1, P2, and P3).  Credit from the P1 year may not be used toward the P2 elective requirement etc.  Policies regarding elective experiences in the P4 year can be found in the Advance Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE) manual.
• No more than one 300-level course may serve as a Doctor of Pharmacy elective.  Consult with an advisor if you believe that a second 300-level course is especially relevant to your academic or professional goals.
• Students may use any two 1 credit courses to satisfy the 2-credit elective requirement.  Both courses must be completed in the same academic year, and a student can only satisfy the elective requirement using 1 credit courses once in their professional program, except for PHAR 701 (research).  Unlike other electives, PHAR 701 may be repeated for more than 2 credits during the Pharm.D. program.
• Research or Independent Study can be used as an elective but must be approved before the beginning of the term.  The completed Research & Independent study elective request form should be submitted online.
• Electives taken during the summer between the P1 and P2 years may count toward the P1 or P2 year. Courses taken during the summer between the P2 and P3 years may count toward the P2 or P3 elective.  Only one course may be taken for elective credit during the summer.
• Elective courses may not be taken for S/U grading.
• A ‘C-’or higher or a ‘P’ must be earned for the class to meet the elective requirement.
• Courses taken prior to starting the Pharm.D. program will not count toward the elective requirement even if the course is on the approved elective list.
• Failure to complete an approved elective each year could stop progression in the Pharm.D. program. 

Students are responsible for checking all course requirements and prerequisites in the course catalog . In order to enroll in some approved elective courses, Doctor of Pharmacy students may need to secure overrides from the offering department.  Students are responsible for securing overrides prior to registration. 

If a course not listed here is especially relevant to your academic and professional goals, you can request that it be approved as an elective for you by using the academic petition form. 

Course Descriptions - 4.3

Pharm.D. course descriptions, as well as registration information, and terms offered can be found in the online catalog.  

Interprofessional Education - 4.4

Oregon State University College of Pharmacy’s interprofessional educational (IPE) program is based on the World Health Organization’s definition of interprofessional education where “…students from two of more professions learn about, from and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes” (WHO 2010). Our IPE program intentionally connects students from different health professions within our local community to learn how to provide interprofessional collaborative care to patients and their families. Utilizing the Interprofessional Education Collaborative’s (IPEC) domain of Interprofessional Collaboration, our IPE program focuses on the core competencies of values and ethics, roles and responsibilities, interprofessional communication and teamwork.

At Oregon State, IPE is an expectation of all students during their student career and is promoted as a framework for lifelong learning. The IPE program is integrated across the curriculum, with formal educational programming spanning in the P1 year, in P3 year PAR block, and in practice-oriented experiences through Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experiences (IPPE) and Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE). Our goal is to develop pharmacists that are team and practice-ready to provide high-quality, safe, and patient- and family-centered care to improve individual and population health outcomes.

Since we work other colleges and institutions in the community, students may be required to travel off campus for IPE activities and course expectations.  Students are responsible for their own transportation and carpooling is always encouraged.  

Experiential Education - 4.5

The intensity, breadth, and duration of professional experience provided at Oregon State University College of Pharmacy produces graduates who are prepared to participate in patient care and implement innovative pharmaceutical care programs in their personal pharmacy practice. Students progress from being observers of the healthcare system to active involvement in providing patient care in specialized settings. Early and continuing opportunities for students to apply classroom knowledge in pharmacy practice settings are at the center of the professional curriculum. Similarly, students will interact with students from other health professions to gain perspectives required to deliver healthcare in a collaborative team setting. A variety of experiences tailored to student specific interests assure that we achieve our goal of creating competent, confident, creative and caring independent pharmacy professionals. 

P1 Year 

Fall Term

Career Perspectives and Professional Development. Introduction to certifications, skills and attitudes expected of pharmacy professionals. Students will develop the necessary knowledge in the areas of professionalism and teamwork. Preparation to participate in experiential education including Board of Pharmacy Intern regulations, CV preparation, interviewing skills, HIPAA, etc. 

Winter and Spring Terms | Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience I & II: Community Pharmacy

Students will have the opportunity to complete community pharmacy rotations. Sites are located between Eugene and Salem. If students are commuting, it may be possible to arrange for student assignments in their city of residence. Transportation is the responsibility of the student.  

Goals

By the completion of the P1 year, students will be prepared for experiential training in pharmacy settings and have the tools to effectively interview for a summer internship. An understanding of the unique role that pharmacists play in the health care team is developed during the experiential portion of the course and discussed in depth in the classroom. Students will have the opportunity to participate in immunization clinics, in addition to patient outreach events in the local community. All required paperwork and site visit reports become part of the student’s experiential portfolio. 

Total Experiential Hours: 90 hours 

P2 Year 

Fall, Winter, and Spring Terms | Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience III, IV and V: Community Pharmacy and Ambulatory Care

Students will be assigned to assist in the ongoing provision of patient care at sites throughout the Willamette Valley, with specific focus on patient counseling and immunization services in the community pharmacy setting and ambulatory care pharmacy. Assignments are made by the experiential education office. If students are commuting, it may be possible to arrange for student assignments in their city of residence. Transportation is the responsibility of the student. 

Students will also have the opportunity to complete rotations in the hospital setting, with emphasis on medication reconciliation and discharge counseling. Rotations will be assigned at an area hospital.  

Goals

Students develop an understanding of the impact of health challenges and treatment options on the lives of patients. Students gain a longitudinal perspective on disease management and the difficulties encountered within our healthcare system. Empathy, cultural awareness and patient advocacy evolve as a consequence of one-on-one interactions with patients.  By the beginning of the P3 year the student will have mastered an understanding of drug distribution in Community and Hospital settings. They will be comfortable in interactions with patients, colleagues, and other health professionals. Students are familiar with basic regulatory constraints for each setting and can participate as a team member in the delivery of foundational aspects of patient care. Documentation of competencies achieved, and self-reflective exercises are included in the student’s portfolio. 

Total Experiential Hours: 104 hours 

P3 Year 

Fall and Winter Terms | Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience, Institutional Health System

Students are assigned to a hospital pharmacy site for summer, fall and winter terms according to the relative availability of IPPE preceptors at each site. The sites are located throughout the Coast, Central Oregon, Eastern Oregon, Southern Oregon, Portland, Willamette Valley, and transportation/housing are the responsibility of each student.  

Goals

The general goal of the course is to expand the student’s knowledge and skills in hospital pharmacy by introducing the student to the services/methods of pharmaceutical care as they apply to this practice setting.  Students will become familiar with the operation, administration and supervision of an inpatient drug distribution system, related pharmacy clinical services and interactions of the pharmacist with patients and other members of the health care delivery team.  Students will expand their skills in order processing, IV mixture techniques, oral and written communication, the clinical process, providing drug information, patient education and professional responsibilities. 

Total Experiential Hours: 120 hours  

P4 Year 

Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring Terms | Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience

The P4 year begins almost immediately after the completion of the P3 year and the Pre-APPE Readiness Block. Each student will complete eight different rotations of six weeks each, 40 hours per week. Students are assigned one six-week period during the year to take as their “off block.” One rotation must take place in a rural or underserved setting that has limited access to health care services.  Students return to campus each term for seminars geared towards pharmacists in training preparing to enter the work force. 

4 Required Experiences

• General Adult Medicine
• Hospital / Health Systems 
• Community
• Ambulatory care 

4 Elective Experiences

Student can choose from among a large variety of patient and non-patient care rotations. At least two electives must be in a patient care setting.  

Goals/Outcomes

Build upon the didactic lectures and introductory experiential training the student has experienced in the P1 through P3 years. By the time the student completes their fourth year they are prepared to enter any pharmacy practice setting to deliver optimal and evidence based patient focused care to a wide variety of patient population.  Students maintain a copy of the project and presentation they complete at each rotation in their portfolio. Continuing self-assessment and self-improvement are important aspects of the educational process throughout the P4 year.  

Total Experiential hours: 1920 hours 

In Summary

Introductory Pharmacy Practice Education = 314 hours 
Advanced Pharmacy Practice Education  = 1920 hours  
Total = 2234 hours  

Students are eligible for intern licensure upon entering the Pharm.D program, at the start of the P1 year. As a P1, students will have the opportunity to function as an “academic intern,” but are not eligible to work in a paid internship position. Upon successful completion of the P1 year, students are able to apply and work as a paid intern. 

The College will be responsible for counting internship hours throughout the Pharm.D program. Upon successful completion of the program, the College will notify the Oregon Board of Pharmacy that a student is now eligible to sit for the NAPLEX and MPJE exams.  

If a student has plans to practice in another state, he/she must request that intern hour/graduation information be sent to that state and comply with the Board of Pharmacy rules for that state. 

Co-Curricular Expectations and Policies - 4.6

Additional Program Options - 4.7