High School Preparation

High school students who are interested in a pharmacy career are encouraged to contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs for additional information. No specific high school subjects are required but a college preparatory plan should be followed.

Two years of a single foreign language in high school meet the general education requirements of the University. It is expected that applicants to the pharmacy program will meet prerequisite foreign language requirements in high school.

Sufficient mathematics leading to enrollment in calculus as a college freshman and two semesters of high school physics are recommended. It is advantageous to gain as much experience as possible in writing, verbal communication, computer skills, and the sciences.

It is also never too early to begin gaining pharmacy experience whether it’s through volunteer or job shadowing opportunities or a paid position.

Pre-pharmacy Counseling

Interested students are invited to contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs to speak with a counselor or arrange a visit to either campus. These visits can be useful for applicants when preparing the strongest application possible.

Participation in the Pre-Pharmacy Club on the OU-Norman Campus is encouraged. Students at other institutions are welcome to participate in the activities of the Pre-Pharmacy Club or may benefit from participating in pre-health professions clubs on their current campus.

Pre-pharmacy Curriculum

Prerequisites Worksheet
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Admission to the Doctor of Pharmacy program requires a minimum of 2 years of pre-professional university study and completion of approximately 70-80 semester hours of approved pre-pharmacy courses. Applicants must meet the prerequisites listed below prior to admission. Applicants can be in the process of completing requirements during the application process.

Equivalent courses are available at most colleges and universities. Equivalency tables are available through the pre-professional counseling centers at Oklahoma colleges and universities. The sequence of pre-pharmacy courses and total number of credits may vary between institutions depending upon the specific prerequisites and sequencing of courses, course structure, and laboratory experiences. All students are encouraged to contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs for assistance in planning an appropriate pre-pharmacy program of study.

Students entering the College of Pharmacy curriculum are also expected to have computer proficiency at or above the level of basic word processing skills. A course emphasizing basic business or professional computing skills or equivalent experience is recommended.

Applicants are highly encouraged to contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs with any questions regarding acceptance or substitutions of pre-requisite courses.

Prerequisite Courses

Additional Information Regarding Pre-requisites:

• US History/US Government-These courses may be waived if applicants have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited US college or university.
• Speech-This course should contain a public speaking element.
• Calculus-This course should contain differential and integral applications. 
• Labs-Some universities incorporate the labs into the credit hours.  Others may have you enroll in the lab credit separately.
• Organic Chemistry-Applicants should be aware that both organic chemistry courses may be required at their university in order to take biochemistry and should plan coursework accordingly.
• Biochemistry-Applicants should be aware that biochemistry may be offered on a staggered schedule at their home institution and should plan coursework accordingly to make sure that the requirement is completed by the deadline.
• Human Physiology/Human Anatomy-If applicants choose to take a combination course such as Human Anatomy & Physiology I, then they must also take Human Anatomy & Physiology II. 
• Advanced Biology/Life Sciences-Applicants must take 2 courses but are not required to take separate labs.  These courses must be upper level courses taken at a four year university (3 or 4000 level/junior or senior level).  Applicants must take courses related to human or mammalian science. Recommended courses are:  genetics, immunology, embryology, cellular or molecular biology, specialized physiology, specialized anatomy or other health science related course.  Applicants should avoid earth, plant, environmental or ecology science courses.

For specific questions regarding pre-requisite courses, please contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs.

General Education

Students are required to meet the lower division general education requirements of the University of Oklahoma listed below:

Additional Information for General Education Requirements:

• Understanding Art Forms -- Art Forms courses include the academic study of the fine arts (art, music, drama, literature, film) but does not include musical performance based courses. Most typically, students will take an art appreciation or art history course, specialized study in a specific area such as the history of jazz, or perhaps even a course focused on the history of cinema.
• Western Civilization and Culture – Courses include literature-based study of European and North American topics. Most typically, students will take a western humanities or humanities I and II sequence, or a course clearly titled as pertaining to a specific area of European, British or American culture or literature.
• Non-Western Civilization and Culture – Courses include focused study of Asian, African, Middle Eastern or Native American topics. Most typically students will take a course focused on the history, geography, art, or literature of one of these cultures.
• • Foreign Language I and II -- Must be the same language. Either four units from high school or two semesters at the college level. This category can include American Sign Language (ASL). It is expected that most applicants meet the foreign language requirement by completing two years of the same foreign language in high school. Applicants who have not met this requirement before entering college are expected to complete two semesters of college study of a single foreign language. Applicants for whom English is not the first language may not use the native language of their country of origin (regardless of residency or citizenship status) to satisfy this requirement, nor can the requirement be waived on the basis of English being the second language.

Students are exempt from general education requirements if they:

• Earned an associate degree from an institution in the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education; or
• Earned a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution of higher education

For specific questions regarding general education requirements, please contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs.

Advanced Standing Credit

Students who have a competence in an area of the pre-pharmacy curriculum may earn credit by an Advanced Standing Examination. Many of these examinations are offered by the Independent Study program on the Norman campus, while others are offered by individual departments. Students are cautioned to recognize the difference between advanced standing, which only enables enrollment in higher level courses, and advanced standing credit, which provides actual college credit.

Students with a Prior Degree

An increasing number of students admitted to the College of Pharmacy have earned a prior degree in another discipline. Individuals with a recent degree in science usually have fulfilled most of the prepharmacy requirements. Those who have been out of school for several years, or who have degrees in non-science areas, generally require some current courses in science and/or mathematics to prepare for the professional curriculum. Individuals who have completed or are currently completing another degree and are interested in pharmacy are invited to contact the Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs to discuss prerequisite requirements. The Office of Pharmacy Student Affairs will provide advice on an appropriate program of study to individuals with other degrees.

Students with Pharmacy Degrees from Foreign Colleges of Pharmacy

Pharmacy licensure in Oklahoma and most other states requires a professional pharmacy degree from an Amercian Council on Pharmaceutical Education (ACPE) accredited program in the United States. Individuals with a recent pharmacy degree from another country usually meet the pre-pharmacy requirements except for English, U.S. History, and Government. Foreign graduates usually must complete the entire professional core curriculum. We cannot accept transfer students from foreign pharmacy schools.  Addditionally, foreign coursework must be evaluated by World Education Services (www.wes.org) and a course-by-course evaluation submitted as part of the application process.

Last Updated: July 14, 2008