Master of Pharmacy

Applications are now open for admission to the Master of Pharmacy in 2009!!

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Entry Requirements
Who Should Apply?
(Already a Pharmacy graduate?)
Course Structure
Information Sessions

The Faculty offers a graduate-entry course, the Master of Pharmacy. This course provides an alternative mode of entry into the pharmacy profession for applicants with a previous university degree, and is open to both local and international students. On completion of this degree, and following a compulsory pre-registration training period that is required for all candidates, graduates will be eligible for registration with the Pharmacy Board of New South Wales. Once registered, graduates will be able to practice as a pharmacist.

Further information about registration requirements can be obtained from the Pharmacy Board of New South Wales.
Tel: +61 2 9281 7736.

Successful completion of this course is contingent on satisfactory performance in a number of clinical placements in NSW health facilities. To enable participation in clinical placements, students will be required to complete a Criminal Record Check (as required by the NSW Department of Health), a Prohibited Employment Declaration form (as required by the NSW Commission for Children and Young People) and relevant vaccination against infectious diseases (as required by the NSW Department of Health) at the time of enrolment.

The Faculty of Pharmacy at The University of Sydney was the first school in Australia to award a degree in pharmacy, and in 2004 was the first faculty to offer an innovative two-year, fee-paying postgraduate degree leading towards registration as a pharmacist.

Students enrolling in the Master of Pharmacy at The University of Sydney will:

• Be taught in a faculty with more than 100 years experience in delivering leading-edge pharmacy education
• Be taught by world-renowned academics
• Have access to teaching laboratories that are leading world best-practice and include the world’s best technology
• Be able to assume prominent roles in all aspects of the pharmacy profession and be leaders in innovative, evidence-based practice.

If you would like information about the Faculty of Pharmacy rules and regulations refer to the Faculty of Pharmacy Handbook.

For further information on the Faculty of Pharmacy and its teaching and research staff, please follow the links to other pages on our website http://www.pharm.usyd.edu.au/.

Comments from recent MPharm graduates:

• Quoc: “The window to a clearer future.”
• Kim: "A wonderful opportunity for graduates to develop new and exciting paths to their careers in an effective problem-based learning environment."
• Erin: “Best group of friends ever :) wouldn't have been the same without the people we did the course with!”
• Lina: “A very dedicated and supportive team of academics and broad expanse of opportunities.”
• Zara: “I think the course is great!”
• Lisa: “All the lecturers are brilliant! (esp. Dani)”
• Kate: “Great for building friendships as well as professional skills.”

The Master of Pharmacy is designed for individuals who have a previous Bachelor's degree (in any field) who wish to pursue a career in Pharmacy. The Master of Pharmacy enables such candidates to complete their Pharmacy studies in a minimum of two years, rather than the four years of the undergraduate Bachelor of Pharmacy degree. This degree is open to both local and international students.

Pharmacy graduates seeking further academic studies in pharmacy are recommended to consider our postgraduate research degree programs: Master of Philosophy (Pharmacy) or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). Please visit the Pharmacy Research Degree website for more information.

If you are an overseas qualified pharmacist and are seeking registration in Australia, you should contact the Australian Pharmacy Council. Further information can be found here.

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The Master of Pharmacy is a degree by coursework and requires full-time attendance for a minimum of two years. A minimum of 96 credit points of course material will be delivered over four semesters and two additional non-standard teaching sessions. In 2008, the course will commence in early March. Please note there is no mid-year entry into this course. This course is not offered part-time or by distance education.

Semesters 1 and 2 of each year are structured around the Standard Academic Calendar and are valued at 18 credit points each. In addition, one non-standard session (*) will be conducted each year, focused mainly on experiential clinical placements to the value of 12 credit points.

Master of Pharmacy Full time: 2 years. Credit points required: 96
	Course Code					Unit of Study			Credit Points
YEAR 1
Semester 1
	PHAR5513					Pharmaceutical Chemistry 1A			6
	PCOL5001					Current Topics in Pharmacology			6
	PHAR5515					Pharmaceutical Science			6
Semester 2
	PHAR5516					Pharmaceutical Chemistry 1B			6
	PHAR5517					Pharmaceutics 1B			6
	PHAR5518					Pharmacy Practice A			6
*	* PHAR5505					* Clinical Residency 1 (~January-March)			12
YEAR 2
Semester 1
	PHAR5514					Pharmaceutics 2A			6
	PHAR5507					Dispensing Practice			6
	PHAR5508					Pharmacy Practice B			6
Semester 2
	PHAR5509					Integrated Pharmaceutics			6
	PHAR5510					Pharmacy Practice C			6
	PHAR5506					Pharmaceutical Chemistry 2B			6
*	* PHAR5512					* Clinical Residency 2 (July & ~November-December)			12

Further information on the units of study in the Master of Pharmacy can be found in the Faculty of Pharmacy Handbook.

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The admission requirements for the Master of Pharmacy are:

1. Have a prior Bachelor’s degree;
2. Meeting the minimum requirements for the Graduate Australian Medical Admissions Test (GAMSAT) for local applicants or Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) for international applicants;
3. Meeting the minimum requirement of the GPA;
4. Meeting a minimum of 5 out of the 7 Essential Prerequisites; and
5. Performance in the Pharmacy Case Study Scenario.

Bachelor's degree

All applicants must have completed or be in the final year of a Bachelor's degree. For those in their final year of study, satisfactory completion of the degree will be a condition for entry.

Please note applicants enrolled in a two year degree or one year conversion degree may only apply after completion of the degree

Applicants must meet the English Language proficiency requirements
(Applicants who do not meet the English requirements will not be considered).

Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT)

The GAMSAT has been developed by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) in conjunction with the Consortium of Graduate Medical Schools to assist in the selection of students. The GAMSAT is designed to assess three areas:

1. Reasoning and humanities in social sciences;
2. Written communication; and
3. Reasoning in biological and physical sciences.

Minimum GAMSAT scores will be set annually.

Local applicants must register with the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) to sit the Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT) by the published deadline date each year. Registration for the test commences in approximately late October each year. The test takes place once a year and will be taking place on 15 March 2008 for admission in 2009. More information about GAMSAT, including material to assist candidates in their preparation for the test can be found on the ACER website.

International applicants will be required to sit the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). The minimum MCAT score will be set annually.

More information about the MCAT, including material to assist candidates in their preparation for the test can be found on the ACER website.

Grade Point Average (GPA)

The minimum requirement for the GPA will be set annually. Details of the procedure for calculating a weighted GPA are included in the Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Guide, which is available from the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER).

Candidates must calculate their own GPA according to the ACER website and provide the GPA value with their Master of Pharmacy application.

The GPA calculation must be based on the most recent Bachelor's degree and should not include postgraduate qualifications. Applicants in their final year of study will not be able to include the final year in their GPA calculation. GPA calculations will be based on fully completed years of study only.

Applicants with international qualifications may not be able to calculate a GPA. If your results cannot readily be converted, the Admissions Committee will assess your qualifications upon receipt of your application details at the Faculty of Pharmacy from ACER.

Pharmacy Case Study Scenario

Applicants who are shortlisted, after having met the GAMSAT or MCAT score, GPA and essential prerequisites requirements, will be required to complete the Pharmacy Case Study Scenario in person on 27 September 2008. The Pharmacy Case Study Scenario is not an interview or test and it is not possible to prepare or study for it. This will be completed online in the Faculty of Pharmacy in the form of short answer questions and must be completed in person.

Arrangements will be made for international applicants who have been shortlisted, to complete the Pharmacy Case Study Scenario from overseas.

Any applicant who does not meet the timeline for completion of the Pharmacy Case Study Scenario will not be considered any further in the selection process.

There are no interviews for the Master of Pharmacy.

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There are seven (7) essential prerequisites. However, as competition for places in this course is strong, applicants who have not achieved at least five out of the seven essential prerequisites on application will not be offered a place. Only studies completed within the five years prior to the commencement of the Master of Pharmacy will be considered for the essential prerequisites. The ACER application form allows applicants to enter units/courses completed between 2005 and 2009. Please select "2005" on the application form as the 'Year Completed' if you wish to have any studies considered that were completed in 2004 (or earlier)."

Applicants who meet a minimum of five (5) out of the seven essential prerequisites and who are given an offer of admission must complete the remaining essential prerequisite/s by the end of Year 1 in the Master of Pharmacy. However, undertaking essential prerequisites in addition to Year 1 of the Master of Pharmacy will add a considerable load to your studies and, in some cases may not be possible due to timetable conflicts. It is recommended that where possible, successful applicants in this category complete the outstanding essential prerequisite/s at Summer School before the commencement of the degree. Otherwise during Year 1 of the Master of Pharmacy, these essential prerequisites are to be completed by non-award study (details below).

Note that fees for any essential prerequisite/s completed either at Summer School or as non-award study in Year 1 are not included in the Master of Pharmacy course fees.

To meet these essential prerequisites, applicants will have completed dedicated courses that are considered equivalent in terms of credit point value to the following:

		Essential Prerequisites		Recommended equivalent credit points
1.		Human Biology		6
2.		Calculus		3
3.		Statistics		3
4.		Chemistry		12
5.		Biochemistry		6
6.		Pharmacology		12
7.		Physiology		12

High School-level studies in the above essential prerequisites are not acceptable.

It is not possible to assess essential prerequisites before an application has been submitted. Candidates will be required to provide details of courses undertaken with their complete application.

Note: Any applicant who completes the essential prerequisites through non-award study (as detailed below) by completing the equivalents in the Bachelor of Pharmacy at The University of Sydney will sufficiently meet the essential prerequisites.

If you fall into one of the following categories you should follow the instructions outlined in this Essential Prerequisite Information Sheet for enrolment in non-award study for 2008 Master of Pharmacy essential prerequisites:

• A potential applicant for the Master of Pharmacy who has decided to complete any or all of the essential prerequisites as non-award study in preparation for their application
• A local or international student currently enrolled in the Master of Pharmacy who is required to complete all outstanding essential prerequisites by the end of Year 1.

These essential prerequisites are all taught by departments outside of the Faculty of Pharmacy. Some are specially devised units for Pharmacy students, others are part of the main stream units offered by the Faculty of Science.

Note: If you choose to complete these essential prerequisites by non-award study before you apply for the Master of Pharmacy there is no guarantee that you will be offered a place. An applicant must meet all of the specified criteria as admission is not based on fulfilling the essential prerequisites alone. However, meeting seven out of the seven essential prequisites will be an advantage to your final ranking.

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• October 2007 - 25 January 2008 – Register for GAMSAT
• MCAT – For details refer to http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/start.htm
• 15 March 2008 – GAMSAT test day
• 9 May 2008 - Applications are now OPEN

All applications for the Master of Pharmacy are to be submitted to ACER

(Applications sent directly to the Faculty will not be accepted)
The GMAC Admission Guide is available from the following ACER website

• 14 May 2008 – GAMSAT results released
• 7 August 2008 – Latest acceptable MCAT test date
• Applications close end of August each year
  - Applications for admission to the Master of Pharmacy in 2009 will close on Friday 29 August 2008
• September 2008 – Assessment and ranking of applicants
• October 2008 – Pharmacy Case Study Scenario conducted
• November 2008 – Places offered for 2009 entry

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International students apply the same way as local students. After completing the MCAT they must calculate the GPA (if GPA cannot be calculated the admissions committee will assess the GPA when the application is received from ACER) and send all details with their application to ACER.

The last MCAT results accepted will be from the 7 August 2008 test sitting.

For details regarding life in Sydney and the services provided by the University of Sydney please visit the International Office website if you are an international student.

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The Faculty has a maximum quota of 50 places for the Master of Pharmacy, the majority of which are full fee paying places (local and international) with a small number of Commonwealth Supported Places. Final numbers for each category are set annually.

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The Master of Pharmacy is a full-fee paying, full-time postgraduate course. The tuition fees for local students is to be advised. For International students the 2009 fee will be $38,640. Fees are payable before each semester. More cost information is available here.

The 2008 fee for Commonwealth Supported Places are $7260 per annum.
(2009 Commonwealth Supported Place student contributions: TBA)

Financial assistance for Australian citiziens and some permanent residency visa holders(*) can be obtained through FEE-HELP (formerly PELS), a Commonwealth Government loans facility for eligible coursework students who are enrolled in fee-paying, postgraduate, non-research courses.
* see FEE-HELP website for more details, in particular Section 3.3

As per the Australian Government 2007-08 Budget, from 1 January 2008, students enrolled in an approved Masters by coursework programme will be eligible for student income support, such as Austudy and Youth Allowance. The course must be:

• Required for entry into a profession; or
• The fastest pathway to professional entry.

Guidelines which provide information to Universities on the application process to have courses approved are yet to be released. Once these conditions are finalised, they will be distributed to Universities and submissions for approval will then be made.

After approval by the Federal Minister for Education, Science and Training, a full list of courses will be available from DEST and Centrelink websites.

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There is no need to register for these information sessions - All are welcome!
See Map (coordinates: E15) for Pharmacy Building (Building A15) location.

Date: Tuesday 12 August 2008
Time: 6-7pm
Venue: Room N351, Pharmacy Building (A15), Science Road

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Please check this webpage regularly for updates - last updated 06 August 2008

If you have any further questions please contact the Student Services Officer (Postgraduate) on +61 2 9036 9552 or . We look forward to receiving your application!

The Master of Pharmacy was approved by the Senate of The University of Sydney on 3 November 2003. The Faculty of Pharmacy has received confirmation that The NSW Pharmacy Act has been amended to allow courses of this type to be considered for approval by the Pharmacy Board of New South Wales.

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