Pharm.D

Doctor of Pharmacy

Pharm.D. is a Professional Pharmacy Doctoral Programme. 'Pharm.D.' is a Latin term that stands for 'Pharmaciae Doctor' which means 'Doctor of Pharmacy'. Pharmacy is the art and science of preparing and dispensing drugs and medicines. The course is also known as Pharma.D., which many of the medical institutes prefer to term as such. Pharm.D. is a registrable qualification under the Pharmacy Act 1948. The Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) is the regulatory body of Pharmacy education in India. The Pharmacy Council of India introduced the 6 years Pharm.D. course in India in the academic year 2008. Pharm.D. enables one to practice the profession of a Pharmacist under the Pharmacy Act, of 1948. The Doctor of Pharmacy Program is focused on classroom theory, penetrative laboratory experiments, and motivated research projects. Only PCI-approved Colleges can offer Pharm.D courses. There are only a limited number of Pharmacy Schools which provide Doctor of Pharmacy degrees.

There are 2 types of Pharm.D.

Regulations for both Courses as per PCI 2008

1.  Pharm.D - The duration of the course shall be 6 academic years (5 years of study and 1 year of internship or residency) full time with each academic year spread over a period of not less than two hundred working days.

The period of 6 years duration is divided into two phases 

Phase I – consisting of the First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth academic year. 

Phase II – consisting of internship or residency training for the sixth year involving posting in specialty units. It is a phase of training wherein a student is exposed to actual pharmacy practice or clinical pharmacy services and acquires skills under supervision so that he or she may become capable of functioning independently.

2.  Pharm.D (Post Baccalaureate) - The duration of the course shall be for 3 academic years (2 years of study and 1-year internship or residency) full time with each academic year spread over a period of not less than two hundred working days. 

The period of 3 years duration is divided into two phases 

Phase I – consisting of the First and Second academic year. 

Phase II – consisting of Internship or residency training for the third year involving posting in specialty units. It is a phase of training wherein a student is exposed to actual pharmacy practice or clinical pharmacy services and acquires skills under supervision so that he or she may become capable of functioning independently.

The number of admissions for the Pharm.D program is prescribed by the Pharmacy Council of India from time to time and is restricted to 30 students’ intake for Pharm.D & 10 students for Pharm.D. (PB) per academic year as per 2008 regulations.

Pharm.D Eligibility

For Pharm.D (6-year course)

A pass in any of the following examinations -

• 10+2 examination with Physics and Chemistry as compulsory subjects along with one of the following subjects: Mathematics or Biology.
• A pass in D.Pharm. course from an institution approved by the Pharmacy Council of India under section 12 of the Pharmacy Act.
• Any other qualification approved by the Pharmacy Council of India is equivalent to any of the above examinations.
• Provided that a student should complete the age of 17 years on or before 31st December of the year of admission to the course.
• There shall be reservation of seats for the students belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and other Backward Classes in accordance with the instructions issued by the Central Government/State Government/Union Territory Administration from time to time.

For Pharm.D. (Post Baccalaureate)

• A pass in B.Pharm. from an institution approved by the Pharmacy Council of India under section 12 of the Pharmacy Act.
• There shall be reservation of seats for the students belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and other Backward Classes in accordance with the instructions issued by the Central Government/State Government/Union Territory Administration from time to time.

Doctor of Pharmacy Subjects

The following subjects are Pharm.D. (6-year course). Pharm.D. (Post Baccalaureate) subjects may vary from the former.

• Pharmaceutics
• Medicinal Biochemistry
• Pharmaceutical Microbiology
• Pharmacognosy & Phytopharmaceuticals
• Pharmaceutical Analysis
• Clinical Research

The course of study as per PCI

Examination

(1) Every year there shall be an examination to examine the students.

(2) Each examination may be held twice every year. The first examination in a year shall be the annual examination and the second examination shall be a supplementary examination. 

(3) The examinations shall be of written and practical (including oral nature) carrying maximum marks for each part of a subject as indicated in the Tables below:

Eligibility for Appearing Examination

Only such students who produce a certificate from the Head of the Institution in which he or she has undergone the Pharm.D. or as the case may be, the Pharm.D. (Post Baccalaureate) course, in proof of his or her having regularly and satisfactorily undergone the course of study by attending not less than 80% of the classes held both in theory and in practical separately in each subject shall be eligible for appearing at the examination. 

Mode of Examinations

• Theory examination shall be of 3 Hours and Practical Examination shall be of 4 hours duration.
• A student who fails in theory or practical examination of a subject shall re-appear both in theory and practice of the same subject.
• Practical examination shall also consist of a viva –voce (oral) examination.
• Clerkship examination – Oral examination shall be conducted after the completion of the clerkship of students. An external and internal examiner will evaluate the student. Students may be asked to present the allotted medical cases followed by a discussion.
• Students’ capabilities in delivering clinical pharmacy services, pharmaceutical care planning, and knowledge of therapeutics shall be assessed.

Award of Sessional Marks and Maintenance of Records

• A regular record of both theory and practical classwork and examinations conducted in an institution imparting training for Pharm.D. or as the case may be, Pharm.D. (Post Baccalaureate) course, shall be maintained for each student in the institution and 30 marks for each theory and 30 marks for each practical subject shall be allotted as sessional.
• There shall be at least two periodic sessional examinations during each academic year and the highest aggregate of any two performances shall form the basis of calculating sessional marks.

The sessional marks in practical shall be allotted on the following basis:- 

(i) Actual performance in the sessional examination (20 marks); 

(ii) Day-to-day assessment in the practical classwork, promptness, viva-voce record maintenance, etc. (10 marks).

Minimum Marks for Passing Examination

• A student shall not be declared to have passed the examination unless he or she secures at least 50% marks in each of the subjects separately in the theory examinations, including sessional marks and at least 50% marks in each of the practical examinations including sessional marks.
• The students securing 60% marks or above in aggregate in all subjects in a single attempt at the Pharm.D. or, Pharm. D. (Post Baccalaureate) course examination shall be declared to have passed in first class.
• Students securing 75% marks or above in any subject or subjects shall be declared to have passed with distinction in the subject or those subjects provided he or she passes in all the subjects in a single attempt.

Eligibility for Promotion to Next Year

• All students who have appeared for all the subjects and passed the first-year annual examination are eligible for promotion to the second year and, so on.
• However, failure in more than two subjects shall debar him or her from promotion to the next year's classes.

Internship

• The internship is a phase of training wherein a student is expected to conduct the actual practice of pharmacy and healthcare and acquires skills under supervision so that he or she may become capable of functioning independently.
• Every student must undergo a one-year internship.

Certificate of Passing Examination

Every student who has passed the examinations for the Pharm.D. (Doctor of Pharmacy) or Pharm.D. (Post Baccalaureate) (Doctor of Pharmacy) shall be granted a certificate by the examining authority.

Practical Training

Hospital Posting

• Every student shall be posted in the constituent hospital for a period of not less than fifty hours to be covered in not less than 200 working days in each of second, third- & fourth-year courses.
• Each student shall submit a report duly certified by the preceptor and duly attested by the Head of the Department or Institution as prescribed. In the fifth year, every student shall spend half a day in the morning hours attending ward rounds on a daily basis as a part of the clerkship. Theory teaching may be scheduled in the afternoon.

Project Work

• To allow the student to develop data collection and reporting skills in community, hospital, and clinical pharmacy, project work shall be carried out under the supervision of a teacher.
• The project topic must be approved by the Head of the Department or the Head of the Institution. The same shall be announced to students within one month of the commencement of the fifth-year classes.
• Project work shall be presented in a written report and as a seminar at the end of the year. External and internal examiners shall do the assessment of the project work.
• Project work shall comprise objectives of the work, methodology, results, discussions, and conclusions.

Objectives of project work

The main objectives of the project work are to-

(i) show the evidence of having made an accurate description of the published work of others and of having recorded the findings in an impartial manner.

(ii) Develop the students in data collection, analysis and reporting, and interpretation skills.

Methodology

To complete the project work following methodology shall be adopted, namely:

• Students shall work in groups of not less than two and not more than four under an authorized teacher.
• The project topic shall be approved by the Head of the Department or the Head of the Institution.
• The project work chosen shall be related to the pharmacy practice in the community, hospital, and clinical setup. It shall be patient and treatment (Medicine) oriented, like drug utilization reviews, pharmacoepidemiology, pharmacovigilance, or pharmacoeconomics.
• Project work shall be approved by the institutional ethics committee.
• A student shall present at least three seminars, one in the beginning, one in the middle, and one at the end of the project work.
• A two-page write-up of the project indicating title, objectives, methodology anticipated benefits, and references shall be submitted to the Head of the Department or Head of the Institution.

Reporting

• Students working on the project shall submit jointly to the Head of the Department or Head of the Institution a project report of about 40-50 pages. The project report should include a certificate issued by the authorized teacher, the Head of the Department as well as the Head of the Institution.
• The project report shall be computer typed in double space using Times Roman font on A4 paper. The title shall be in bold with font size 18, sub-titles in bold with font size 14, and the text with font size 12. The cover page of the project report shall contain details about the name of the student and the name of the authorized teacher in font size 14.
• Submission of the project report shall be done at least one month prior to the commencement of the annual or supplementary examination.

Evaluation

The following methodology shall be adopted for evaluating the project work-

1. Project work shall be evaluated by internal and external examiners.
2. Students shall be evaluated in groups for four hours (i.e., about half an hour for a group of four students).
3. Three seminars presented by students shall be evaluated for twenty marks each and the average of the best two shall be forwarded to the university with marks in other subjects.

Doctor of Pharmacy Colleges

Deccan School of Pharmacy, Hyderabad

JSS College of Pharmacy, Mysore

Sri Ramachandra University, Chennai

Doctor of Pharmacy Course Suitability

A Doctor of Pharmacy degree is meant for those who want to understand the concepts of clinical research and acquire an in-depth understanding of Pharmacy Practice concepts. 

How is the Doctor of Pharmacy Course Beneficial?

Pharma.D enables one to prefix the title of 'Dr.' for practicing Pharmacy Profession.

Pharm.D is a registrable qualification for practicing the pharmacy profession under the Pharmacy Act.

After completing Pharm.D, candidates are eligible to undertake a Ph.D. program.

Doctor of Pharmacy Employment Areas

Colleges & Universities

Drug Control Administration

Foundation / Trust

Food & Drug Administration

Government / Private Hospitals

Health Centres

Medical Dispensing Stores

Non-Profit Organization

Pharmaceutical Firms

Research Agencies

Doctor of Pharmacy Jobs Types

Analytical Chemist

Clinical Pharmacist / Clinical Pharmacist & Retail Pharmacist

Drug Inspector

Researcher

Retail Pharmacist