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2022-2023

Pre-Pharmacy (Advising Track)

VCU

Community college:
A.A.&.S. or A.S. in Science (Virginia Community College System)
Virginia Community College System
Associate degree

A.A.&.S. or A.S. in Science

Program description

Students interested in the pre-pharmacy advising track must complete the necessary prerequisites for pharmacy school. The minimum credit requirement varies for each pharmacy school. Students interested in pharmacy school should consult with a pre-professional health (PPH) and STEM career adviser to learn about requirements that are specific to the schools of pharmacy to which they hope to apply.


Declaration of the pre-pharmacy advising track through the VCU Career Services PPH and STEM advising team does not constitute admission to the VCU School of Pharmacy. Students must apply separately to the pharmacy school of their choice at the appropriate time.


Students with an interest in preparing for pharmacy school must declare an academic major and should declare and maintain their pre-pharmacy advising track. Students do not earn a pre-pharmacy degree. Those unsure of their academic majors initially should clarify their academic interests through regular conversations with their advisers. Pre-pharmacy students are encouraged to major in fields of greatest interest to them. To declare a pre-pharmacy advising track, please see our office’s Canvas PPH Hub.

Career opportunities

Major changes in health care have created many opportunities for pharmacists beyond the commonly available positions established in pharmacy practice. Career specialties community practice, institutional placement, medical consulting, regulatory work, academia, legal or judicial advisement, or insurance.

Graduate and professional level job titles
  • Healthcare Researcher
  • Pharmacist
  • Professor
Contact information

 

VCU Transfer Center

Telephone: (804) 827-1349

Email: transferinfo@vcu.edu

Transfer Advising Request

VCCS Transfer Planning Checklist


Office of Admissions

Telephone: (804) 828-1222 or (800) 841-3638

Email: ugrad@vcu.edu
Apply Here.

Degree requirements in Bulletin
Plan of study in Bulletin
Requirements
Highest level of math required
  • MATH 200
  • STAT 210
Science required
  • 5+ additional science courses
Foreign language requirements
  • No
Additional tuition/fees
  • No
GPA requirements (to progress/graduate in the major)
  • A minimum GPA of 2.7 is required to apply to become a pre-professional health student and to stay on the pre-professional health advising track.
VCU Major Maps

View VCU Major Map for Pre-Pharmacy (advising track)

Transfer major map
Visit majormaps.vcu.edu for the online version with links.
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Major map compass icon
2022-2023

Pre-Pharmacy (Advising Track)

Virginia Community College System (A.A.&.S. or A.S. in Science)

MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Explore Year 1
  • Identify a mentor in a diversity organization.
  • Attend diversity-focused events on your community college campus and in your community (e.g., international festival).
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills such as money and time management, self-care, and personal responsibility.
Experience Year 2
  • Meet with your community college advisor to finalize plans to complete your associate degree.
  • Maintain a high GPA. Use tutoring to get ahead. Be prepared to earn good grades at VCU.
  • Submit a transfer advising request to the VCU Transfer Center.
  • Research scholarship opportunities and explore your eligibility for the Two-Year College Transfer Grant.
  • Submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Practice using flashcards and continuously assessing your knowledge of subjects that will be tested on the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT).
  • Apply to VCU.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Research housing options for next year.
  • Select a VCU major.
  • Review the resources on the VCU Healthcare Pathways website.
  • Participate in the VCU STEM Transitions: Transfer Success Program after you’re admitted to VCU.
  • Consider applying to the Summer Academic Enrichment Program (SAEP).
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or department-related events.
  • Check out the VCU Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and follow @vcuomsa.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
  • Review resources of the AACP and begin to develop your own plan for applying and taking the PCAT.

Explore
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Identify a mentor in a diversity organization.
  • Attend diversity-focused events on your community college campus and in your community (e.g., international festival).
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills such as money and time management, self-care, and personal responsibility.

Experience
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Meet with your community college advisor to finalize plans to complete your associate degree.
  • Maintain a high GPA. Use tutoring to get ahead. Be prepared to earn good grades at VCU.
  • Submit a transfer advising request to the VCU Transfer Center.
  • Research scholarship opportunities and explore your eligibility for the Two-Year College Transfer Grant.
  • Submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Practice using flashcards and continuously assessing your knowledge of subjects that will be tested on the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT).
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
  • Apply to VCU.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Research housing options for next year.
  • Select a VCU major.
  • Review the resources on the VCU Healthcare Pathways website.
  • Participate in the VCU STEM Transitions: Transfer Success Program after you’re admitted to VCU.
  • Consider applying to the Summer Academic Enrichment Program (SAEP).
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or department-related events.
  • Check out the VCU Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and follow @vcuomsa.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
  • Review resources of the AACP and begin to develop your own plan for applying and taking the PCAT.
Recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2022-2023

Pre-Pharmacy (Advising Track)

Virginia Community College System (A.A.&.S. or A.S. in Science)

Virginia Community College System courses
Course Title Equivalent course Credits Requirements
Students who earn this associate degree before enrolling at VCU will be eligible for a waiver of VCU's general education requirements.
SDV 100 or 101 College Success Skills UNIV 101 1 Elective
ENG 111 College Composition I Note: students with credit for AP English Language and Composition will only receive credit for UNIV 111 at VCU and should take ENG 112 to fulfill the VCU composition requirement. UNIV 111-112 3 General education (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
ENG 112 College Composition II UNIV 200 3 General education (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
MTH 263 Calculus I MATH 200 4 General education (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
MTH 245 Statistics I STAT 210 3 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
BIO 101 General Biology I BIOL/Z 151 4 General education (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
BIO 102 General Biology II BIOL/Z 152 4 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
BIO 141 Human Anatomy and Physiology I (both BIO 141 and BIO 142 must be taken to receive credit for the VCU equivalents) BIOL 205 + PHIS/Z 206 4 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
BIO 142 Human Anatomy and Physiology II (both BIO 141 and BIO 142 must be taken to receive credit for the VCU equivalents) BIOL 205 + PHIS/Z 206 4 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
CHM 111 General Chemistry I CHeM/Z 101 4 General education (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
CHM 112 General Chemistry II CHEM/Z 102 4 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
PHI 220 Ethics PHIL 201 3 General education (Pre-Pharmacy recommendation)
PSY 200 Principles of Psychology PSYC 101 3 General education (Pre-Pharmacy recommendation)
SOC 200 Principles of Sociology SOCY 101 3 General education (Pre-Pharmacy recommendation)
ECO 201 or ECO 202 Macroeconomics or Microeconomics ECON 210 or ECON 211 3 General education (Pre-Pharmacy recommendation)
Complete general education and elective requirements for associate degree VCU equivalents 10 Elective
Community college credits transferred to VCU 60
The Pharmacy College Admission Test is not required for admission into the VCU Pharm.D. program. The exam is optional and only recommended to students under certain circumstances. If students have any questions about whether or not they should take the PCAT, they should contact vcupharm@vcu.edu.
VCU courses
Course Title Credits Requirements
Your GPA Doesn't Transfer With You Although you worked hard to earn your grades at your current institution, they will only be considered by VCU for an admission decision. Once you enroll at VCU, your GPA will reset to 0.0, and your new GPA will be determined by your level of success in your classes at VCU.
The courses listed below are required or recommended for pre-pharmacy students. Students must also select a VCU major and complete the major requirements. The minimum number of credits required for a bachelor's degree at VCU is 120 credits.
BIOL 303 Microbiology 3 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
BIOZ 303 Microbiology Laboratory 2 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy recommendation)
CHEM/Z 301 Organic Chemistry I and Laboratory 5 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
CHEM/Z 302 Organic Chemistry II and Laboratory 5 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
CHEM 403 Biochemistry I 3 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
PHYS 201 or PHYS 207 General Physics I or University Physics I 4 to 5 Elective (Pre-Pharmacy requirement)
Courses required for VCU major and electives Due to the importance of a strong biomedical science foundation in the Pharm.D. program, some or all of these courses are highly recommended: genetics, molecular biology, immunology and cell biology. Recommended elective choices are computer science, economics, business, history, foreign languages, philosophy, political science and sociology. 34 Major
Minimum number of credits completed at VCU 60
Minimum number of credits required for a bachelor's degree 120