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PharmD

Why UW PharmD?

HELPING YOU EXCEL

At the UWSOP, we’ll be here to guide, mentor and support you along every step of your journey.

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Our Graduates

The University of Washington School of Pharmacy offers a world-class educational opportunity and is consistently ranked in the top 10 nationally and internationally by U.S. News & World Report. In collaboration with students from our other nationally ranked health sciences programs, UW School of Pharmacy students have the opportunity to learn science, technology, and state-of-the-art pharmacy practice with globally-ranked faculty in an integrated, interprofessional educational program.

Our alumni are exceptionally well educated and well trained, entering the pharmacy profession with a wide range of employment and post-doctoral training opportunities.

Our graduates perform above the national average in licensing exam pass rates, on-time graduation, employment at graduation, and post-graduate residency match success.

First-attempt pass rates on the North American Pharmacist Licensure Exam (NAPLEX)

Graduating Year 2022
UW 85%
National Rate 80%

First-attempt pass rates on the Multi-State Pharmacy Jurisprudence Exam (MPJE)

Graduating Year 2022
UW 80%
National Rate 77%

On-time Graduation Rate

Graduating Year 2019 2020 2021 2022
UW 89.9 91.1 91.2 91.4
National 87.4 87.5 86.9 TBD

*Students enrolled in dual degree programs have extended timelines and are not included in the on-time graduation percentages listed above.

Employment & Post-Graduate Plans

At graduation, students report on their post-graduate plans, including employment, residencies, fellowships, and other post-graduate training. Data regarding the percentage of the class employed or engaged in post-graduate training by date of graduation is reported as follows:

Area 2020 2021 2022
UW 72 77 88
National 76 76 79

Residencies

The percentage of UW student pharmacists applying for residencies who successfully match is generally quite high. For the class of 2023, 87% of residency applicants were successful.

University of Washington Medical Center Opportunities

Several pharmacy residency opportunities exist within the University of Washington Medical Center Pharmacy Services department. Not only can students apply for these programs to continue their education but they also have the opportunity to interact with residents and residency preceptors through experiential rotations offered in partnership with our UWMC colleagues.

UW Medical Center/Harborview Medical Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance Residency Programs

UW Medicine: Valley Medical Center Residency Progam

Our Program

As a school, we look beyond academic measures for successful applicants. UW student pharmacists demonstrate excellence in service, leadership, communication, business acumen, and patient care.

Pharmacy Practice Experience Opportunities

As a student pharmacist, you will have the opportunity to gain experience in your training and education in both introductory and advanced practice roles (known as Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experiences and Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences ). When combined with your coursework, you will be very well prepared for practice when you graduate.

Regional Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) & Wednesdays-in-Practice (WIP) Sites

Our students gain experience in Puget Sound regional health systems, hospitals, and community pharmacies that provide WIP and IPPE experiences during the first three years of the program. These regional partners provide experiences that are within a reasonable commute distance for students, eliminating the need to travel outside of the Puget Sound area to complete required experiential education.

WIP on-site experiences occur alongside your course work during the first and second year of the program. Your first IPPE is an institutional experience that occurs in the summer after completing the first year of courses. Your second IPPE is conducted in a community setting and generally occurs the summer after the second year.

Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) Sites

Our student pharmacists currently spend several months pursuing their APPE rotations in a variety of settings throughout the region, country, and world. Naturally, the majority of our student pharmacists complete their APPEs in the Pacific Northwest region. In a typical year 25–30% will complete one or more APPEs outside of Washington state, most commonly in California or Hawaii, and 5–10% will complete an APPE in an international location — making UW one of few schools of pharmacy offering international APPE placements.

PharmD Accreditation

University of Washington School of Pharmacy’s Doctor of Pharmacy program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, 190 South LaSalle Street, Suite 3000, Chicago, IL 60503, 312-664-3575, FAX 866-228-2631, website https://www.acpe-accredit.org/.

Our Students

Our public role is at the heart of our philosophy and academic mission. At the UW, you are more than a test score or a GPA. We are interested in you as a whole person. We will prepare you to be able to make difference as a health care provider. Information on our most recent entering classes can be found below.

Entry Year 2020 2021 2022
Washington state residents 77% 61% 67%
% Bachelor’s Degree + 86% 92% 86%
Cumulative GPA (Mean) 3.45 3.38 3.41
Prerequisite GPA (Mean) 3.46 3.39 3.37