To ensure that our students are well-prepared for success in our PharmD program, we have established a set of admissions requirements that are designed to identify highly qualified and motivated individuals. On this page, you will find detailed information about the requirements for the PharmD program, spanning from pre-application to matriculation.
Citizenship Requirements
To be eligible to apply to our PharmD program, applicants must meet one of the following citizenship requirements:
- Be a United States Citizen
- Be a Permanent Resident of the United States
- Be a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient with AB540 eligibility
Important: It is the applicant's responsibility to verify that they meet the citizenship requirements for our program prior to applying. Applications from individuals who do not meet the citizenship requirements will not be considered and will be denied upon review.
- Resources for obtaining residence or citizenship
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If you are not currently a US Citizen, Permanent Resident, or DACA recipient with AB540 eligibility, you may want to explore options for obtaining residence or citizenship. The following resources may be helpful:
Academic Requirements
To be considered for admissions to our PharmD program, applicants must meet the following academic requirements:
- Bachelor's Degree
- Minimum GPA Requirements
- Prerequisite Coursework
- International Coursework/Degree Evaluation (if applicable)
Important: While you do not need to have completed all academic requirements at the time of application, please note that all academic requirements must be fulfilled prior to matriculation if you are offered admission. It is recommended that you have most of the academic requirements completed or in progress at the time of application to ensure a smooth transition into the program.
- Bachelor's Degree
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A bachelor's degree from an accredited institution is required for admission. While there is no required major, a solid foundation in sciences is essential for the study of pharmaceutical and biomedical sciences.
Below is a graphic for the Most Identified College Majors for Accepted PharmCAS Applicants from the 2023-2024 PharmCAS Applicant Data Report released on November 19, 2024:
- Minimum GPA Requirements
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Applicants must have a minimum cumulative overall GPA of 3.0 and a minimum cumulative overall science GPA of 2.8. Please note that cumulative GPA includes coursework from every college or university attended, not just the institution where the bachelor's degree was earned.
PharmCAS will calculate your GPA during the application verification process. You can also use the GPA calculator on the PharmCAS website to estimate your GPA before application submission.
- Prerequisite Coursework
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Completion of the following prerequisite courses with a grade of C- or higher at an accredited college or university is required. To see a list of pre-approved courses from hundreds of schools nationwide, please visit our Institution Course Equivalencies.
Category Requirements Notes Cell and/or Molecular Biology 1 course of lecture and laboratory Anatomy or Microbiology or Biochemistry 1 course of lecture and laboratory Physiology 1 course of lecture and laboratory The study of the biology of whole animals or humans Chemistry One year (or equivalent) lecture and laboratory Organic Chemistry One year (or equivalent) lecture and laboratory Physics 1 course Calculus 1 course English Composition 2 courses Must include English with a writing component. English as a Second Language courses are not acceptable to meet this requirement Economics 1 course Macro or Microeconomics Public Speaking or Debate 1 course Human Behavior 1 course May include a course in psychology, sociology, cultural anthropology, or related course Additional requirements:
- Our policy is that science prerequisite courses may be no more than 10 years old. If any science coursework is beyond the 10-year time limit, they must be retaken. Some exceptions to this policy may be made to applicants who have worked in an environment that allowed them to remain up-to-date on the subject in question. Exceptions will only be granted by SOAR upon review of the applicant's academic and work history.
- Letter grades are required for all prerequisites. Pass/No Pass (P/NP) grading from 2020-2022 will be accepted. Any P/NP grading outside of this timeframe will require review by the SOAR team.
Considerations:
- Online coursework is acceptable, but we highly recommend taking in-person courses wherever possible, especially for labs.
- Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) credit will be honored based on how your undergraduate institution(s) awarded the credit.
- English courses taken outside of the United States will not be accepted toward meeting the English requirements unless English is the official language of the university or college attended and all instruction (except for foreign language courses) is conducted in English.
- International Coursework/Degree Evaluation (if applicable)
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If you have completed coursework or earned a degree from an international institution, you must:
- Complete a World Education Services (WES) evaluation. Please note that PharmCAS specifically requires WES evaluations, so other evaluation services will unfortunately not be accepted.
- WES evaluations should be submitted as part of your PharmCAS application alongside all of your official transcripts.
- If you'd like for us to do any kind of prerequisite evaluation prior to submitting your application, you may also choose to send your WES evaluation to Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science via the AccessWES portal. However, please keep in mind that a fee will be incurred every time you send your WES evaluation to any entity.
- Note that your WES GPAs will not be included in the overall or science GPA calculations in the PharmCAS application verification process. However, we will manually calculate the cumulative GPAs to include all coursework.
- If our manual calculation determines that you do not meet the minimum GPA requirements, we must deny your application, even if your US coursework meets the minimum requirements.
- WES evaluations should be submitted as part of your PharmCAS application alongside all of your official transcripts.
- Complete at least one year of full-time study at a four-year college or university in the United States prior to application. A four-year college or university is one that is accredited to award bachelor’s degrees. Enrollment in a community college does not satisfy this requirement.
- This can include graduate-level coursework, such as a Master's degree program.
- Complete a World Education Services (WES) evaluation. Please note that PharmCAS specifically requires WES evaluations, so other evaluation services will unfortunately not be accepted.
Application Requirements
After you have met our citizenship and academic requirements, the next step will be to apply.
- Submit a PharmCAS application
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Navigate to PharmCAS and select "Apply Now" to begin your application. You can review information on the PharmCAS Applicant Help Center which gives step-by-step guidance on each section of the application.
We do not have a supplemental application that needs to be completed as part of the submission process at this time.
Pay special attention to the verification status of your application upon submission and note that we will not be able to review it until it is in Verified status. Click here to learn more about the various types of application statuses in PharmCAS.
Important: To be considered for admission, it is required that all application materials are submitted on or before our final application deadline each year. Late submissions will not be accepted, and applicants who fail to meet our final application deadline will be automatically denied. We encourage all prospective students to plan accordingly and submit their applications well in advance of the deadline to ensure timely consideration. Deadline information can be found in the PharmCAS PharmD Directory.
Additional PharmCAS Application Resources:
- Letters of Recommendation
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As part of your application, you must submit a minimum of two letters of recommendation, although we recommend submitting three. PharmCAS will allow you to submit a maximum of four. If you are unsure whether a particular letter writer is acceptable, please contact SOAR.
Acceptable Letter Writers
Acceptable letter writers include, but are not limited to, the following. Please note that no type of letter writer in particular is required.
- Pharmacists
- Professors
- Employers/Supervisors
- Other healthcare professionals
- Mentors
- Academic Advisors
Unacceptable Letter Writers
Unacceptable letter writers include, but are not limited to, the following. If you choose to submit a letter from one of these individuals, you will still need to obtain a minimum of two additional letters from acceptable writers.
- Family members
- Friends
- Clergy
- Politicians
Special Requirements for Certain Letter Writers
In some cases, additional signatures may be required for certain letter writers.
- Teacher's Assistants (TAs) must have their letter co-signed by the Professor directing the course.
- Pharmacy Technicians must have their letter co-signed by a Pharmacist at the same pharmacy.
- Post-Doctoral or Graduate Student Researchers must have their letter co-signed by the Principal Investigator (PI).
If you receive a letter from one of the individuals listed above and another letter from the person who should be co-signing, our Admissions Committee will count both letters as one combined approved letter. You may still need to obtain another accepted letter to meet our minimum requirement of two letters.
- Interviews
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Interviews are an important and required step of the admissions process. Competitive applicants will be invited to interview in person or virtually in either the fall, winter, or spring quarter depending on when their applications are verified and all required materials received. Applicants can expect to be notified approximately a month in advance of each interview session whether they have been invited.
Interview day structure:
- Welcome by the Dean and Associate Dean for Admissions and Recruitment
- Presentation about SSPPS
- Breakout groups will then complete each of the following three activities in varying order:
- 30-minute interview
- 2-on-1 blind interview with a combination of faculty, alumni, students, or other members of the Skaggs community
- Questions will generally be related to motivation for the profession of pharmacy, leadership qualities, work/life balance, soft skills, and more.
- Interviewees will also be given time to ask questions of the interviewers. We recommend coming prepared with topics that are important to you to maximize your interview experience.
- Student Host Room
- Informal chats with current students about anything you want to know
- School tour (if in person)
- Guided walking tours of our Health Sciences campus by current students
- 30-minute interview
Dress Code:
We want to ensure that you feel prepared and confident during your interview at our pharmacy school. We recommend dressing in professional attire. This may include items such as blouses, button-down shirts, slacks, dresses, or skirts. Please don't feel pressured to purchase new or expensive clothing for the occasion - we understand that financial barriers can exist, and we're more interested in getting to know you as a person and a future pharmacist. What's most important is that you present yourself in a way that feels authentic and respectful to you and our community.
If you are interviewing in person, we do highly recommend wearing comfortable shoes as the activities listed above include guided walking tours of our Health Sciences campus.
For the 2025-2026 PharmCAS application cycle, we will be hosting three in-person interview days and one virtual interview day. To be considered for a virtual interview, please note that you must submit your application by the designated deadline. It is essential to plan accordingly, as no additional interview dates, times, or modalities will be considered beyond these scheduled options. We encourage you to submit your application in a timely manner to ensure eligibility for your preferred interview format, whether in-person or virtual.
Application Deadline Corresponding Interview Dates Modality Wednesday, October 1, 2025 Saturday, November 8, 2025 In Person Friday, November 14, 2025 Virtual Monday, January 5, 2026 Saturday, February 7, 2026 In Person Saturday, February 14, 2026 Virtual (AM), In Person (PM)