Review of Nontraditional PharmD (NTPD) Programs
Brittany Richter, PharmD Cand, Fadi M. Alkhateeb, BSPharm, M.B.A., Ph.D., Ciera Powers, PharmD Cand., Tiffany Dotson, PharmD Cand., Ngan Pham,
PharmD Cand., Andrew Wellman, PharmD Cand.
Univ ersity of Charleston School of Pharmacy, Charleston, West Virginia
Background
•
•
•
After the year 2004, ACPE
declared they would only accredit
Doctor of Pharmacy programs1
A nontraditional PharmD offers
current practitioners holding a B.S.
in Pharmacy to earn their
Doctorate of Pharmacy.
The increasing demand for
pharmacists and evolving
responsibilities of the profession
have encouraged practitioners to
pursue a NTPD.
Objectives
•
•
To compare aspects of NTPD
programs such as: length of study,
components of curriculum,
instructional methods,
accreditation, tuition, and
satisfaction of those obtaining a
nontraditional degree.
To compare nontraditional
programs to traditional Doctor of
Pharmacy programs.
Methods
•
•
•
Articles were identified via searches
of PubMed and IPA from inception to
April 2010 related to NTPD programs
in the USA.
University websites were used to
review literature to compare different
programs.
Articles describing the motivating
factors to pursue a NTPD and job
satisfaction after completion of the
program were included.
Results
Conclusion
Table 1. Nontraditional PharmD program comparison2
School
Duration
WUHS
3 yrs
Didactic
credit
hours
67
Univ. of
Colorado
Up to 6 yrs
35
Experiential
credit hours
30
64
Experiential components
4 required rotations
3 elective rotations
6 five-week rotations (3
required and 3 elective)
Up to 4 credited from prior
work experience
2-6 months experiential
portion(2 mo. required. May
opt out with prior experience)
# Campus
visits/coursew
ork
N/A
•
2 yrs
35
30
Univ. of
Florida
3 yrs
54
9 (Clinical
Practice
Assessments)
12 Clinical Practice
Assessments in place of
rotations
1-3 per
semester
2 (orientation)
•
Idaho State
Univ.
3 yrs
37
18
18 weeks (3, 6-week rotations)
Prior experience may be used
to replace one 6-weeks.
None
Univ. of
Kansas
Mass.
College of
PharmacyBoston
Up to 5 yrs
24
20
None
2 yrs
27 (up to
3 years to
complete)
Campbell
Univ.
Texas
Southern
Univ.
Shenandoah
Univ.
Variable
1 year
10 (up to 4
years to
complete
along with
didactic)
6-9 months
Designed to take 1.5 to 2 years
5, 4-credit-hour experiences
N/A
2 yrs
N/A
2.5 yrs
33
Up to 4 yrs,
as little as
6 months
Students
select 6
Ptherap
Modules
1 per semester
6-9 months of clinical rotations
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
12
3 practice or prior-life
portfolios (may opt out of up
to 2 rotations through
experience)
Credit for previous learning
experiences based or up to 5
months to finish this portion at
their place of work
2 (orientation)
N/A
*all credit hours refer to semester hours
•
None
Howard
University
Rio Grande
College of
Pharmacy
•
Accreditation standards are the
same for both traditional and
nontraditional programs3.
Tuition of NTPD programs are
comparable which reduces the
impact of cost as a deciding factor
when choosing between programs.
Motivating factors for practitioners
to pursue a NTPD include
competitiveness in the job market
and desire to increase clinical
aspects of their career 2.
A greater percentage of hospital
pharmacists felt the PharmD degree
would be beneficial in future
pharmacy practice2.
Future Directions
Further research should be conducted to:
• Compare residency opportunities
between traditional and nontraditional
PharmD graduates.
• Evaluate employers’ views when hiring
traditional vs. nontraditional graduates.
References
None
1. American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy [homepage on the
Internet]. American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy; c2010 [cited
2011 Mar 20]. Available from:
http://www.aacp.org/resources/student/pharmacyforyou/admissions/Pa
ges/default.aspx
2. Mackinnon GE, Zgarrick DP. Curricular considerations of a
nontraditional doctor of pharmacy degree program: implications of a bistate pharmacist survey. Am J Pharm Educ. 1998 Spring; 62:36 -43.
3. Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education [homepage on the
Internet]. Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education; [cited 2011
Mar 20]. Available from:
http://www.acpeaccredit.org/standards/default.as p
Questions?
If you have any further questions, please contact Fadi M.
Alkhateeb, Associate Professor University of Charleston
School of Pharmacy, Charleston, WV 25304. Tel: 304 357
4350 Fax: 304 357 4868. e-mail: fadialkhateeb@ucwv.edu