I’ll start with the statistics for students accepted into the University of Southern California Doctor of Pharmacy program for 2009. Interviews were offered to 460 students out of a pool of over 2,000 applicants. 240 students are being accepted (11 students from out-of-state schools), and the expected class size for 2009 is 190. It should be noted that USC offers its undergraduates the opportunity of guaranteed admission as long as they complete their requirements in the TAP program. . (These students occupy a large portion of the seats available to other applicants.)
Obtaining a bachelor’s degree is now a requirement for admission to USC. The minimum GPA requirement is 3.0 (the average GPA of accepted students is 3.60). Since USC does not require taking the PCAT, other admission criteria (GPA, performance in interviews, extracurricular activities, personal statements, etc.) are weighted more.
For the application process, it is very important to note that the University of Southern California sends interview invitations on a rolling basis, so it is important that you turn in your PharmCAS application and supplemental application as soon as possible. Deadlines for both are early November, but I recommend turning them in no later than early August (I turned in my applications in mid-July, just 1.5 months after the application became available).
At your interview, a current pharmacy school student and a faculty member will ask you questions. Think of it more like a conversation where you also ask both of them questions. When you first arrive for your interview session, you’ll be greeted by several current pharmacy students, who do a great job of calming you down before your interview. Take this opportunity to ask questions and warm up your oral communication skills. Don’t worry too much about the “essay” part, as it’s just a test of how well you take notes from a random article you read. BE SURE to follow all instructions given to you as this is also a test of how well you pay attention to detail.
These are the prerequisites for the USC pharmacy program:
Calculus (for science students)
Statistics (non-commercial)
Physics with Lab (Science/Life Science Major: Thermodynamics and Electromagnetism recommended)
General biology with laboratory (excludes human anatomy and physiology, botany and microbiology)
Mammalian Physiology with Laboratory (Human Preferred, Excludes Plant, Cellular, and Marine Physiology)
Microbiology with Laboratory (Fundamentals of Microbiology for Science Students)
Molecular or Cellular Biology (for science students: an upper division course)
General Chemistry with Laboratory (for science students: includes inorganic and qualitative analysis)
Organic Chemistry with Lab (for science students)
Biochemistry (for science students, an upper division course)
Human Behavior (General Psychology or Introductory Sociology)
Microeconomics
For Internationals (Holders of the equivalent of a foreign bachelor’s degree in the US):
French (expository writing)
Interpersonal communications or public speaking
For specific course equivalencies at your university, see the forms available on the USC website.
The Pharm.D. The program at USC is a 4-year program. USC is a private school, and our 2009 estimated tuition and cost of living is approximately $60,000.
The University of Southern California provides students with the opportunity to earn double degrees in addition to their Doctor of Pharmacy degree. These include the following:
Doctor of Pharmacy/Master of Business Administration (MBA)
Doctor of Pharmacy / Juris Doctor (JD)
Farm.D./Master of Public Health (MPH)
Pharm.D./Master of Science in Regulatory Science (MS Regulatory Science)
Pharm.D./ Master of Science in Gerontology (MSG)
Pharm.D./Graduate Certificate in Gerontology (Certificate of Gerontology)
Pharm.D./Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)