What Is a PharmD Degree? Your Guide

If your career goal is to become a pharmacist in India, you'll have to earn a pharmacy degree, either in the form of a B.Pharm (bachelor’s of pharmacy) or a PharmD. Both options are registrable qualifications for practising pharmacy in India, though the PharmD course allows you to register for a PhD following completion of the programme. Learn more about what a PharmD is, why you might choose it, and how to enter one of these programmes.

Doctor of Pharmacy degree: The basics

A PharmD degree is a professional postgraduate-level degree designed for people who want a pharmacist career. This degree is like the Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degrees. You may start by earning a bachelor's degree in pharmacy (BPharm) and then pursue later entry into a PharmD programme (starting in the fourth year of the programme), or you can begin the programme after completing your 10+2 (sometimes required to be science academic stream) and required entrance examinations. 

PharmD programme length and options

Between the coursework and internship or residency, you can spend about six years earning a pharmacy doctoral degree. A pharmacy doctoral degree programme typically takes five years of academic study, and the internship or residency is one year. 

If you already have a BPharm degree, you can enter a programme designed for students with a BPharm degree, in which case it’ll likely be two years of academic study and a third year of internship or residency training. If you laterally enter a PharmD programme, you’ll join in the fourth year and complete two years of academic study and a year of internship alongside other PharmD students.

PharmD cost

Tuition for the entire programme ranges from INR 6,00,000 to 20,00,000, depending on the programme you attend [1]. The price you’ll pay for tuition depends on several factors, like where you attend and whether you begin after 10+2 or your undergraduate degree. 

PharmD entry requirements 

PharmD programs' exact eligibility requirements vary, but the Pharmacy Council of India must approve them. Before attending a pharmacy doctoral programme, you’ll likely need to pass your 10+2 examination with a science stream such as PCB (physics, chemistry, biology) or PCM (physics, chemistry, mathematics) and minimum marks (often 50 to 60 percent). 

If you have an undergraduate degree, you can enter a post-baccalaureate PharmD programme, which typically requires you to have completed a BPharm programme with a certain level of marks. You may also be required to take an entrance examination, depending on the programme, such as the Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test (GPAT), Post Graduate Common Entrance Test (PGCET), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), state-specific entrance examinations, or university-specific Entrance Examinations.

PharmD coursework

In a PharmD programme, you can expect to take a range of subjects covering pharmacology and necessary skills to be a pharmacist. Courses you take may stand more general in your first year or two, such as human anatomy, biochemistry, pharmaceutical organic chemistry, mathematics, biology, and introductory pharmacology. 

As your degree progresses, you’ll take more advanced coursework in pharmacology, pharmacotherapeutics, pharmaceutical formulations, research methods, clinical toxicology, and more. You may even have the option to specialise in a certain area, such as pharmacology, medicine, technology in medical laboratories, pathology, paediatrics, radiology, or microbiology.

PharmD internship

During the sixth year of the PharmD programme, you can complete a one-year internship or residency programme in one of the campus departments (such as research, development, formulation, or marketing) or a specialty teaching hospital. During this time, you’ll gain exposure to real-world pharmaceutical work and what clinical pharmacy services look like daily.

PharmD job opportunities and career outlook

Pharmacists are in high demand in India and will likely remain so due to the aging population and easier access to health care. Once you complete your degree, you’ll need to register as a pharmacist with the Pharmacy Council of India. Following this, you can begin work as a professional pharmacist or in a related position. 

Pharmacists work in various environments, including hospitals, pharmacies, drug stores, and food and beverage stores. You may choose to work in research, regulatory affairs, communications, clinical areas, quality assurance, packaging, sales, management, or even pharmaceutical-related roles. 

Job titles for PharmD graduates 

Earning a PharmD degree prepares you for a career as a pharmacist. As such, many of the job titles you'll find include the term. The list below shows some popular career choices for PharmD graduates: 

• Clinical pharmacist: Your responsibilities as a pharmacist include filling prescriptions, maintaining inventory, and updating patient records.

• Hospital pharmacist: As a hospital pharmacist, you are responsible for creating medication plans and dispensing medications to patients within the hospital, managing hospital inventory, and utilising therapeutic expertise to maximise patient outcomes.

• Community pharmacist: Community pharmacists typically work in retail pharmacy chains, drugstores, or independent pharmacies. You’d be responsible for processing prescriptions, reviewing patient medical histories, and educating community members. 

• Drug inspector: In this role, you work to ensure the safety of food and pharmaceutical products by monitoring manufacturing processes and verifying compliance with regulations.

Discover if a PharmD degree is the right path for your goals and interests

A PharmD is a doctoral-level professional pharmacy degree programme that can prepare you for an exciting career in the pharmaceutical industry. You can enter this degree programme directly following 10+2 completion or laterally enter after you earn a BPharm degree.

Explore whether a career in pharmacy might be a good fit for you by taking a course in Chemicals and Health from Johns Hopkins University or Understanding Patient Perspectives on Medications from the University of Copenhagen, both available on Coursera. Once you sign up for a free account on Coursera, you can explore over 5,000 courses—many of which are free to audit.