Doctor of Pharmacy - Masters of Business Administration Joint Degree Program

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Program Goals & Objectives

The goal of the Pharm.D/M.B.A. Joint Degree program is to educate students to assume responsibilities as executives and managers in the pharmaceutical industry and in health care delivery systems that provide pharmacy services to patients. The program is directed toward providing didactic and experiential education to students that will allow them to: (1) understand of the major functional areas in administering organizations and managing patient care systems; and, (2) design and implement strategies and policies that produce effective management practices within changing health care environments.

Program Description

This program leads to a single degree (Pharm.D/M.B.A.) awarded jointly by the Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy and the Rinker School of Business. No degree is awarded until the student completes the entire program and meets all requirements of the Pharm.D/ M.B.A. joint degree. Candidates must first secure entrance into the Doctor of Pharmacy degree program in the School of Pharmacy. After successful completion of the first year of professional pharmacy coursework and the pre-requisite business courses required for prospective M.B.A. students, pharmacy students may apply to the Rinker School of Business for admission to the Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree program. Upon admission to the joint degree program, students continue in the Pharm.D curriculum while beginning to complete business course requirements as time and schedules permit.

The approximate time required to complete all professional and graduate coursework is five years. Degree requirements for the joint program include 146 credits of pharmacy professional coursework, 12 credits of foundational business courses, and 36 credits of graduate business coursework. The traditional M.B.A. program at PBA requires 48 credits of coursework. However, in the Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree program, four business courses are replaced by five business-related pharmacy courses. The following 13 credits of professional pharmacy coursework substitute for 12 credits of graduate business courses.

Experiential Rotation in Pharmacy Management

(one of the following)

PHA 4604 - Community Administration 4 Credit Hours
PHA 4605 - Community Management 4 Credit Hours
PHA 4607 - Hospital Administration 4 Credit Hours

Pharmacy Coursework Applied to the M.B.A.

PHR 1233 - Communication Skills in Healthcare 3 Credit Hours
PHR 3103 - Servant-leadership and Pharmacy Management 3 Credit Hours
PHR 3221 - Pharmacoeconomics 1 Credit Hours
PHR 2102 - Healthcare Delivery Systems 2 Credit Hours

Note:

The Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree program is not open to students who have already earned either one of the degrees.

Pharm.D/M.B.A. Admission Requirements

Before applying to the Rinker School of Business for admission to the Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree program, the candidate must secure a letter of recommendation from the Dean of the School of Pharmacy indicating that the student is in good academic standing and possesses academic ability and professional bearing sufficient to succeed in the program. Pharmacy students will not be permitted to enroll in the Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree program without written authorization from the Dean.

Admission to Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree program is very selective. In reviewing applications, the Admissions Committee of the Rinker School of Business looks for evidence of intellectual ability, managerial promise and community involvement. Strong interpersonal skills, communication ability, motivation, maturity, career focus and leadership potential are also important qualities in prospective students. Pharmacy students should express their interest in this program during the first professional year and seek the advice of their advisor, the Dean of the School of Pharmacy, and the Director of the M.B.A. program in the Rinker School of Business. Applicants who have at least a 3.0 grade point average or higher and a Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) score greater than 500 are especially encouraged to apply. Applicants may take the GMAT at any time prior to applying for the program in the second professional year of the Doctor of Pharmacy program. Applicants for admission must submit satisfactory scores on the GMAT as well as transcripts for all previous academic work.

GMAT

The Graduate Management Admission Test is a nationally standardized skills test available anytime of the year at test centers throughout the world. Business schools use test scores to help evaluate candidates’ reading, reasoning, and problem-solving abilities. The GMAT is a standardized assessment. Each individual test that is administered contains the same format and areas of content. The test is comprised of three main sections: analytical writing, quantitative reasoning, and verbal reasoning.

It is recommended that applicants take the GMAT any time during the year prior to their year of admission. Details regarding the GMAT can be obtained at http://www.gmac.com.

Rinker School of Business Coursework

Curriculum Requirements

A grade of at least “C” and a GPA of at least 2.0 on a four-point scale is required for “successful” completion of all pharmacy and graduate business coursework.

Foundational Business Courses

(These courses can be taken concurrent with the Graduate Business Courses).

ACG 2013 - Financial Accounting 3 Credit Hours
ACG 2023 - Managerial Accounting 3 Credit Hours
BUS 2013 - Business Statistics 3 Credit Hours
BUS 2353 - Principles of Microeconomics 3 Credit Hours

Graduate Business Courses

(These courses are completed after admission into the Pharm.D/M.B.A. Joint Degree program either during or following completion of the pharmacy curriculum listed above.)

ACG 5033 - Advanced Managerial Accounting 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5043 - Quantitative Methods 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5053 - Marketing Management 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5063 - Corporate Finance 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5073 - Contemporary Leadership in Management 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5093 - Corporate Strategies 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5103 - International Business 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5363 - Integrated Marketing Communication 3 Credit Hours
BUS 5623 - Business Research Methods 3 Credit Hours
Completion of the Major Field Achievement Test (MFAT)

Course Scheduling

There are a variety of scheduling options for successfully completing the Pharm.D/M.B.A. joint degree coursework. In most cases, one or two additional semesters, after completing all pharmacy coursework, will be necessary to finish the requisite business courses. The time required will depend upon the student’s initiative in scheduling business courses while still completing pharmacy courses, either during summer sessions or during a fall or spring semester.

To increase the likelihood of success and preventing students from overextending themselves academically, each student will be required to design a complete course sequence for both pharmacy and business courses before commencing the program. This plan must be formulated in consultation with and authorized by the student’s pharmacy advisor and a Director of Experiential Programs. After being formally accepted into the joint degree program by the School of Business, the student will not be allowed to enroll in business courses until the proposed course schedule has been approved by the Director of the M.B.A. Program and the Dean of the School of Pharmacy.

Degree Plan

Pharm.D/M.B.A. Joint Degree – Degree Plan