Trends in Research and Graduate Programs in Schools and Colleges of Pharmacy, Part 1: Programs

Abstract

Objective. To examine the landscape of research and graduate education nationally and within schools and colleges of pharmacy. This report is part 1 of a three-part series and focuses on graduate programs' research funding and science faculty composition and diversity. Findings. Between FY2008 and FY2017, the number of full-time faculty members in schools and colleges of pharmacy increased 36%. The number of pharmacy schools with National Institutes of Health (NIH) awards increased by 15%, while NIH grants per faculty principal investigator (PI) increased by 31%. However, unadjusted for inflation, the mean NIH dollar amount per-faculty member PI increased just 14% and the mean NIH dollar amount per-school declined 7%, indicating that number of funded faculty outpaced dollars available. Proportionately, the percentage of science faculty members at pharmacy schools decreased from 47% to 43%. Only 15 public, research-intensive schools and colleges of pharmacy received more than half of the combined FY2017 NIH funding and total funding, while all other public and private schools and colleges of pharmacy shared the remaining funds. Interdisciplinary programs are developing slowly, and may help to diversify and increase future funding. Proportions of tenured and tenure-track positions are declining, but biological sciences and social and administrative sciences disciplines are growing and women faculty are making significant gains in these fields and at the assistant professor rank. Summary. Research-intensive schools and colleges of pharmacy are best-positioned to lead the academy to reframe graduate education to build interdisciplinary team skills and attract more diverse funding and science faculty members.

Focus of societal responsibility in the vision and mission statements of the United States pharmacy schools/ colleges

“…Over the past decade, research performance has been a significant indicator of university ranking and prestige (Vernon, Balas, & Momani, 2018). In pharmacy education, graduate programmes have evolved to include interdisciplinary research programmes beyond traditional discipline-specific research (Lebovitz, Swaan, & Eddington, 2020). This is evident by the higher citation frequency of research in the mission statements of public pharmacy schools compared to private schools.…”

Master’s Graduate Programs in the Pharmaceutical Sciences: An International Survey

“…This global survey for graduate programs in the pharmaceutical sciences was developed and supported by the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) and the FIP Board of Pharmaceutical Sciences (BPS), a global organization that represents more than 4 million pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists worldwide. While a number of publications have focused on doctoral programs [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] , few have surveyed master's programs 11,12 , resulting in a lack of information on master's programs, including requirements and scope of master's programs, and placement of students upon graduation. Results from the survey were compared by geographical localization (Europe, Asia, North America and Africa).…”