Variety and Quantity of Professional Electives

Abstract

Objectives. To compare the elective courses offered by US colleges and schools of pharmacy to establish a benchmark for individual colleges and schools to use in assessing whether they offer a sufficient amount and variety of electives. Methods. Internet Web sites of US doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) programs were reviewed to identify the number of elective lecture-based courses and elective advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPE) offered and required. Elective courses were grouped into categories to determine the variety of offerings.Results. Pharmacy students were required to complete a mean of 7 hours of classroom-based elective courses. Thirty-two lecture-based elective courses were offered per college or school, and the mean number of categories of courses offered was 24. An average of 3 required APPEs was offered within 24 categories. Conclusions. Pharmacy programs varied in the number of and requirements for elective courses. Most elective courses expanded on what was taught in the required curriculum vs informing on unique concepts or skills.

Pharmaceutical industry in a global context elective course: implementation and preliminary outcomes

“…A 2011 study evaluated the variety of elective courses offered in the US Schools and College of Pharmacy and found that only 14% of programmes offered an industry elective course during the didactic portion of the curriculum . Availability of an industry elective earlier in the pharmacy curriculum can help students gain deeper knowledge and expertise about pharmaceutical industry and career opportunities it offers.…”

Use of Concept Mapping to Identify Expectations of Pharmacy Students Selecting Elective Courses

“…As per US Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) guidelines, pharmacy curricula must contain didactic elective course opportunities for students which relate to general curricular areas: biomedical sciences; pharmaceutical sciences; social, administrative, and behavioral sciences; clinical sciences; community engagement; pharmacy education; and professional practice ( ). As might be expected, based on this broad guideline US pharmacy schools collectively offer a diverse range of didactic elective courses, e.g., complementary medicine, health informatics, global health, research, and oncology [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]. Typically, course topic, content, and delivery method for each didactic elective course is at the discretion of the faculty member(s) teaching the course and is based on their (or their institution’s) perceived needs and goals of the students, and/or personal preference and interests [ 8 ].…”

An Elective Course in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health and Practice Issues

“…19 Although LGBT health-related issues may be sparsely incorporated into various courses such as these, pharmacy programs that have a dedicated course on the topic are rare. 20,21 For example, a two-hour didactic lecture on transgender health care was included in a therapeutics course on special populations, and a panel discussion on transgender health care was incorporated into a required diversity course, which was favorably received by the students and engaged the transgender community. 20,22 Many challenges for the health care of LGBT persons exist.…”