Dean’s Office: Qatar Pavilion 218 - (504) 520-7500 - http://www.xula.edu/cop/
General Information
The Xavier University College of Pharmacy holds a place of distinction among the nation’s colleges of pharmacy. From its origin, the College has been dedicated to bringing minorities into the learned and respected profession of pharmacy. For years, Xavier has been among the top four producers in the nation of African Americans with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. Even with that commitment to minority education, the College welcomes and remains open to all races.
The mission of the Xavier University of Louisiana College of Pharmacy is to prepare pharmacists to impact the medically underserved communities, particularly African Americans, in an effort to eliminate health disparities through patient-centered care, community service, and scholarly work.
To achieve this mission, the curriculum provides:
- Instruction in the physical, chemical, biological and behavioral sciences, and management;
- A clinical component designed to develop graduates skilled in:
- Monitoring and evaluating drug therapy,
- Engaging in drug distribution activities,
- Providing drug information to other members of the health care team and to the public, and
- Effectively relating to and communicating with patients and other health care professionals;
- Motivation to increase competency after graduation through continuing education; and,
- An opportunity to engage in meaningful scientific research as a preparation for further study in pharmaceutical and clinical sciences.
Students benefit from expert guest lecturers and receive experiential training from preceptors in an array of community pharmacies, hospitals and other health care facilities in the greater New Orleans area, throughout the state and in select facilities across the country.
Admission to the College of Pharmacy
Students seeking admission to the College of Pharmacy must successfully complete the required prerequisite courses with a minimum grade of “C” prior to being admitted into the Pharm.D. program. Please refer to the College of Pharmacy website for detailed information on the required prerequisite courses for internal and external students. Students who are admitted to the College of Pharmacy must satisfy all conditions stipulated in the admissions notice and present documentation to the Admissions Office prior to enrolling for the first year.
The College of Pharmacy (COP) utilizes a centralized application system called PharmCAS (www.pharmcas.org) for admission. PharmCAS allows an applicant to upload an application, grade information, references, statement of interest, and TOEFEL scores (where applicable). The applicant must also send official transcripts from all U.S. schools attended and foreign transcript evaluations directly to PharmCAS for verification. After a PharmCAS application is complete, the College of Pharmacy will send applicants a link to the COP’s supplemental application and other materials for admission consideration.
Selected applicants must appear on campus for a personal interview as part of the admissions process. Overall and math/science GPA will be considered for admission.
Applicants must adhere to the deadlines as specified on the College of Pharmacy webpage for the following:
PharmCAS documents:
- PharmCAS application (A PharmCAS fee of $150 is charged for processing);
- Official transcripts from each college or university attended; if an applicant has had previous college work outside the United States, the applicant must have his/her records evaluated by a U.S. foreign credential evaluation service;
- Response to admissions question posted on PharmCAS; and
- Recommendation forms (3 required).
Supplemental information (requested of applicants who have completed PharmCAS) include:
- Supplemental Application;
- Prepharmacy requirements form;
- Certificate of Financial Support (non-citizens only); and
- Naturalization papers (if applicable).
Currently, the College of Pharmacy requires that all prerequisite math and science courses be completed within five years of the application process. Courses completed greater than five years before the application will require a course appeal. This policy is under review and may change for the 2018-2019 application cycle.
General ethics courses will not be considered in fulfillment of the health ethics requirement at Xavier University. Transfer credit for PHIL 2400 - Health Ethics must be a comparable course in bioethics, medical ethics or health ethics. Any health ethics course completed at an institution other than Xavier will be subject to review.
Any required prepharmacy course that cannot be substituted with courses from the student’s transcript must be completed prior to enrollment. Only grades of “C” or better in acceptable courses will transfer to Xavier University.
In general, the College of Pharmacy does not accept transfer students from other colleges or schools of pharmacy. Each request for transfer is evaluated on an individual basis.
High school students may be admitted to the College of Pharmacy as part of the Contingent Admit Program. This program is designed to admit high-performing high school seniors to the COP upon graduation from high school. To be considered for contingent admission, the student must achieve a minimum composite ACT score of 22 (or equivalent SAT score) and have a minimum cumulative high school GPA of 3.3 or above on a 4.0 scale in a college preparatory high school. Complete details may be found on the COP website at: http://www.xula.edu/cop/contingent.html
College of Pharmacy Academic Policies
The College of Pharmacy academic policies are published in the Academic and Ethical Policies Handbook and updated annually. While a hard copy is provided to all first year students, an electronic version can also be found on the university website at: www.xula.edu/cop/documents/AcademicandEthicalHandbook.pdf.
Requirements for the Doctor of Pharmacy Degree
To be eligible for the degree of Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.), a student must have pursued college level work for a minimum of six years (four of these in the College of Pharmacy). Students must complete 146 (147) semester hours of work in the College of Pharmacy and must have a 2.00 grade point average for all courses attempted in the four-year professional curriculum.
Licensure
In addition to graduation from an accredited school of pharmacy, an applicant for examination and licensure in Louisiana must be a United States citizen or have permanent resident status and must have earned 1740 hours of practical experience under the instruction and supervision of a registered pharmacist. These 1740 hours are to be acquired according to the guidelines of the Louisiana State Board of Pharmacy. Graduates are eligible to pursue licensure in states of their choice provided they meet the relevant requirements of those states.
Doctor of Pharmacy