Admission Requirements

Academic Requirements

To be eligible for admission, you must complete at least 60 units of university-level coursework. All academic requirements must be complete or in-progress/registered at the time of application.

Applicants must present:

• a minimum of 60 units of university transferable post-secondary coursework including the prerequisite courses listed below.
  • The remaining credits can be made up by successful completion of a combination of university-level course work.
  • It is advisable NOT to take any spring or summer courses in your final year of study because transcripts are due June 15 of the year you wish to apply. Grades from spring or summer courses will not be available in time to meet this deadline.
  • A minimum grade of C- (or equivalent) is required in any transfer course (i.e., courses not completed at the University of Alberta) used to meet a prerequisite requirement. Grades of D+, D, D- and F are considered deficient for transfer coursework. See the University of Alberta Grading System guidelines for further information about how GPA converts to letter grades.

For more information, visit our Frequently Asked Questions about Academic Requirements.

Required courses

You must complete all the required courses with the minimum required grade to be considered for admission. 

The following courses (or equivalent) are required in the 60 unit credit weight:

Some required courses can be fulfilled through advanced credit from International Baccalaureate (IB) or Advanced Placement (AP) programs.

*6 units of English may include up to 3 units in Writing Studies WRS

**We do not accept exercise physiology courses as we are looking solely for human physiology courses.  Any questions regarding human/other physiology courses will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Minimum Required Grade

• Transfer courses (non U of A courses) : C- (or equivalent)
• U of A courses: D

Pass/Fail or CR courses are accepted towards the 60 unit requirement and towards fulfilling pre-requisite courses but cannot be used in any GPA calculations.

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Letter of Intent and Interview

The Letter of Intent, which you will need to upload on the platform while performing the web-based interview (see below), provides an opportunity for you to convey career goals, knowledge of the profession, employment or volunteer experience and other personal attributes. The letter of intent should not exceed 600 words. The letter of intent is worth 5% of your admission score.

The faculty does not conduct in-person interviews. Once you have submitted your application (with the pharmacist consultation form) and paid the application fee, you will receive a link to a web-based interview in early March. This will also include video instructions and a submission deadline. The interview is used to further assess each applicant's fit in addition to GPA rankings & Letter of Intent. It assesses the candidate's ability to formulate a cohesive and logical response to the interview questions and their ability to convey ideas in an effective manner. The interview is worth 20% of your admission score.

Other requirements (Indigneous Canada MOOC, Language Requirements)

• Indigenous education (Only for admitted applicants): As a condition of continuation in the PharmD program, all newly admitted students must complete the University of Alberta Indigenous Canada MOOC. Proof of completion must be submitted to the faculty by December 31st of year one. This requirement may be waived if the student has completed at least three units of coursework from the Faculty of Native Studies or which is within the field of Native Studies.
• Some students are required to meet the Spoken English requirement (see the University of Alberta Calendar - English Language Proficiency). This will be added to your checklist if it applies to you.
• It is your responsibility to ensure that course descriptions are provided for any post secondary coursework completed outside of Canada. Learn more about international course descriptions.

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Application Deadlines

• Applications open: October 1
• Application deadline: March 1

Late applications or missing requirements are not considered under any circumstances.

Items required to complete the application

• Online application and non-refundable application fee due by March 1st. This includes the pharmacist consultation form, proof of Indigenous and/or Rural status and international course descriptions (if required).
• Interview and Letter of Intent - submission deadline around early April. Information to come after March 1st application deadline
• Proof of English Proficiency (if required) and course descriptions (if required) - June 15th
• Transcripts - June 15th

Requesting Transcripts on Your Behalf

If applicable, we may be able to obtain required transcripts from participating ApplyAlberta institutions on your behalf.

University of Alberta transcripts will be requested for current and former UofA students.

Please carefully review the status of your documents in UAlberta Launchpad. You are responsible for requesting all other required transcripts and documents as indicated in UAlberta Launchpad.

Final official transcripts can be sent:

Via email: transcripts@ualberta.ca

Via mail:   

University of Alberta
Office of the Registrar
University Commons
Edmonton, AB, Canada
T6G 2R3

Did you study outside of Canada?

In addition to your transcripts, you must provide a detailed course syllabus or course description for each post-secondary course completed outside of Canada by the March 1st application deadline. Please compile all syllabi or course descriptions into one document for upload to UAlberta Launchpad.

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Admission Selection

Admission to the PharmD program is competitive. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission. The Admissions Committee reserves the right to exercise its discretion in individual cases. Admission decisions are final and can not be appealed.

Admission offers are released between mid-May to early July. Admission offers are for the Fall term for which the applicant applied and cannot be deferred.

• An overall recent GPA of at least 3.0 or equivalent is required to be considered for admission.
• Competitive applicants usually present a GPA of at least 3.6.

Students are ranked based on a combination of the following:

• GPA rank score (75% weighting), which is a combination of the following:
  • Overall recent GPA — calculated using your most recent two full-time years (defined as at least 18 credits or more during Fall and Winter only). This applies to students applying after more than two years of study. However, students applying in their second year of study will need to complete all 60 credits including prerequisites by the June 15 transcript deadline.
    • The overall recent GPA is calculated on all graded course work in the most recent 2 years divided by the total graded credit weight
  • GPA in the foundational Biological Science prerequisite courses — these include Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Human Physiology.
  • GPA in your highest credit weight year (Fall and Winter only).
    • It is preferable but not required that 30 credit units are taken in at least one academic year (September to April). Students with a 30 credit year will be ranked higher for this specific GPA calculation. If you have taken multiple years with the same amount of credit units, the year with the highest GPA will be used
• Web-based interview score (20% weighting)
• Letter of intent score (5% weighting)

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