Bachelor of Pharmacy

Background
bpharmpt
The full-time Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) Programme was launched in 2009 and the programme obtained full accreditation from The Pharmacy and Poisons Board of Hong Kong in 2012. It was reaccredited in 2023. The launch of the programme was a response to the growing demand for pharmaceutical care in the community. The programme was designed with reference to well-established pharmacy curricula offered by other renowned universities around the world, international trends in pharmacist training, and the specific demands of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China.
Curriculum Aims and Features
The Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) programme is a full-time credit-based programme with a normative period of study of four years. We adopt integrative approach and problem-based learning to develop students’ academic potentials and their capability to apply knowledge in healthcare professions. The distinctive elements of the programme include the following:
Integrated Curriculum
pharmacy students research project3 Integrated Curriculum

HKU pharmacy programme was revamped in 2019 to adopt an integrated pharmacy curricula model to meet international standards and better accommodate societal medical needs.

Interprofessional Education (IPE)
Gain working experience Interprofessional Education (IPE)

The programme offers students invaluable opportunities for interprofessional learning throughout the four-year curriculum. Well-structured activities utilise the expertise of students from diverse backgrounds and foster teamwork, collaboration and communication between different team members.

Problem-Based Learning (PBL)
pharmacy students research project3 Problem-Based Learning (PBL)

This approach in teaching is applied to encourage critical thinking and self-directed learning skills, encouraging interdisciplinary inquiry from students and fostering their lifelong learning skills.

Experiential Learning
Research project develop creativity and critical thinking1 Experiential Learning

The Pharmacy Experiential Education Programme (PEEP) offers year 2 and 3 students on-site placements in different pharmacy practice settings outside the classrooms under the supervision of pharmacist preceptors throughout regular semesters and in the summer.
Our PEEP enriches the curriculum with perspectives of contemporary pharmacy practice in the local setting and enables students to apply and expand upon the knowledge and skills acquired from the didactic coursework in the pharmacy curriculum.

Clerkship
Gain working experience1 Clerkship

Student will be provided with front line experience of different professional sectors including the hospital pharmacy, community pharmacy and pharmaceutical industry. The different sectors will provide the students the opportunity to engage with stakeholders of the profession, and to gain a better understanding of the role of pharmacists in each sector. The exposure include the observation of clinical judgement, collaboration with other healthcare professionals, primary care services at community sites, formulation and marketing of drugs in the industrial sector.

Research Opportunities
drug delivery and formulation to clinical tri1 Research Opportunities

All pharmacy students are provided with various opportunities to undertake research including summer research exchange, research scholarship programme offered by HKU, and final year project. The Final Year Project enables our students to develop scientific and data analysis skills, communication, creativity and critical thinking. Students will also learn about the importance of research ethics.

Traditional Chinese and Complementary Medicine
pharmacy students research project2 Traditional Chinese and Complementary Medicine

The programme provides future pharmacists in Hong Kong an exposure to Traditional Chinese Medicine as well as Complementary and Alternative Medicines (CAM), including herbal medicines, nutraceuticals and healthcare products commonly used by local patients.

Experiential Learning in Pharmacy Curricula
pharmacy students research project2 Experiential Learning in Pharmacy Curricula

Semester-based Experiential Learning - Over 80 hours per semester
Clerkship - Over 6 weeks in the final year of study
Enrichment Module - Around 200 hours in the final year of study

Structure of the Programme

Download Programme Brochure

Year 1

•  Essential Skills for Pharmacy Students

•  Integrated Course in Basic Sciences:
     Anatomy, Physiology & Biochemistry

•  Research Methods in Pharmacy Practice

•   Introduction to Pharmacy

•   Drug Discovery

•   Academic Communication in English

•   Common Core Courses

•   Digital Literacy
Year 2

•   Pharmaceutical Chemistry

•   Dosage Form Design

•   Pharmacy in Body System Series:

- Cardiovascular & Renal

- Gastrointestinal System, Drug Kinetics
   and Toxicities

- Respiratory System

•   Pharmacy Practice: Introduction

•   Academic Communication for Pharmacy Students

•   Practical Chinese for Pharmacy Students

•   Common Core Courses

•   Digital Literacy
Year 3

•   Advanced Drug Delivery

•   Pharmaceutical Analysis

•   Pharmacy Practice: Community Pharmacy

•   Pharmacy in Body System Series:

- Endocrinology

- Central Nervous System, Musculoskeletal and
          Connective Tissue Disorders

- Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

- Oncology
Year 4

•   Research Methodology and Research Project#

•   Pharmacy Practice: Pharmacy Law and Ethics

•   Industrial Drug Development

•   Biopharmaceutical Technology and Future Medicines

•   Pharmacotherapy of Special Populations

•   Enrichment Module

•   Electives

- Molecular Medicine*

- Molecular Pharmacology*

- Big Data in Healthcare*

- Chinese Medicine for Pharmacy Students*

- Cardiopulmonary and Renal Systems**

# All Year-4 students have to complete a research project

* Elective Courses

** Elective Course for articulation to the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) upon graduation