The Best Pharmacy Schools in America

University of Minnesota

• Among the top programs in the nation for the study of pharmacy is the University of Minnesota. U.S. News and World Report last ranked pharmacy schools in 2008 and found the University of Minnesota to be one of the best in the nation, ranking it number three overall. The school offers a wide array of programs through its Minneapolis and Duluth campuses including a master of science degree, along with the PharmD and PhD. The program's various research emphases include pharmaceutical sciences, pharmaceutical care and health systems, medicinal chemistry, pharmaceutics and pharmacy practice and and clinical pharmacology. The university sponsors 13 different research centers that include the Epilepsy Research and Education Program, Center for Clinical and Cognitive Neuropharmacology and the Antibiotic Pharmacodynamic Research Institute.

  University of Minnesota
  College of Pharmacy
  308 Harvard Street SE
  Minneapolis, MN 55455
  612-624-9490
  pharmacy.umn.edu

University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill

• According to the rankings of U.S. News and World Report, the University of North Carolina's (UNC) School of Pharmacy in Chapel Hill is the second highest rated program in the nation. One of the hallmarks of the UNC program is its continued emphasis on the practical application of studies in conjunction with learning that takes place in the classroom. One aspect of the UNC program that makes it different than most other prominent pharmacy programs is the fact that it does not offer the PhD in conjunction with the PharmD, rather, it is a separate program altogether. The PhD program does provide important cutting-edge research, however, in the areas of pharmaco-therapy and experimental therapeutics, molecular pharmaceutics, medicinal chemistry and natural products and pharmaceutical outcomes and policy. Numerous post-doctorate research programs also exist within the university's school. Additional degree opportunities include the master of science in health system pharmacy.

  University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
  School of Pharmacy
  CB #7360
  Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7360
  919-966-9429
  pharmacy.unc.edu

University of California--San Francisco

• The University of California--San Francisco (UCSF) is the nation's top-rated program according to the U.S. World News and Report rankings. UCSF offers students the opportunity to pursue the PharmD degree and, in conjunction with that, the PhD. As one of the top-ranked medical programs in the nation as well, UCSF offers students access to top-rated researchers and medical professionals. Students in the School of Pharmacy, working in this intellectual climate, often develop cutting-edge research proposals that are regularly funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH). The PharmD program has a number of different emphases including pharmaceutical science, pharmaceutical care and health policy and management. Other joint-degrees offered in conjunction with the PharmD aside from the PhD include a master of science in clinical research and a master of public health. The school consists of several departments that include those in the fields of pharmaceutical chemistry, bioengineering science, therapeutic science and clinical pharmacy.

  University of California--San Francisco
  School of Pharmacy
  1700 4th St.
  San Francisco, CA 94143-0775
  415-476-1947
  pharmacy.ucsf.edu