Curriculum

Curricular Philosophy

It is expected that the curriculum will be driven by these principles:

1. Students will be exposed to practice experiences, which are based upon the provision of pharmaceutical care that begins upon entry into the curriculum and continues throughout the four years of the curriculum.
2. Pharmaceutical sciences and clinical sciences will be integrated throughout the curriculum with the goal of instilling upon our graduates the need for the continuation of basic science knowledge throughout their careers.
3. Faculty will endeavor to deliver the curriculum to students utilizing the most effective means possible and will strive to incorporate new, effective approaches to teaching and learning.
4. The curriculum will be “patient-focused” that trains students to be a primary care provider. This will involve teaching students patient assessment and advanced oral and written communications skills.
5. Advanced practice experiences will be integrated into institutions and organizations that provide pharmaceutical care. Student experiences will be maximized at an organization such that they can deliver pharmaceutical care and begin to evaluate the outcomes of pharmaceutical care at that institution. These experiences will be reflective of practice environments entered after graduation.
6. The curriculum will be responsive to changes required as a result of input from faculty, students, employers and alumni.

Ability Based Outcomes

Ability based outcomes (ABO's) define define what graduates are expected to be able to do as a result of knowledge, skills and attitudes gained through completing the entire curriculum.  These outcomes fall under the broad categories of provision of patient care, management of health care resources, promotion of health and wellness, and professional commitment.

The Curriculum (to view the PharmD curriculum including prerequisite course listings, click here). 

The curriculum was designed and implemented by the Departments of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences to educate and prepare students for the evolving demands of the profession.   In addition to the academic requirements of the curriculum, students are expected to be able to meet the non-academic requirements outlined in the Technical Standards in order to successfully complete the pharmacy program. 

Professionalism in the Curriculum

The PharmD program will promote the development of professional values, attitudes, skills and behaviors in students.  The professionalism curriculum represents those areas of the curriculum where professionalism is taught and evaluated.  

Elective Offerings

The pharmacy curriculum offers students the opportunities to complete 4 credits of elective coursework and 6 credits of elective experiences.  Students who have completed the Winter semester of the P1 year are eligible to register for elective courses (no more than 2 credits of electives can be taken prior to completing the P2 year).  The faculty have developed a number of elective courses that are designed to enrich the educational experience and allow students to take courses suitable for their individual career goals or obtain research experience.  In addition, a number of courses offered by other departments within the university have been identified as meeting the elective component of the curriculum.  To view the elective policy, click here.   The elective offerings for the 2010-11 academic year will be posted in January 2010.  Elective experiences occur in the P4 year of the program and are available in a wide variety of patient care and non-patient care settings. 

Experiential Education at Wayne State

A significant portion of the Doctor of Pharmacy curriculum involves practice experiences.   During the first professional year, students participate in practice experiences as part of the Patient Care Lab course sequence.   The curriculum for the P2 year includes Early Experiential I in the fall semester and Early Experiential II in the winter semester.   Students are required to spend 3-4 hours per week engaged in professional experiences in a variety of settings, attend professional meetings or seminars and participate in service learning at underserved health clinics in the metropolitan Detroit area.      Throughout the P3 year, students spend one day per week for an entire semester (fall or winter) in a community pharmacy setting.   One day per week is spent in a health-system pharmacy during the other semester.   The final (P4) year of the curriculum consists entirely of advanced practice experiences (with the exception of a required seminar course).    Students complete seven rotations, each of six weeks duration, for a total of 42 weeks.   There are five required rotations:  general community practice, general hospital practice, ambulatory care, internal medicine and patient care.   Students select two patient care or non-patient care elective rotations.

Wayne State University is fortunate to have affiliations with a large number of hospitals and community pharmacies that provide students with outstanding practice experiences.