Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honours)
Course Description
This programme is aimed at equipping upcoming pharmacists with necessary knowledge and skills to be excellent in Clinical Pharmacy practice, Pharmacy management, Pharmaceutical logistics (including procurement) and storage procedures of drugs, quality assurance and control of pharmaceuticals and herbal products, provision of medicine information and Pharmacovigilance in various health facilities. This, in turn, will help institutions avoid wastage and reduce costs of medicines on both short and long term bases.
The BSc Pharmacy course comprises five years of course work and a year-long internship. In the first two academic years, students are taken through Basic Sciences and Introductory Pharmacy courses together with students of medicine. The subjects in the 3rd, 4th and 5th year of the Pharmacy curriculum are similar to those in most schools of pharmacy worldwide. As an additional key subject, Management of Drug and Medical Supplies is taught, concentrating on the managerial and logistic procedures of drug supply systems in resource-poor settings.
During their studies, students visit private pharmacies and hospital pharmacies, the Central Medical Stores Trust, the pharmaceutical industry and the wards of the teaching hospitals. They also do research projects.
The internship year is organized by the responsible national authority in Malawi (Pharmacy Medicines Regulatory Authority). Six months are completed in hospital pharmacies, and two months each in a private pharmacy, in the pharmaceutical industry and in the Central Medical Stores Trust.
Kamuzu University of Health Sciences offers various postgraduate degrees open to BSc Pharmarcy graduates. Specific post-graduate courses in Pharmacy are currently being developed. The Pharmacy Department has formal collaborations with a number of well-known international universities (University of Tuebingen-Germany, University of Iceland) and research institutions. It is a collaborating member of the FIP-UNESCO UNITWIN Centre of Excellence of Schools of Pharmacy in Africa.
Why study this programme:
If you are interested in studying Drug Metabolism, discovery of new medicines, conducting pharmaceutical research then study Pharmacy. Pharmacy professionals also possess adequate information which is essential in making informed decisions on proper dosage, utilization and distribution of medications to people and animals. Another reason you should study this course is that it has Pharmaceutical management, Logistics and Supply Chain in the curriculum unlike most international universities. This allows you to work even in pharmaceutical supply chain organizations as well as reputable international NGOs.
Pharmacists also conduct research, establish new pharmaceutical practices within specific business entities and collaborate with doctors and other health care providers to ensure that patients are getting the right prescriptions.
Programme structure:
The duration of the programme is normally a minimum of 4 years (for those possessing A-levels or an approved Science degree, or second year science students from recognized Universities) and leading to the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) from Kamuzu University of Health Sciences. For those who do not have the A-levels, there is an addition one year in which the students under pre-medical sciences. The pre-med ensures the students to be at the same level as an A-level student.
Career prospects:
You can work in any of the following field/areas: hospital pharmacy, retail/community pharmacies, Administrative positions (e.g. Ministry of Health), Medicine/Drug Regulatory agencies, Cosmetic and Pharmaceutical Manufacturing facilities, Non-Governmental Organizations focusing on pharmaceutical supply chain, Academia and Research institutes, Pharmaceutical supply chain organizations (e.g. Central Medical Stores Trust, Bollore Logistics, USAID, UNICEF etc.) and many more.
Entry Requirements
Either at least six O-level passes including English and Mathematics (they will enter at year one (pre-medical science level); and three A-level passes with a grade of at least C in Chemistry and Biology and any other science subject (s) e.g. Physics or Mathematics (they will enter at year two, Basic Medical sciences). Normally, passes in Chemistry and Biology at A-level are compulsory and English and Mathematics, if not offered at A-level, must have been passed at O-level.
Or at least six Malawi School Certificate of Education credit passes including English and Mathematics, and passes at credit level in Chemistry and Biology and in any other Science subject e.g. Physics or Mathematics or statistics at the end of year II in the Faculty of Science at Chancellor College, University of Malawi (they will enter at year two, Basic Medical sciences).
Bachelor’s degree in science (they will enter at year two, Basic Medical sciences))
Equivalent qualifications approved by the University.
