Pharmaceutical Sciences, B.S.
Admissions
In addition to the general requirements for admission to the University, all students admitted to the Pre-Pharmacy and/or professional pharmacy program must meet the following specialized requirements of the College of Pharmacy:
Pre-Pharmacy
Any entering freshman student who wishes to pursue a pharmacy degree and who fulfills general requirements for admission to the University will be accepted into the pharmaceutical sciences (pre-pharmacy) program of study. Pre-pharmacy students within the University will be advised by pre-pharmacy advisors.
Grade Requirement
All courses in the pre-pharmacy curriculum must be passed with a grade of C or better.
Academic Standing
All pre-pharmacy students are subject to the same regulations regarding scholastic deficiency and academic suspension as defined for undergraduate students by the University.
Other Regulations
Any student seeking an exception to the academic standards may petition the College of Pharmacy; a petition may be approved or denied based on the merits of the individual situation. Information on procedures may be obtained from the Office of the Dean.
Transfer Admission (Pre-Pharmacy)
- Students enrolled in other colleges on the Columbia campus must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 and must have at least 12 USC credit hours.
- Students from other USC campuses must have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 and must have taken at least 12 USC credit hours. Additionally, students from other USC campuses who have fewer than 30 semester hours must also meet Columbia campus freshman admission requirements.
- Transfer students from other accredited institutions must present a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 on all college work taken. Students who have fewer than 30 semester hours of college work must also meet Columbia campus freshman admission requirements.
Degree Requirements (minimum 131 hours)
The Pre-Pharmacy work must total at least 66 hours.
Program of Study
| Requirements | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| 1. Carolina Core | 32-45 |
| 2. College Requirements | 0 |
| 3. Program Requirements | 31-34 |
| 4. Major Requirements | 65 |
Founding Documents Requirement
All undergraduate students must take a 3-credit course or its equivalent with a passing grade in the subject areas of History, Political Science, or African American Studies that covers the founding documents including the United State Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Emancipation Proclamation and one or more documents that are foundational to the African American Freedom struggle, and a minimum of five essays from the Federalist papers. This course may count as a requirement in any part of the program of study including the Carolina Core, the major, minor or cognate, or as a general elective. Courses that meet this requirement are listed here.
Requirements (131 hours)1
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Carolina Core (32-45 hours) | ||
| CMW - Effective, Engaged, and Persuasive Communication: Written | ||
| ENGL 101 | Critical Reading and Composition | 3 |
| ENGL 102 | Rhetoric and Composition | 3 |
| ARP - Analytical Reasoning and Problem Solving | ||
| MATH 122 | Calculus for Business Administration and Social Sciences | 3-4 |
| or MATH 141 | Calculus I | |
| STAT 201 | Elementary Statistics | 3 |
| or STAT 205 | Elementary Statistics for the Biological and Life Sciences | |
| or STAT 206 | Elementary Statistics for Business | |
| SCI - Scientific Literacy | ||
| BIOL 101 & 101L | Biological Principles I and Biological Principles I Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 111 & 111L | General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Lab | 4 |
| GFL - Global Citizenship and Multicultural Understanding: Foreign Language | ||
| Demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language by achieving a score of two or higher on the foreign language placement test. Students who do not score at least a two must either take 109/110 sequence of SPAN, FREN, GERM, or LATN or ARAB, CHIN, GREK, ITAL, JAPA, PORT, or RUSS 121. If both 109 and 110 are required, foreign language sequences typically begin in the Fall semesters. (American Sign Language does not count toward the foreign language requirement). | ||
| CC-GFL course(s) | 0-6 | |
| GHS - Global Citizenship and Multicultural Understanding: Historical Thinking | ||
| CC-GHS course(s) | 3 | |
| GSS - Global Citizenship and Multicultural Understanding: Social Sciences | ||
| ANTH 210 | Human Life Cycles in Different Cultures | 3 |
| or ANTH 212 | Food and Culture | |
| or ANTH 280 | Humans Going Nuclear: Atomic Bombs, Cold War, and the Fallout | |
| or PSYC 101 | Introduction to Psychology | |
| or SOCY 101 | Introductory Sociology | |
| AIU - Aesthetic and Interpretive Understanding | ||
| CC-AIU course(s) | 3 | |
| CMS - Effective, Engaged, and Persuasive Communication: Spoken Component 2 | ||
| CC-CMS course(s) | 0-3 | |
| INF - Information Literacy 2 | ||
| CC-INF course(s) | 0-3 | |
| VSR - Values, Ethics, and Social Responsibility 2 | ||
| CC-VSR course(s) | 0-3 | |
| 2. College Requirements (0 hours) | ||
| No college-required courses for this program. | ||
| 3. Program Requirements (31-34 hours) | ||
| Supporting Courses (31 hours) | ||
| Additional Pre-Pharmacy Requirements: | ||
| BIOL 102 & 102L | Biological Principles II and Biological Principles II Laboratory | 4 |
| BIOL 243 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | 3 |
| BIOL 244 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II | 3 |
| BIOL 250 | Microbiology | 3 |
| CHEM 112 & 112L | General Chemistry II and General Chemistry II Lab | 4 |
| CHEM 331L | Essentials of Organic Chemistry Laboratory I | 1 |
| CHEM 332L | Essentials of Organic Chemistry Laboratory II | 1 |
| CHEM 333 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 334 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| PHYS 201 | General Physics I | 3 |
| ECON 224 | Introduction to Economics | 3 |
| or ECON 221 | Principles of Microeconomics | |
| or ECON 222 | Principles of Macroeconomics | |
| Electives (0-3 hours) | ||
| An elective course will be needed if the Pre-Pharmacy (Carolina Core and Supporting Courses) hours total is less than 66. | 0-3 | |
| 4. Major Requirements (65 hours) | ||
| Professional Requirements (65 hours) | ||
| The final 65 credit hours required for the BS in Pharmaceutical Sciences degree are earned after admission to the USC College of Pharmacy and during the first two years of the professional Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) program. | 65 | |
- 1
All degree requirements must be passed with a grade of C or higher.
- 2
Carolina Core Stand Alone or Overlay Eligible Requirements — Overlay-approved courses offer students the option of meeting two Carolina Core components in a single course. A maximum of two overlays is allowed. The total Carolina Core credit hours must add up to a minimum of 31 hours. Some programs may have a higher number of minimum Carolina Core hours due to specified requirements.
Major Map
A major map is a layout of required courses in a given program of study, including critical courses and suggested course sequences to ensure a clear path to graduation.
Major maps are only a suggested or recommended sequence of courses required in a program of study. Please contact your academic advisor for assistance in the application of specific coursework to a program of study and course selection and planning for upcoming semesters.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| ENGL 101 | Critical Reading and Composition | 3 |
| MATH 122 or MATH 141 |
Calculus for Business Administration and Social Sciences 3 or Calculus I |
3-4 |
| BIOL 101 & 101L |
Biological Principles I and Biological Principles I Laboratory |
4 |
| CHEM 111 & 111L |
General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Lab |
4 |
| UNIV 101 | The Student in the University (or Carolina Core Requirement) 4 | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 17-18 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 102 | Rhetoric and Composition | 3 |
| STAT 201 |
Elementary Statistics or Elementary Statistics for the Biological and Life Sciences or Elementary Statistics for Business |
3 |
| BIOL 102 & 102L |
Biological Principles II and Biological Principles II Laboratory |
4 |
| CHEM 112 & 112L |
General Chemistry II and General Chemistry II Lab |
4 |
| ANTH 210 |
Human Life Cycles in Different Cultures or Food and Culture or Humans Going Nuclear: Atomic Bombs, Cold War, and the Fallout or The Physics of How Things Work I or Introductory Sociology |
3 |
| Credit Hours | 17 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| BIOL 243 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | 3 |
| CHEM 333 & 331L |
Organic Chemistry I and Essentials of Organic Chemistry Laboratory I |
4 |
| PHYS 201 | General Physics I | 3 |
| ECON 224 | Introduction to Economics 5 | 3 |
| Foreign language or other Carolina Core Requirement 4,6 | 3 | |
| Carolina Core Requirement or Elective (only if needed to meet CC Requirements or Pre-Pharmacy hours) 4,7 | 0-3 | |
| Credit Hours | 16-19 | |
| Spring | ||
| BIOL 244 | Human Anatomy and Physiology II | 3 |
| BIOL 250 | Microbiology | 3 |
| CHEM 334 & 332L |
Organic Chemistry II and Essentials of Organic Chemistry Laboratory II |
4 |
| Foreign language or other Carolina Core Requirement 4,6 | 3 | |
| Carolina Core CMS Requirement | 3 | |
| Must be admitted into the Pharm.D Professional Program to complete years 3 and 4. | ||
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| PHMY 600 | 1 | |
| PHMY 602 | 2 | |
| PHMY 607 | 4 | |
| PHMY 615 | 3 | |
| PHMY 621 | 3 | |
| PHMY 651 | 2 | |
| PHMY 656 | 2 | |
| Credit Hours | 17 | |
| Spring | ||
| PHMY 601 | 1 | |
| PHMY 603 | 3 | |
| PHMY 618 | 3 | |
| PHMY 624 | 3 | |
| PHMY 657 | 1 | |
| PHMY 662 | 1 | |
| PHMY 690 | 1 | |
| PHMY 750 | 4 | |
| Credit Hours | 17 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| PHMY 610 | 4 | |
| PHMY 700 | 1 | |
| PHMY 710 | 3 | |
| PHMY 722 | 3 | |
| PHMY 751 | 1 | |
| PHMY 772 | 4 | |
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| PHMY 701 | 1 | |
| PHMY 723 | 2 | |
| PHMY 752 | 1 | |
| PHMY 773 | 5 | |
| PHMY 780 | 3 | |
| PHMY 890 | 3 | |
| PHMY 701 | 1 | |
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 132-136 | |
The Bachelor of Science of Pharmaceutical Science excludes labs, electives, personal/professional development courses, and introductory practice experiences courses taken within years 3 and 4 (years 1 and 2 of Pharm.D professional program). The Pharm.D program is a total of four professional years.
- 1
Regardless of individual course grades, students must maintain a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA to be eligible for admission to the Pharm.D program.
- 2
Some colleges require a minimum GPA for major courses. Courses indicated in this column are included in the major GPA for this program of study.
- 3
Students who do not place into the required ARP courses must complete the necessary prerequisites before continuing with the required Carolina Core ARP courses.
- 4
The Carolina Core provides the common core of knowledge, skill and academic experience for all Carolina undergraduate students. Carolina Core courses in foreign language for GFL, history (U.S. or World) for GHS, fine arts for AIU, or political science or other VSR courses may be used to complete the Liberal Arts electives required in the Pre-Pharmacy curriculum.
- 5
Students may substitute ECON 224 with either ECON 221 or ECON 222.
- 6
Students in the College of Pharmacy are required to demonstrate proficiency in one foreign language by a score of 2 or higher on the foreign language placement test, or by completing six hours of SPAN, FREN, GERM, or LATN, or by completing four hours of ARAB, CHIN, GREK, ITAL, JAPA, PORT, or RUSS.
- 7
Elective courses will be needed if the Pre-Pharmacy hour total is less than 66.
- 8
In order to apply to the Pharm.D Professional Program and complete years 3 and 4 of the B.S. in Pharmaceutical Sciences, candidates must have a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA. Other criteria such as application materials, interview evaluations, and letters of recommendation do apply. A grade of C or higher must be earned in all coursework. Visit Pharm.D Admissions for more information.
Program Notes:
- All undergraduate students must take a 3-credit course or its equivalent with a passing grade that covers the founding documents. This course may fulfill any requirement in the program of study. Courses that meet this requirement are listed in the academic bulletin.
- A total of 221 hours (66 hours of pre-pharmacy courses and 155 hours of professional program courses) are required for completion of the Doctor of Pharmacy degree. Pre-Pharmacy students have the option of obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the end of their second professional year in pharmacy school. The final 66 credit hours required for the B.S. in Pharmaceutical Sciences degree are earned after admission to the University of South Carolina College of Pharmacy and during the first two years of the professional Doctor of Pharmacy program. The specific course requirements are described on the College of Pharmacy website under Pharm.D program.
- If a student has deficiencies (obtains a D+, D, F or U) in more than four courses during any given academic year, he/she will be dismissed from the pharmacy program.