The Pharmacy Student Population: Applications Received 2019-20, Degrees Conferred 2019-20, Fall 2020 Enrollments

INTRODUCTION

This report presents data that describe the 2019-20 pharmacy application pool, degrees conferred in 2019-20, and fall 2020 pharmacy program enrollments. As of fall 2020 there were 141 colleges and schools of pharmacy with accredited (full, candidate, and precandidate status) professional degree programs. Data for this report were requested from 144 U.S. colleges and schools of pharmacy with enrollments using five separate survey instruments. The difference in the number of colleges and schools is attributed to accreditation changes that occurred for three institutions throughout 2020 (California Health Sciences, Hampton, and Midwestern).

There were previously two professional education programs at U.S. colleges and schools of pharmacy: one leading to a baccalaureate in pharmacy, and the other leading to the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree. However, June 30, 2005 marked the official expiration of the ACPE standards to the baccalaureate in pharmacy (BS Pharmacy) degree programs in accordance with the transition to the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree as the sole professional degree program for the pharmacy profession in the U.S. Some colleges and schools of pharmacy conferred degrees in the BS Pharmacy program until 2004-05.

Additionally, some students with a BS Pharmacy degree, who are eligible to be licensed pharmacists, choose to return to school to obtain their PharmD degree. For this report, students in Doctor of Pharmacy programs are categorized under PharmD1 where the program leads to a Doctor of Pharmacy degree conferred as their first professional degree in pharmacy. Students who have already received a baccalaureate in pharmacy and enroll in a Doctor of Pharmacy degree program are categorized under PharmD2.

The following definitions refer to the race and ethnicity groups used in this report:

• White refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

• Black or African American refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

• Hispanic or Latino refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.

• Asian refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.

• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands. Prior to 2011, these students were included in the Asian category.

• American Indian or Alaska Native refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.

• Two or More Races refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are not Hispanic or Latino and identify themselves by more than one race.

• Unknown refers to U.S. citizens or permanent residents whose race and ethnicity are not known. Prior to 2011, this category was labeled Other/Unknown and students that were of two or more races were included in this category.

• International/Foreign refers to citizens of a foreign country/permanent residents of a country other than the U.S.

• Unknown/Other Gender refers to individuals with an unknown or other gender, regardless of their race/ethnicity or citizenship.

2019-20 APPLICATION POOL

The 2019-20 Application Pool Survey was conducted online in October 2020 with an announcement and request for participation sent to the survey coordinator at each of the 144 colleges and schools of pharmacy in the U.S. with student enrollments. After follow-up correspondence, 141 colleges and schools (100%) submitted the requested information. Included in the application pool are applicants who applied for admission and submitted all required application materials as defined by the Pharmacy College Application Service (PharmCAS) between September 2019 and August 2020 for the entering class of fall 2020. Numbers reported represent the number of applications, not applicants, and may represent multiple applications submitted by individual applicants.

During the period September 2019 through August 2020, 141 institutions reported received 40,392 applications for admission.

In 2019-20, females submitted 63.0% of the applications to pharmacy colleges and schools; males submitted 35.9%. Gender was not reported or unknown for 0.2% of applications. The two largest applicant groups by race/ethnicity were White Americans, submitting 36.6% of applications and Asian Americans representing 28.4% of the total applications. Underrepresented minorities submitted 23.7% of total applications (Black or African American, 13.7%; Hispanic or Latino, 9.7%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.1%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.2%). Applications submitted from students that identified as two or more races totaled 3.5% and 5.6% of the applications were submitted by foreign, nonpermanent residents [Table 1]. Applications were almost split between in-state and out of state residents where nearly 53% of applications came from in-state residents and 47.1% came from out-of-state residents.

Table 1.

Distribution of 2019-20 Applications by Gender and Race/Ethnicity of Applicant^a

Over 72% (72.4%) of the applications to colleges and schools of pharmacy were submitted by individuals who had 3 or more years of postsecondary experience (3 or more years of college/no degree, 34.5%; baccalaureate, 34.8%; master’s, 2.7%; doctoral degree, 0.4%), [Table 2].

Table 2.

Distribution of 2019-20 Applications to First Professional Degree Programs by Gender and Previous Postsecondary Experience of Applicant^a

2019-20 DEGREES CONFERRED

The 2019-20 Undergraduate and Professional Pharmacy Degrees Conferred and Graduate Pharmacy Degrees Conferred surveys were conducted online in October 2020, with an announcement and request for participation sent to the survey coordinator at each of the 144 colleges and schools of pharmacy in the U.S. recognized by ACPE. Submission of the data was requested by December 2020. After follow-up correspondence, 142 colleges and schools (98.6%) submitted the Undergraduate and Professional Degrees Conferred Survey and the Graduate Degrees Conferred Survey.

Professional Degrees Conferred

Numbers of degrees conferred by U.S. colleges and schools of pharmacy from 1965 to 2020 are presented in Table 3.

Table 3.

Number of Pharmacy Degrees Conferred 1965-2020 by Degree and Gender

First Professional Degrees Conferred

In 2019-20, 137 colleges and schools of pharmacy reported conferring the Doctor of Pharmacy as a first professional degree (PharmD1). Graduating PharmD1 class sizes ranged from 36 students to 298 students (median, 92 students). Four colleges and schools with PharmD1 enrollments did not confer degrees in 2019-20. These schools were new programs whose students had not yet progressed through the entire curriculum (American, William Carey, Binghamton, and Texas at El Paso). Lebanese American began reclassifying their enrollments beginning in 2018-19 as PharmD2 students; therefore, they are no longer included in these counts.

In 2019-20 there were 14,320 first professional degrees conferred by colleges and schools compared to 14,800 in 2018-19 [Table 4], representing a 3.2% decrease from the number of degrees conferred the prior year [Table 5].

Table 4.

Baccalaureate and Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD1) Degrees as Percentages of Total First Professional Degrees Conferred 1981-2020

Table 5.

Annual Percentage Change in Number of Pharmacy Degrees Conferred 1981-2020 Over Previous Year

In 1979-80, men received 59.5% of the first professional degrees conferred by colleges and schools and women received 40.5%. Over the past 35 years, these %ages have shifted dramatically where women now receive the majority of first professional Doctor of Pharmacy degrees. In 2019-20 women received 63.0% of the first professional degrees conferred and 36.9% were received by men. Individuals with Unknown/Other Gender received 0.1% of the degrees conferred. Women received the highest %age of degrees conferred in 2005-06 (68.2%) [Table 6].

Table 6.

Percentage of Pharmacy Degrees Conferred 1980-2020 by Gender

White Americans received 49.8% of first professional degrees conferred in 2019-20. Asian Americans received 25.1% of the first professional degrees. Nearly 16% (15.7%) of graduates in 2019-20 were underrepresented minorities (Black or African American, 8.8%; Hispanic or Latino, 6.4%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.2%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.3%). The %age of first professional degree recipients who were of two or more races was 3.1% and the %age of recipients who were foreign, nonpermanent residents of the U.S. was 2.2% [Table 7].

Table 7.

Percentage of First Professional Degree (BS Pharmacy, BPharm., and PharmD1) Recipients 1980-2020 by Race/Ethnicity

Doctor of Pharmacy Degrees Conferred to Post Baccalaureate Students

Seven colleges and schools conferred the PharmD degree to post baccalaureate students in 2019-20. The number of graduates per institution ranged from 4 to 57 students (median, 23 students). The number of Doctor of Pharmacy degrees conferred as postbaccalaureate degrees (PharmD2) decreased 43.9% to 175 in 2019-20 from 312 in 2018-19 [Table 5]. More women than men received PharmD2 degrees in 2019-20 (women, 65.1%; men, 36.9%) [Table 6].

White Americans received 34.9% of PharmD2 degrees conferred in 2019-20. Asian Americans received 13.7% of the PharmD2 degrees conferred. Underrepresented minorities received 18.3% of the PharmD2 degrees conferred (Black or African American, 17.1%; Hispanic or Latino, 0.0%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.6%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.6%). Students of two or more races received 0.6 of PharmD2 degrees conferred in 2019-20. The %age of PharmD2-degree recipients who were foreign, nonpermanent residents of the U.S. was 18.3%, up from 14.1% in 2019-20 [Table 8].

Table 8.

Percentage of Postbaccalaureate Doctor of Pharmacy Degree (Pharm.D.2) Recipients 1980-2019 by Race/Ethnicity

Graduate Degrees Conferred

The number of graduate degrees (M.S. and Ph.D.) conferred has shown annual fluctuations over the 50 years data have been consistently gathered and reported [Table 3]. The number of M.S. degrees conferred slightly increased to 1,130 in 2019-20 from 1,128 in 2018-19, a 0.2% increase. The number of Ph.D. degrees decreased to 529 from 600 in 2019-20, an 11.8% decrease [Table 5].

The highest %age of M.S. degrees awarded in 2019-20 (29.2%) was in social and administrative sciences. The second highest %age of M.S. degrees was in pharmaceutics (22.2%); followed by other disciplines (18.4%); medicinal chemistry (14.1%); pharmacy practice (8.7%); and finally, pharmacology (7.4%). The highest number of Ph.D. degrees awarded in 2019-20 was in the discipline of pharmaceutics (46.9%). The second highest number was in medicinal chemistry (18.5%); followed by pharmacology (11.9%); social and administrative sciences (11.7%); other disciplines (7.4%), and pharmacy practice (3.6%) [Table 9].

Table 10.

Number of Doctor of Philosophy Degrees (Ph.D.) Conferred 1980-2020 by Gender and Race/Ethnicity

Table 9.

Summary of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy Degrees Conferred 2019-20 by Gender and Discipline

More women than men earned M.S. degrees (women, 65.1%; men, 34.7%; Unknown/Other Gender 0.2%); however, more men than women earned Ph.D. degrees (women, 45.9%; men, 54.1%) in 2019-20. There have only been two years (2012-13 and 2008-09) since AACP began collecting data that women received more Ph.D. degrees than men. The %age of women receiving Ph.D. degrees has grown substantially to almost half of Ph.D. degrees from only 18.0% in 1979-80 [Table 6].

Underrepresented minorities received 12.8% of M.S. degrees in 2019-20 (Black or African American, 7.2%; Hispanic or Latino, 4.8%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.2%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.6%), up from 11.3% in 2018-19. Asian Americans received 10.9% of the M.S. degrees conferred, a decrease from 12.1% in 2018-19. The %age of M.S. degree recipients who were of two or more races was 1.3% and the% of degree recipients who were foreign, nonpermanent residents of the U.S. was 31.0%, down from 33.2% in 2018-19 [Table 11].

Table 11.

Percentage of Master of Science (M.S.) Degree Recipients 1990-2020 by Race/Ethnicity

Underrepresented minorities earned 7.0% of the Ph.D. degrees awarded in 2019-20 (Black or African American, 3.8%; Hispanic or Latino, 3.2%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.0%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.0%), an increase from 6.0% in 2018-19. Asian Americans earned 7.9% of the Ph.D. degrees awarded. The %age of Ph.D. degree recipients who were of two or more races was 1.5% and the %age of degree recipients that were foreign, nonpermanent residents of the U.S. was 50.5, a slight increase from 49.5% in 2018-19. [Table 12].

Table 12.

Percentage of Doctor of Philosophy Degree (Ph.D.) Recipients 1980-2020 by Race/Ethnicity

FALL 2020 ENROLLMENTS

The 2020 Undergraduate and Professional Pharmacy Degree Enrollment Survey and Graduate Degree Enrollment Survey were conducted online in October 2020, with an announcement and request for participation sent to the survey coordinator at 144 colleges and schools of pharmacy in the U.S. with enrollments. Submission of the data was requested by December 2020. After follow-up correspondence, 141 colleges and schools (97.9%) submitted the requested information.

Professional Degree Programs

Fall 2020 enrollments in PharmD as the first professional degree programs (n= 57.375) represented a 5.3% decrease from enrollments in fall 2019 (n= 60,594) [Table 13]. In fall 2020, 64.6% of the students enrolled in the PharmD as the first professional degree programs were females and 35.3% were males [Table 14].

Table 13.

Summary of Enrollments in First Professional Degree Programs 1980-2020

Table 14.

Summary of Enrollments in First Professional Degree Programs by Gender 1980-2020

White Americans nearly comprised the majority (48.1%) of students enrolled in the PharmD as the first professional degree programs. Asian Americans accounted for 24.1%; Black or African Americans, 9.8%; Hispanic or Latino, 8.2%; Native Hawaiians/Other Pacific Islanders 0.1%; American Indians/Alaska Natives, 0.3%; and international/foreign students, 3.2%. Students where race/ethnicity was unknown accounted for 3.0% of enrollees and students that identified as two or more races accounted for 3.1% of all first professional degree enrollments. Students whose race/ethnicity and gender were unknown accounted for 0.2% of enrollments. Enrollments of underrepresented minorities (Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, American Indian or Alaska Native) as a %age of total enrollments in the PharmD as a first professional degree programs increased to 18.4% in fall 2020 from 17.0% in fall 2019 [Table 15].

Table 15.

Summary of Enrollments in First Professional Degree Programs by Race/Ethnicity 1980-2020

Seven colleges and schools reported 640 students who already held a baccalaureate in pharmacy enrolled in full-time and non-traditional Doctor of Pharmacy degree programs (PharmD2). Underrepresented minorities accounted for 20.5% of these students (Black or African American, 19.1%; Hispanic or Latino, 1.1%; Native Hawaiians/Other Pacific Islander, 0.2%; American Indians/Alaska Native, 0.2%). White Americans comprised 34.1%; Asian Americans, 19.8%; students of two or more races, 0.5%; unknown, 7.0%; international/foreign students, 18.0%; and students of unknown race/ethnicity and gender, 0.2%.

Graduate Degree Programs

In fall 2020, Other disciplines were the highest %age of full-time enrollees at the M.S. level and the pharmaceutics discipline was the highest for Ph.D. enrollees (31.7% and 39.5%, respectively). At the master’s level, 30.9% of students were enrolled in pharmaceutics programs; 11.6% in pharmacology programs; 11.5% in pharmacy practice programs; 9.1% in social and administrative sciences, and 5.2% in medicinal chemistry programs. At the doctoral level, 22.4% of the students were enrolled in medicinal chemistry programs; 16.7% in pharmacology programs; 10.9% in social and administrative science programs; 6.8% in other disciplines; and 3.7% in pharmacy practice [Table 16].

Table 16.

Summary of Master of Science (MS) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Fall 2020 Full-Time Enrollments by Gender and Discipline

In fall 2020, more females than males were enrolled full-time in both M.S. and Ph.D. degree programs. This is the third year in a row that more women than men were enrolled in Ph.D. programs. In M.S. programs females accounted for 63.6% of enrollments. Women accounted for 53.1% of Ph.D. full-time enrollments, an increase from 51.5% in fall 2019.Of the 1,438 students enrolled full-time in M.S. degree programs in fall 2020, forty% (40.1%) were International/Foreign students. This was a decrease from 47.9% in fall 2019. The next largest group were White Americans, comprising 29.9% of enrollees and Asian Americans accounted for 12.9%. Underrepresented minorities accounted for 13.1% of M.S. enrollees (Black or African American, 5.1%; Hispanic or Latino, 7.4%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.3%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.4%). Americans of two or more races made up 1.5% of enrollees and 2.1% of all full-time M.S. degree enrollees were reported as race/ethnicity unknown.

Of the 3,139 students enrolled full-time in Ph.D. degree programs in fall 2020, International/Foreign students were also the largest group, accounting for 46.8% of the enrollees. White Americans were the next largest group at 30.8% of full-time enrollments, followed by Asian Americans at 8.3%. Underrepresented minorities accounted for 9.6% of Ph.D. enrollees (Black or African American, 4.6%; Hispanic or Latino, 4.6%; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 0.1%; American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.3%). Americans of two or more races accounted for 1.8% of enrollments and 2.9% had an unknown race or ethnicity (Unknown at 2,1%, Unknown/Other Gender at 0.8%). For graduate students whose source of degree was reported, nearly 40% (39.5) of full-time and part-time students in Ph.D. programs held a professional pharmacy degree, Of the Ph.D. students holding a professional pharmacy degree, 33.5% of Ph.D. students held a professional pharmacy degree from a U.S. college or school of pharmacy and 66.5% held a pharmacy degree conferred by a non-U.S. institution [Table 17].

Table 17.

Fall 2020 Enrollments in PhD Programs by Type of Enrollment (Full-Time, Part-Time), Discipline, and Source of Previous Degree Earned^a