Course description
Including
Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honours)
About the course
CSU’s Bachelor of Pharmacy course is the first pharmacy degree in Australia to be offered outside a metropolitan area. Pharmacists represent the major component of continuing healthcare for the community.
Students will study biomedical and applied sciences, develop knowledge and skills in health promotion, learn treatment of minor ailments, and become fluent in communication and health information management. Ample opportunities for employment exist for successful graduates, as there is a recognised demand for skilled practitioners, particularly in rural and remote areas.
Where it will take you
With skills relevant to both rural and metropolitan health care, graduates of the CSU Pharmacy program are in demand by employers, and are encouraged to work in regional areas where there is a critical need for health care professionals.
You can work in:
* hospitals and community health care
* pharmaceutical industry, e.g. clinical trials or sales and marketing
* government agencies, research institutions and in teaching pharmacies
Your course is recognised by industry
After graduation from Charles Sturt University, you (in common with all other Pharmacy graduates in Australia) are required to undertake a period of supervised training. Currently, in NSW, this period of pre-registration training is 2,000 hours and is concluded by an examination set by The Pharmacy Board of NSW. When that exam has been passed, you may register and practice pharmacy anywhere in NSW. Graduate pharmacists, registered in NSW, may also seek registration recognition anywhere within the Commonwealth of Australia.
The latest facilities
To make sure you are experienced using the equipment and techniques found in the workplace, our facilities include:
* state-of-the-art laboratories and equipment
* audio-visual facilities
* small group sizes
* computer centres
Practical experience
During the course, students will complete periods of training (i.e. externships) primarily in a hospital or community pharmacy. The externships give the student the opportunity to apply their theoretical knowledge to real problems in the practice of pharmacy.
Course components
Primarily in the first and second year, students study core subjects in some basic sciences, including chemistry, mathematics and statistics, computer use, microbiology, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, nutrition and molecular genetics.
To complement these scientific disciplines, there are subjects in various pharmaceutical sciences presented in the first three years. These subjects are organic and medicinal agents, pharmaceutical microbiology, pharmaceutics and pharmacokinetics. Together, the pharmaceutical science and the basic science subjects provide a solid foundation for studies in the professional aspects of pharmacy.
Specialist subjects include pharmacy practice, pharmacy residency, professional practice and therapeutics. There is an elective in the first session of the final year, which may be chosen from over 30 subjects in areas such as the arts and humanities, commerce, science, computing and health studies.
The elective allows you to follow and develop particular interests which may enhance your capacity to work in a variety of exciting careers.
Honours stream
To transfer into the Honours stream at the beginning of the third year, you must have obtained a Credit average in all first- and second-year subjects. Successful students will be included in a special program of Honours workshops and tutorials in third year and choose a project and potential supervisor during that year.
Graduation requirements
To graduate, students must satisfactorily complete 256 points (26 subjects) and pass all clinical practice placements. For students in the Honours stream, determination of the grade of Honours will depend on coursework performance in years three and four of the course as well as performance in the dissertation subject. Students will graduate from the Bachelor of Pharmacy with the award BPharm or BPharm(Hons).
Clinical requirements
Refer to the Clinical Requirements section following for information on:
* Senior First Aid Certificate
* Criminal Record Clearance
* Immunisation
