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Pharmaceutical Science v Pharmacy v Pharmacology

Hi guys,

At the moment I'm in a bit of pickle out of which of those 3 I should apply for.

I'm really stuck out of which of these three to chose as I enjoy all the aspect in each course.

Any Help?
If you enjoy patient contact, then go with pharmacy.

Pharmacy (the degree) includes loads of things, like pharmacology, biochemistry, you learn some modules a medic student would learn and plus you get patient contact involved!

unlike a pure pharmacology degree for instance, your only gonna be doing pharmacology and nothing else .
Well, pharmacy would incorporate bits of pharmaceutical science (kinda goes with the territory) and pharmacology, but the others would be most specific, and you would focus more on them rather than some of the things in pharmacy, like patient care. Seeing as I went for pharmacy in the end, I'm going to be biased and say choose pharmacy ( and go to UEA! :wink: :lol: ) but then I only really chose it because I hadn't decided whether I'd prefer to go into industry, or hospital or community, and if I did pharmacology I'd only be able to go into the pharmaceutical industry, so it would be a total bummer if I realised my niche was in community after all. So yeah, think about that. Do sometimes wish I'd chosen Edinburgh for pharmacology though, although that's mostly because of some of the people I know who are going there, would've been a bad reason for choosing a uni.
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by DrFantastic
Thanks for the reply, I've been researching and does Pharmaceutical Science allow you to train as a pharmacist? I can't seem to find any clear awnsers on this! :frown:


Just to clear things up! No it doesn't.

An MPharm Qualification (pharmacy degree) is the only route to becoming a pharmacist!
Original post by DrFantastic
Ah right, so what exactly do you learn in Pharmaceutical Science? Is it utterly useless or the same as pharmacology?


they are similair, but they deal with more the mechanism of the actual drug you take (how it interacts with receptors on the body) , rather than pharmacy which does involve a bit of pharmacology and pharmaceutical body but is mainly information learnt to help benefit members of the public, if that makes any sense?
Original post by DrFantastic
Thanks for the reply, I've been researching and does Pharmaceutical Science allow you to train as a pharmacist? I can't seem to find any clear awnsers on this! :frown:


Nope. If you want to be a pharmacist in the sense that you work in a community pharmacy like Lloyd's, or in a hospital, you need an MPharm degree and do a pre-registration year after. :smile:
Original post by James A
If you enjoy patient contact, then go with pharmacy.

Pharmacy (the degree) includes loads of things, like pharmacology, biochemistry, you learn some modules a medic student would learn and plus you get patient contact involved!

unlike a pure pharmacology degree for instance, your only gonna be doing pharmacology and nothing else .


You might learn the same modules as a med student but nowhere near to the same degree of detail :smile:
Original post by areebmazhar
You might learn the same modules as a med student but nowhere near to the same degree of detail :smile:


Yeah i am aware of that.
Reply 8
Original post by areebmazhar
You might learn the same modules as a med student but nowhere near to the same degree of detail :smile:


Throwing a slightly controversial statement out in reply...

Pharmacists learn HOW/WHY drugs work in a lot more detail than med students.

Med students can graduate without necessarily understanding how the drugs themselves work in as much detail. Hence why you have specialist pharmacists in the NHS that recommend drug treatments etc to doctors and advise on new medication.
(edited 11 years ago)
Reply 9
At virtually all univeristies Pharmacy as a degree (MPharm) have over 90% post graduate job guarantee, so it's great for job security when you're older :biggrin: im not sure about the other two however..
Original post by Jambo
Throwing a slightly controversial statement out in reply...

Pharmacists learn HOW/WHY drugs work in a lot more detail than med students.

Med students can graduate without necessarily understanding how the drugs themselves work in as much detail. Hence why you have specialist pharmacists in the NHS that recommend drug treatments etc to doctors and advise on new medication.


Yeah the other member said you learn some modules a med student learns- which is obviously untrue because med students learn a greater variety and depth in a respiratory module for example. But vice-versa some pharmacology/biochem modules in pharmacy are going to be much more detailed compared to medicine.
Reply 11
Original post by DrFantastic
Hi guys,

At the moment I'm in a bit of pickle out of which of those 3 I should apply for.

I'm really stuck out of which of these three to chose as I enjoy all the aspect in each course.

Any Help?


I would do pharmacy, as it encompasses both pharmaceutical science and pharmacology. Also, it has the best job prospects out of the three degrees that you specified. So thats a win-win!
Original post by DrFantastic
Hi guys,

At the moment I'm in a bit of pickle out of which of those 3 I should apply for.

I'm really stuck out of which of these three to chose as I enjoy all the aspect in each course.

Any Help?


Pharmacy

The only degree you can do if you want to become a pharmacist the people that are in charge of the handling and dispensing of drugs from pharmacies, they are based in either retail pharmacies, hospitals or sometimes go into industrial pharmacy where they make drugs. There is also the option of teaching pharmacy. The course is the longest, being a Masters and takes 4 years with a required one year post graduate training before you become a pharmacist.

Pharmacology

Is (generally) a 3 year bachelors degree covering the science behind the effects, design and study of medicines. Many graduates end up in pharmaceutical industry helping to design and make drugs.

Pharmaceutical Sciences

Similar to pharmacology, but generally less academically focused and more based on getting hands on experience in industry.

To summarise: Wanna make drugs? Try the latter two options. Wanna be a pharmacist? Pick the first one. Don't just go "Hurr, Pharmacists are gonna get highest employment rates, will be one of them"

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