Two major institutions provide a major avenue to study pharmacy in New Zealand. The good thing is that New Zealand universities are open to international students seeking to study pharmacy in New Zealand.
Pharmacy schools in New Zealand are regulated by the Pharmacy Council. In our previous post, we discussed in details how you can practice as a pharmacist in New Zealand, even as a non-citizen.
The first year of pharmacy schools in New Zealand is called Health Science First Year (HSFY) or Bachelor of Health Sciences (BHSc). The courses focus on health science courses such as Biochemistry, Biological Physics, Molecular Biology, Human Body Systems, Population Health, etc.
Beginning from the second year, the main pharmacy courses are taught to students. Pharmacy schools in New Zealand award both the Bpharm and Bpharm (Hons) just as pharmacy schools in Australia.
The Bpharm(Hons) is reserved for students with excellent academic records (high GPA). They differ from Bpharm because of the additional training in advanced research design, methodologies, techniques and analysis, resulting in a research dissertation. Both Bpharm and Bpharm (Hons) are 4-year courses.
The Master’s in Clinical Pharmacy (MClinPharm) is the highest training degree a pharmacist can receive in New Zealand.
Starting from 2023, courses in Pharmacy Prescribing will be taught at the University of Otago.
Difference between Bachelor of Pharmacy and Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Science (BPharmSc)
The Bachelor of Pharmacy is a 4-year degree leading to the awarding of Bpharm, while Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Science is a 3-year degree, and result in a BPharmSc certificate. Bpharm qualifies the candidate to become a pharmacist, while BPharmSc is a lab-focused course that prepares graduates for professional involvement in drug development, scientific research, clinical trial studies.
Pharmacy Schools in New Zealand
There are two major accredited pharmacy schools in New Zealand.
The University of Otago
The School of Pharmacy, University of Otago, offers a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree. Other degrees are Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Science (BPharmSc), and Postgraduate Certificate in Pharmacy (PGCert Pharm), and PhD. It is the oldest pharmacy school in New Zealand.
The university accepts international students to study pharmacy in New Zealand. As an international student, you can apply if you have an average grade of B- at the completion of Health Science First Year. 10 -15 high performing international students, based on Pre-U performance, are accepted directly into the Health Science First Year.
You can also use credit transfer if you are a student of some listed schools in Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia.
School fees (international students): Health Sciences First Year (HSFY) – NZ $36,272, Year 2 – NZ $40,554, Year 3,4 – NZ $42,688 each.
Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Science – NZ $36,713
Postgraduate Certificate in Pharmacy – NZ $21,775
Website: www.otago.ac.nz/pharmacy/
The University of Auckland
The School of Pharmacy is located in Grafton. Apart from Bpharm, they offer other courses such as Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Pharmacy, Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy, Master of Clinical Pharmacy, PGDipHSc-Pharmaceutical Science, and PGCertHSc-Pharmaceutical Science.
A minimum Grade Point Average (GPA) of 5.0 across all 8 first-year courses is to be eligible for consideration for an admission interview. International students are interviewed via Skype/phone.
School Fees: NZ$8,329.20 for Domestic students, International students pays NZ$46,525. Additional Student Services Fee estimate of $979.20 for full-time study.
Website: www.auckland.ac.nz
Pharmacy Technician Training in New Zealand
Pharmacy technicians assist pharmacists in discharging their duties in clinical settings. The training in New Zealand is a two-year course with rotation across different campuses. The Pharmacy technician school offers an alternative course if you cannot make the requirement to study pharmacy in New Zealand.
Requirement for this course in New Zealand includes IELTS minimum score of 6.0, age of 18 and above. Academic requirement can be a New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Introduction to Pharmacy) Level 3 qualification or a bachelor degree in a health-related course.
New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician) (Level 5)
- NZMA (Auckland, Christchurch, Hamilton, Wellington) – 60 weeks of training.
- Kauri Academy
