Technical Standards for Pharmacy Admission and Graduation

University of the Pacific’s Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy provides a pharmacy education without regard to disability while assuring that academic and technical standards are met. Academic standards are met by successfully completing the curriculum for the doctor of pharmacy degree within the required standards for completion of courses and progression in the curriculum. Technical standards represent the essential non-academic requirements that a student must also demonstrate to successfully participate in the doctor of pharmacy degree program and meet the professional competency requirements.

An applicant and candidate for the doctor of pharmacy degree must have demonstrated aptitude and abilities (knowledge, skills, and behaviors and attitudes) in the following categories as they relate to the School’s Professional Student Code of Conduct as well as overall industry and curriculum and course related competencies: sensory, mobility, cognitive, and behavioral. Students may apply for accommodations regarding the assessment of these abilities as noted below, but these abilities must be demonstrated.

Sensory

  • Ability to observe demonstrations and experiments
  • Ability to verbally communicate in the English language in order to elicit information from and provide information to patients and other health care professionals
  • Ability to communicate proficiently in written English with patients and other health care professionals
  • Ability to comprehend written communications in English to fulfill the routine duties and tasks of a pharmacist in training
  • Ability to hear with or without assistive devices to elicit information from patients and other health care professionals

Mobility

  • Ability to coordinate gross and fine muscular movements, equilibrium and the functional use of the senses of touch and vision reasonably required to prepare, compound, and administer medications and to operate a computer and other electronic devices using the hands and fingers
  • Ability to perform physical assessment maneuvers and related activities consistent with pharmaceutical care including the ability to lift a 25-pound object and move the object a distance of five feet·
  • Ability to maneuver in the pharmacy practice setting and the patient care setting including the ability to maintain balance, orientation, mobility and stamina while walking with a person in need of support or using a mobility device

Cognitive

  • Ability to measure, calculate, reason, analyze and synthesize pertinent information to solve problems
  • Ability to understand basic scientific principles and methods for the cognitive application of information
  • Ability to concentrate in the presence of distracting conditions
  • Ability to concentrate for prolonged periods of time

Behavioral

  • Ability to understand ethical issues related to the pharmaceutical profession and to adhere to all laws and standards as defined by the California State Board of Pharmacy
  • Ability to exercise sound judgment in an emergency situation
  • Ability to maintain a professional demeanor and to relate in a professional manner to patients and other health care professionals
  • Ability to accept feedback and respond with appropriate behavior or modification of behavior
  • Ability to tolerate and function effectively under stress

Competencies in each of the four categories are expected to be demonstrated throughout the program. These technical standards are consistent with the expectations of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. They will be reviewed and updated to reflect the competencies necessary to safely and adequately perform in both an academic and clinical setting.

Any applicant who has a question about whether he or she can meet these standards should contact the Office of Academic Affairs (pharmoaa@pacific.edu or 209.946.7644) and/or the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (ssd@pacific.edu or 209.946.3221) to inquire about eligibility for receiving reasonable accommodations. Reasonable accommodation may be made as long as it does not fundamentally alter the nature of the program offered and does not impose an undue hardship such as those that cause a significant expense, difficulty or are unduly disruptive to the educational process.

*Applicants are also encouraged to carefully read the Intern Pharmacist Application and Instructions. If any of the questions asked in the application requiring a mandatory answer are a cause for concern, the student must directly contact the California State Board of Pharmacy or the state board of pharmacy with jurisdiction over his/her state of future practice. Students are expected to meet the requirements for intern licensure during the first semester of the curriculum.