PharmD Curriculum | CU School of Pharmacy

Dual Degree Programs

PharmD Honors Research Program

Independent Study

The purpose of the curriculum is to prepare graduates to be competent, ethical, contemporary and compassionate entry-level pharmacists. They will be committed to active involvement in the advancement of the pharmacy profession and dedicated to fulfilling the public trust by assuming responsibility for optimizing patient care through provision of appropriate drug therapy and by assuring the safe, effective and efficient use of drug products and drug delivery systems.

PharmD Curriculum Chart Class of 2029 (xlsx)

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PharmD Curriculum Chart Class of 2028 (xlsx)

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PharmD Curriculum Chart Class of 2027 (xlsx)

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PharmD Curriculum Chart Class of 2026 (xlsx)

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PHRD 5010	Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) Community (2 Credits)	This is the first in a series of experiential-based courses, providing 80 hours of community pharmacy practice experience. Students will participate in all facets of community pharmacy practice, with a particular focus on the development of communication and professionalism skills.
PHRD 5020	Rx Essentials: Introduction to Calculations and Medical Terminology (1 Credit)	This intensive 1-week course is designed to provide PharmD students with a comprehensive review of prerequisite mathematics skills essential for pharmaceutical calculations, along with an introduction to calculations and medical terminology and abbreviations commonly used in pharmacy practice.
PHRD 5025	Applied biological chemistry (2 credits)	Course builds upon student knowledge of biochemistry to explore applications of biochemistry to diseases, drug actions, and drug development. Knowledge gained from this course is used as a foundation for understanding the rationale for the therapeutic uses of drugs.
PHRD 5040	Professional, Personal and Career Development 1 (1 Credit)	This course is the first in a 6-part series that spans P1-P3. This is not a traditional didactic course, but rather a collective of learning experiences meant to foster professional, personal and career development. Five themes capture the bulk of these experiences, and are often integrated: 1) Professional/personal identity formation ; 2) Career development; 3) Service learning and co-curricular activities; 4) Wellness; 5) Health equity Throughout this course series, mentorship will support your journey to becoming a pharmacist. You will assess and articulate how you demonstrate positive professional behaviors while exploring your professional interests, values, and goals. The course will guide you in reflecting on your development as a student pharmacist and provide opportunities to practice effectively expressing your identity, decision-making, and aspirations within the profession.
PHRD 5055	Pharmacy Practice Fundamentals & Drug Information (4 Credits)	Course provides students with tactics necessary to perform dispensing duties in most pharmacy settings. Fundamentals of the practice of drug information are introduced. Pharmacy practice and drug information fundamentals are presented with the context of the history of pharmacy and contemporary pharmacy practice.
PHRD 5075	Self-Care and Nonprescription Medications (4 Credits)	Course prepares students to be able to 1) collect appropriate patient data to make an assessment for self-care (e.g. nonprescription products), 2) conduct a patient-centered assessment, and 3) design, implement, evaluate and adjust a patient-centered self-care plan.
PHRD 5920	Medicinal Chemistry (3 Credits)	This course explores medicinal chemistry concepts using clinically relevant case studies, designed to examine mechanism(s) of drug action, structure-activity relationships, drug metabolism, drug resistance and other concepts related to the pharmacology and clinical use of therapeutic drugs.
PHRD 5925	Pharmaceutics (4 credits)	Students introduced to biophysical and chemical considerations in development of pharmaceutics and products and compounding various dosage forms, principles of parenteral drug preparation and administrations. Knowledge gained allows students to understand formulation development and optimize dosage forms for individual patients.
PHRD 5935	Pharmacology & Toxicology (4 Credits)	This is an introductory course to pharmacology, the study of therapeutic drug effects, and toxicology, the study of adverse drug effects. Basic principles of these topics will be explored using several drugs and drug classes as examples.
PHRD 5965	Patient-Centered Communication (4 Credits)	Students develop skills to communicate effectively with patients, caregivers and healthcare providers to facilitate optimal patient outcomes. These courses cover all aspects of professional communication, including gathering, organizing, conveying and documenting patient-related information.
PHRD 5985	Pharmacotherapy 1 (4 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Areas covered in this course: pulmonology, dermatology, ophthalmology, otic diseases, OB/GYN, Urology, ED.
IPCP 5000	Interprofessional Collaborative Practice (1 Credit)	A one semester course required of health professions students from the, dental, medical, nursing, pharmacy, physical therapy, and physician assistant programs on the Anschutz Medical Campus.


PHRD 6015	Clinical Pharmacokinetics (3 Credits)	The influence of physiological and pathophysiological factors on drug levels is considered. Knowledge gained allows students to calculate appropriate dosing of drugs in patients and anticipate how drug doses should be adjusted in disease and the presence of other drugs.
PHRD 6065	Evidence-based Medicine & Literature Evaluation (3 Credits)	An introduction and step-wise approach to evidence-based medicine. Students understand commonly-used statistical tests and evaluate statistical results for statistical versus clinical significance. Students demonstrate by answering short drug information questions, presenting a journal club and writing a drug information paper.
PHRD 6085	Pharmacotherapy 2 (5 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Area covered in this course: Cardiology
PHRD 6095	Pharmacotherapy 3 (4 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Areas covered in this course: endocrinology and renal.
PHRD 6910	Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) Health System (2 Credits)	This experiential-based course provides 80 hours of health-system pharmacy practice, focusing on the delivery of patient care and systems used to provide care to multiple patients. Course further develops professionalism, communication, and skills needed for advanced experiential training.
PHRD 6945	Public Health & Health Outcomes (3 Credits)	Introduces students to health care delivery systems and discusses the social, political, economic factors that influence these systems. Students will link various medication use systems to their role in development and participation in health promotion, disease prevention, public health policy.
PHRD 6965	Clinical Problem Solving Skills (2 Credits)	This course builds upon the principles and skills from PHRD5055/6065 and includes application inside and outside the classroom of drug information, effective search strategies and literature evaluation, critical appraisal of scientific literature, and applying evidence in clinical practice.
PHRD 6985	Pharmacotherapy 4 (5 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Area covered in this course: Infectious Diseases
PHRD 6995	Pharmacotherapy 5 (4 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Areas covered in this course: psychiatry, neurology.
IPHE 6000	Interprofessional Healthcare Ethics & Health Equity (1 Credit)	A one semester course required of health professions students from the, dental, medical, nursing, pharmacy, physical therapy, and physician assistant programs on the Anschutz Medical Campus.


PHRD 7015	Seminar Research (1 Credit)	Students will apply their ability to retrieve, evaluate, and utilize professional information in a critical and scientific manner. Students independently determine how to best solve a pharmacy-related question using scientific principles, and present their findings to a large audience.
PHRD 7025	Pharmacogenomics (2 Credits)	Course provides students with an understanding of how genetic factors influence drug efficacy. Knowledge gained from this course enhances students’ ability to select the most effective therapeutic intervention.
PHRD 7055	Pharmacy Management (2 Credits)	The course provides an introduction to management in community pharmacy practice, hospital pharmacy management, and other business and management skills needed to be successful in a variety of different practice settings.
PHRD 7085	Pharmacotherapy 6 (4 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Areas covered in this course: Immunology, gastrointestinal, rheumatology, transplantation, osteoporosis
PHRD 7095	Pharmacotherapy 7 (3 Credits)	This 7 course series includes pathophysiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics of a range of system based physiological conditions. Standards of care, controversial issues, pharmacotherapy advances, and patient management are covered. Areas covered in this course: hematology and oncology
PHRD 7905	Advanced IPPE (6 Credits)	Students are placed in a 6-week, full-time (40 hours per week) patient care experience in which they can begin to apply their didactic knowledge. In this advanced IPPE students demonstrate competency to meet pre-APPE core performance domains and abilities.
PHRD 7945	Pharmacy Law and Regulatory Standards (3 Credits)	Course explores pharmacy laws and regulations. Students are able to carry out their intern duties in accordance with professional guidelines and regulatory standards. The course also explores how to apply ethical and professional principles in various healthcare settings.
PHRD 7995	Clinical Capstone (6 Credits)	Course is designed to be a capstone that integrates essential core pharmacy practice topics. The philosophy of this course is to facilitate student learning, and holding students accountable for prior learning in an integrated manner using complex patient scenarios.


PHRD 8055	AdvPharPracExp (APPE) - Elective (6 Credits)	Six week rotation; 40 hrs weekly. This experience will take place in various practice settings. Students may participate in various activities that focus on medication-related problems dealing with various populations, with or without direct patient contact. Required number of rotations: 3
PHRD 8056	AdvPharPracExp (APPE) Elective International (6 Credits)	Six week rotation; 40 hrs weekly. This pharmacy practice experience is an opportunity for students to train in various international clinical practice environments.
PHRD 8065	AdvPharPracExp (APPE) - Ambulatory Care (6 Credits	Six week rotation; 40 hrs weekly. This experience will take place in an ambulatory care, multidisciplinary practice setting. Practice sites may include hospital-based clinics, physician group practices, and community or public health clinics that provide health care directly to patients. Required number of rotations:1
PHRD 8075	AdvPharPracExp (APPE) - Community (6 Credits)	Six week rotation; 40 hrs weekly. This experience will take place in a community pharmacy practice setting. Practice sites include independent, large chain or retail pharmacies that provide a variety of services, including administration of immunizations and health/wellness screenings. Required number of rotations: 1
PHRD 8085	AdvPharPracExp (APPE)	Hospital/Health-System Pharmacy (6 Credits) Six week rotation; 40 hrs weekly. This experience will take place in an inpatient practice setting. Students will be exposed to adult patients with a variety of disease states, and participate in other institutional activities related to clinical pharmacy services. Required number of rotations: 2

Electives

Students in the University of Colorado Doctor of Pharmacy program are required to complete a minimum of eight elective credit hours, in four different courses, of which two credit hours must be a "P3 only" elective offered in the Spring Semester of the P3 year.

The intent of offering elective courses is to provide students with an opportunity to engage in learning experiences beyond those included in the required curriculum. Consistent with ACPE standards for professional programs leading to the Doctor of Pharmacy degree, multiple opportunities are provided throughout the curriculum for students to take elective courses that develop areas of personal interest, to expand understanding of professional opportunities, and to achieve the outcomes of the curriculum.

The following policies apply to courses that can be taken for elective credit:

A course for elective credit can be offered to and taken by any student in the first three years of the curriculum (P1-P3) provided:
1. the student has satisfied the prerequisites for the course
2. the course does not conflict with other courses being taken by the student
  NOTE: P1s are not allowed to take elective courses in the P1 fall semester
Independent study courses may be used to meet elective requirements of the curriculum provided that the course does not conflict with other courses being taken by the student. Only two credit hours of any independent study may count towards elective credit hours.
Registration for elective courses is conducted in the following order:
1. P3s register first; P2s register second, P1s register last
2. Students self-register thru their student portal. Allocation of course seats is done by order of registration.
  
  Extenuating academic circumstances may dictate a change in this order.
Remote pathway students are allowed to take all elective courses, EXCEPT for the following three elective courses (PHRD 7815, 7857, 7890). These three courses require students to be physically on campus for classes. No remote pathway students will be registered in these courses.
Students may take more than the required number of credit hours of elective courses.
All elective course requirements must be completed before a student is permitted to progress to the P4 year.
The content of an elective must have outcomes and complement or enhance the core curriculum.
Additional tuition expenses may be incurred for elective courses taken during the summer.

Elective Course Offerings

Not all elective courses are offered every academic year. The course director’s availability determines when/if the course will be offered. Courses with low enrollment may be canceled prior to the start of the semester.

Students completing this course will be able to identify and write a clinical research question; identify variables for analyses; complete intermediate statistical analyses to answer their research question; write-up their study as a scientific manuscript; and present their research orally.

Provides practical experience in the evaluation and discussion of research literature. Students will prepare a seminar and participate in scientific discussions. Students who are interested in broadening knowledge in pharmaceutical science, drug delivery, and improving their speaking skills will benefit.

PHRD 7828 - Advanced Diabetes Management (2 Credits)

This elective focuses on advanced diabetes management and utilization of technology and digital health tools. The course provides learners hands-on, simulated experiences with diabetes technology and digital health tools to successfully optimize diabetes care and make clinical decisions remotely. Prerequisite: P2 status

This course will address the pharmacology and appropriate clinical use of agents used in the treatment and management of selected infectious diseases. The course will also focus on pharmacodynamics of antimicrobial agents, antibiotic stewardship, antibiotic resistance, and statistics.

Course will provide students with an understanding of principles and practices involved in clinical aspects of pharmacy compounding. Students will utilize readings, case studies, class discussion, outside-class assignments, and written evaluation to learn how pharmacy compounding may solve medication-related problems.

This course is intended to provide the student with a glimpse into the interdisciplinary care model for geriatric patients, as well as common medical, psychological and social issues encountered when caring for older adults. It is also intended to provide students with opportunities to further develop problem solving (including developing a pharmacy care plan) for use in an interdisciplinary setting.

By the completion of the course students will have a fundamental understanding of the principles and practices involved in both the development and the production of compounded dosage forms by applying pharmaceutical principles. The course is set in modules in which a student will have outside videos, readings and assignments due prior to class. During class, the student will actively apply the learned knowledge by evaluating prescriptions, performing calculations and compounding various products.

This course is offered to students interested in developing knowledge pertaining to childhood diseases and pediatric pharmacotherapy. This course is intended to provide students with an advanced understanding of disease states in acutely and chronically ill children. This course has an emphasis on pediatric acute care topics. Bringing pediatric pharmacotherapy expertise to this course, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences pediatric faculty and clinical pharmacists from Children’s Hospital Colorado and/or Denver Health will teach in this course.

This course is designed to advance knowledge of the care and management of patients with various psychiatric conditions. Students will gain experience with clinical, social, economic, and ethical aspects of psychiatric care through a variety of didactic, case-based, and simulated activities.

Course will explain pharmacological, physical, and psychological effects of drugs of abuse on the body relevant to real-world pharmacy practice. Course aims to develop clinical skills for use in emergency situations, proper prescribing of drugs of abuse, and understanding of the process of addiction/abuse in order to identify and mitigate potential harm.

This course will address the pharmacology and appropriate clinical use of agents used in the treatment of selected acute disorders found in hospitalized patients. The course will also focus on the comprehensive management of these acute disorders. Recent advances in pharmacotherapy, patient-specific management strategies, and controversial issues will be included and emphasized. The purpose of this course is to provide a more comprehensive and in-depth background in acute care pharmacotherapy for students interested in, or planning to practice in, the institutional setting in which acute care issues are more commonly encountered. The course is designed to augment coursework previously encountered in other courses of the basic doctor of pharmacy curriculum. This course will emphasize student-directed acquisition of necessary knowledge and application of evidence-based pharmaceutical care in the management of acute disorders presented in a case-based format.

Cancer incidence in the US is increasing as our population ages. Treatment strategies improve survival, patients who have received/are receiving treatment for cancer are increasingly common in the health care system. Pharmacists in all settings will encounter these patients thus making it important that pharmacists are knowledgeable regarding cancer disease types and their complex treatment regimens. This course will expand upon and add to the oncology knowledge learned in Pharmacotherapy 7. Students will learn pathophysiology and treatment of solid organ and hematologic malignancies, the practical use of antineoplastic agents, and provision of supportive care for patients being treated for cancer.

This Beginning Medical Spanish course, tailored for pharmacy students, is an opportunity to become comfortable with conversational Spanish and medical vocabulary in various pharmaceutical contexts. Language learning is both academic and experiential. You will need to memorize new vocabulary, think about how it pulls together to form a complete thought, and practice! Therefore, each class session will include a combination of review, new learning, and a lot of practice! The best way to approach it is to be relaxed and not care about making mistakes with the language. So, be ready to relax, experiment, and learn Spanish! This is a conversational centered class and very interactive. Placement exam REQUIRED.

This Intermediate Medical Spanish course, tailored for pharmacy students, is an opportunity to become comfortable with conversational Spanish and medical vocabulary in various pharmaceutical contexts. Language learning is both academic and experiential. You will need to memorize new vocabulary, think about how it pulls together to form a complete thought, and practice! Therefore, each class session will include a combination of review, new learning, and a lot of practice! The best way to approach it is to be relaxed and not care about making mistakes with the language. So, be ready to relax, experiment, and learn Spanish! This is a conversational centered class and very interactive. Placement exam REQUIRED.

Independent study is a great way for students to gain additional experience in particular realms of pharmacy practice that interest them and suit their ultimate career goals.

Students are welcome to work with an individual faculty member and propose any other independent study consistent with their career interests.

Submissions for a proposed independent study must be made no later than May 1 (for summer semester), August 1 (for fall semester) or December 1 (for spring semester). Please see the guidelines document for more information.

Independent Study Guidelines (docx)

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Independent Study Proposal Form (docx)

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Independent Study Approval Form (docx)

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Tools & Resources

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Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Curriculum

Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Curriculum

PHRD 7808: Intro to Pharmaceutical Industry (P2/P3 if schedule allows)

PHRD 7810: Applied Pharmaceutical Outcomes Research Methods (P2 only)

PHRD 7812: Seminar in Pharmaceutical Sciences (P2 only)

PHRD 7815: Physical Assessment/Examination in Pharmacy (P2/P3 if schedule allows)

PHRD 7828: Advanced Diabetes Management (P2 Only)

PHRD 7830: Infectious Diseases (P3 only)

PHRD 7835: Advanced Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy (P3 only)

PHRD 7842: Medical Use of Cannabis (P3 only)

PHRD 7844: Special Topics in Compounding (P3 only)

PHRD 7850: Geriatric Pharmacy (P3 only)

PHRD 7857: Compounding (P2 only)

PHRD 7860: Integrated Health & Medicine (P2 only)

PHRD 7870: Pediatric Pharmacy (P3 only)

PHRD 7876 - Advanced Psychiatric Pharmacy (2 Credits)

PHRD 7882: Drugs of Abuse (P3 only)

PHRD 7885: Acute Care Pharmacotherapy (P3 only)

PHRD 7890: Advanced Oncology Pharmacy (P3 only)

PHRD 7895: Beginning Medical Spanish

PHRD 7896: Intermediate Medical Spanish

Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences