A medical professional connects a syringe to a bag filled with fluid.

Pre-Pharmacy

If you like to help others and you want to work in the medical industry but don’t want to be a physician, you might consider pursuing a career in pharmacy. As a pharmacy professional, you need to have excellent communication skills, the passion to make the patient “first,” and the ability to be responsible for your actions.

What is pharmacy and what does a pharmacist do?

Pharmacy is a health profession that links health sciences with chemical sciences and aims to ensure the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs.

Pharmacists are health care professionals who dispense medications prescribed by physicians. They give information to patients about diet, health, and management of common conditions from poison ivy to diabetes. Pharmacists also advise physicians and other health practitioners on the selection, dosages, interactions, and side effects of medications.

The focus in pharmacy today is on the patient, determining their needs and what should be provided to best meet those needs. Most pharmacists work in a community setting, such as a retail drug store, or in a hospital or clinic.

What are the features of Casper’s program?

The pre-professional education pathway

This is a transfer program. What does that mean? This Associate of Science (A.S.) degree program prepare students for entry into a bachelor’s degree program and/or for application directly into their identified area of professional schooling.

How to become a pharmacist

Casper College’s pre-pharmacy program will help you choose the right courses to keep you on track toward acceptance into a health sciences undergraduate program at a four-year institution. However, this degree from CC does not guarantee that a student has met all the prerequisites for admission to any pharmacy school.

CC encourages students to begin a dialogue with their intended transfer schools as early as possible. Your academic advisor will assist you with this process, but it is the student’s responsibility to verify required courses and the application process for the school you are planning to attend.

Like most medical professions, it takes a great deal of training to become a pharmacist. You can start that training now at CC.

What are the special admission requirements, if any?

There are no prerequisites for this program.

What courses would I take?

For requirements and more information about this program, view its listing in the academic catalog:

Contact Info

Julie Hansen

Academic Assistant, School of Science

Jeff Sun

Academic Chair, GIS Instructor

Eric Mechalke

Chemistry Instructor

Gerald (Jerry) Hawkes

Dean, School of Science