Undergraduate
Watch our students explain why they chose to study Pharmacy at Cardiff
We are proud to train the pharmacists of the future. It’s our mission to equip our students with the knowledge, skills and experience they need to succeed in their chosen career.
| Degree name | UCAS Code |
|---|---|
| Pharmacy (MPharm) | B230 |
What today's pharmacists do
Pharmacists have always been experts in the field of drugs and medicines and may be involved in any aspect of drug preparation and use. That includes the discovery of medicines, finding the best way for drugs to be administered, supplying them to patients and even optimising drug therapy.
A pharmacist's role goes far beyond a dispensing counter. Increasingly so in recent years.
Many of today’s pharmacists are now also qualified to prescribe medicines independently of a doctor and are on the front-line of healthcare provision - be that in hospital, community or primary care settings, including GP surgeries and health centres. They play a pivotal role in supporting patients and improving their health and well-being.
You can download this helpful 'Future in Pharmacy' guide which explores potential career options for pharmacists:
Your Future in Pharmacy
Here’s what you need to know, presented by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.
If this document cannot be read by your assistive software, you can request an accessible version by emailing web@cardiff.ac.uk. Please include the assistive tools you use and the format you require.
Interested in becoming a pharmacist?
If you think you'd like to become a pharmacist, download our 'Passport to Pharmacy' for lots of useful information to help you on your way.
Passport to Pharmacy - a guide for secondary school students
Packed with useful information, advice and tips, this guide is for secondary school pupils who are interested in becoming a pharmacist.
If this document cannot be read by your assistive software, you can request an accessible version by emailing web@cardiff.ac.uk. Please include the assistive tools you use and the format you require.
Reasons to study Pharmacy with us
We are ranked one of the top Schools of Pharmacy in England and Wales year after year and 97% of our students are in employment and/or further study six months after graduating (Source: HESA Destination of Leavers in Higher Education Survey 2018/19). So, if you’re considering a career in pharmacy, we could be the perfect fit for you. Here’s why:
Our community
When you walk through the Redwood Building doors, you’ll be right at home within our warm, welcoming environment. Our close-knit School is also a supportive community where staff and students work closely together.
As a student, you can get guidance from your Personal Tutor, a Student Mentor and through our effective Staff Student Panel. We also have a Senior Tutor Advisory Team who are dedicated to supporting students if they have any worries or concerns during their time with us.
Plus there’s a fun, active and vibrant student society within the School called WPSA which hosts many charity, sporting and social events for all Pharmacy students here.
Our expertise
We’ve been training pharmacists, and helping to shape the profession, for the past 100 years.
As the role of a pharmacist is rapidly advancing within the UK and internationally, our MPharm programme is also constantly evolving to reflect these developments. Your time with us will prepare you for the exciting opportunities that await.
Watch this video to find out how we teach Pharmacy at Cardiff University:
Our placements
We want you to get real-life, hands-on experience so that you are fully prepared to take on the role of a pharmacist. That's why our placements are such a crucial part of our MPharm programme.
Our placements will give you the opportunity to interact with patients and carers, the public and other healthcare professionals in a variety of settings. Not only will you get to observe the role of the pharmacist and understand how pharmaceutical care is optimised, you’ll also get to actively participate in these placements, helping to build your skills and confidence as you progress through the course.
During your four years, you’ll find yourself in all the major health settings including community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy and in primary care GP practices. You’ll meet a whole range of patients with a diverse spectrum of health conditions and you’ll work alongside healthcare practitioners to support patients and maximise the effect of their medicines.
And, since the role of a pharmacist is evolving, we aim to ensure our students get to complete placements in settings that reflect these changes, for example in health and social care settings such as the hospital volunteering service, Carers Trust, Care Homes, and Cardiff and Vale Action on Mental Health. These placements will allow you to build and develop your consultation skills, something that is crucial for many of today’s pharmacists.
Our placements are a very popular feature of our course and we are continually developing our placement programme to prepare our students for the next step in their chosen career.
In addition to our placement programme, our students have been involved in extra-curricula overseas experiences visiting the USA, Uganda and Zambia to gain international experience.
'Placements have been a staple from year one. My best placement opportunity was in second year when visiting an elderly care assessment unit. Appreciating the perspective of the patient and the value of a multi-disciplinary team so early on in the course was invaluable and something I will always keep in mind. Applying knowledge from lectures and workshops in a placement environment is always exciting and getting to share this information with patients and other healthcare professionals always makes the hard work worthwhile.'
Our interprofessional education provision
We are fortunate to have the full range of health care professions represented within our College of Biomedical and Life Sciences - including Medicine, Dentistry, Optometry, Psychology, Nursing, Physiotherapy and more.
You will undertake interprofessional education sessions with students from other Schools within the College to gain vital experience of working in a multi-disciplinary team. This is something we are proud to offer as part of our programme as we know it will set you in great stead for your future career.
Our facilities
We have excellent facilities within our self-contained School that includes:
- modern laboratories for experiments
- new consultation rooms kitted out exactly as you’d expect in real-life pharmacy practice
- Practice of Pharmacy lab (which includes dispensing cabinets and drug label printers to practice dispensing)
- a hospital simulation suite where students can gain experience of working in a hospital-like environment
- quiet rooms for students to study
- social area complete with self-service kitchen
To find out how we use our facilities to give you a high-quality education and prepare you for your future career, atch this tour of our Redwood Building:
Our passion for science and research
We have an international reputation for the quality of our research and we are very proud of the range of cutting-edge research projects that are taking place here, right now.
As an undergraduate student within our School, you’ll benefit from our passion for science and research because our team of world-leading researchers both shape and teach the MPharm programme. From molecular biology to medicinal chemistry, the science of medicine is at the core of what we teach and, by studying here, you’ll be exposed to the latest advancements in pharmaceutical research.
Our commitment to adapt to the changing needs of the pharmacy profession
Our MPharm programme is under review as part of our ongoing commitment to enhance our course to reflect changes in pharmacy practice and ensure that our graduates have the skills, knowledge and experience they need to continue on the next step in their pharmacy careers.
In 2021, the regulatory body for pharmacists, the General Pharmaceutical Council, introduced new standards for pharmacy education and training to ensure that newly qualified pharmacists not only retain a strong scientific foundation but have the clinical skills and experience to support patients with a diverse range of health needs.
These new standards align with our own philosophy for pharmacy education and training so that our MPharm develops to reflect changes in real-life pharmacy practice.
Benefiting from decades of experience in developing the clinical skills of the pharmacy workforce, combined with our close working relationship with key national stakeholders in pharmacy education and training, we are uniquely positioned to integrate these new standards within the Cardiff MPharm.
This is a truly transformational time for pharmacy practice integrated within the wider healthcare team and there has never been a more exciting time to embark on a pharmacy career.
In Cardiff you will find a stimulating, collaborative learning environment that will develop your skills, knowledge and experience and enable you to contribute positively to the healthcare of patients.
Qualifying as a Pharmacist
After completing our MPharm degree, you’ll be in a position to apply for the foundation training year. Once this foundation training year has been completed successfully and you have passed the GPhCs registration assessment, you’ll be eligible to register as a qualified pharmacist.
We’re proud that, for many years, over 85% of our students who sit the General Pharmaceutical Council’s registration exam pass first time, which is consistently higher than the overall national average.
The MPharm will also prepare you for other career avenues in health, science or education.
Find out more about our MPharm programme including a course overview, key features, entry requirements and career prospects.
Full details of our MPharm course, including how to apply, are available in course finder.
