October 9, 2013
Beginning in 2014, students at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy will have the option to earn both a doctor of pharmacy and a master of public health in a new five-year dual-degree program created in partnership with the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health.
Students in the doctor of pharmacy program can earn a PharmD and an MPH in five years instead of the six it would typically take to complete the two degrees separately. No courses are cut from either program. Thanks to a natural overlap between the two degree programs and by taking classes in the summer, students can finish a year earlier.
Pharmacists in Public Health
Pharmacists trained in public health put their extensive knowledge of medicines and patient care to work anywhere treatment decisions need to be made for larger groups of people. A pharmacist might develop an immunization program, for example. The American Public Health Association has called for more pharmacists to be trained as public-health professionals.
“Pharmacists who have both the technical knowledge and skills of their disciplines and the population perspective of public health will be 21st century leaders,” says Barbara Rimer, DrPH, dean of the Gillings School.
According to the APHA, the need for health-care professionals trained in both pharmacy and public health is a growing. Pharmacists are a trusted and easily accessible resource for health and medication information. Studies have shown that pharmacists who play a more comprehensive role in patient care have lowered costs and improved quality of care, particularly related to chronic conditions like asthma and diabetes.
Two Highly Ranked Schools
Bob Blouin, PharmD, dean of the pharmacy school, says the PharmD/MPH dual-degree program has the potential to be the best program of its kind in the nation due to the stature of the two schools involved. Pharmacy and public health at UNC each hold the number-two spot in the U.S. News & World Report rankings of their respective disciplines.
“The opportunity for a pharmacy school to partner with an elite school of public health that is right next door is one of the things that makes the academic environment here at Carolina so exciting,” Blouin says. “The graduates of this program will be the leaders changing and improving health care in the future.”
Applying to the Program
Students first must be admitted and enroll in the doctor of pharmacy program at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. After their first year of study in pharmacy, they can apply to the master of public health program in one of the following departments:
The dual-degree program does not alter any of the requirements of the PharmD or the MPH.
- Students will take mostly PharmD courses in their first three years.
- Students begin to take public-health courses in the summer of their second or third year.
- In the fourth year (including the summer), students will enroll full-time in the MPH program.
- During the fifth year, students will complete their pharmacy clerkships (called advanced pharmacy practice experiences) and any remaining MPH requirements.
A Student-Driven Proposal
A group of pharmacy students led by third-year Erin Turingan developed the initial proposal for the program. The group also included third-years Mary Banoub, Jayme Hostetter, and Beth Tevepaughand fourth-year Deanna Wung. Once the proposal received the blessing of the deans of pharmacy and public health, the group handed it off to Assistant Dean Wendy Cox, PharmD, in pharmacy and Associate Dean Anna Maria Siega-Riz, PhD, in public health to create the official proposal ultimately approved by the UNC Graduate School.
“I’m really enthusiastic about the new dual degree and congratulations to the students who catalyzed the effort,” Rimer says.” We have partnered with the pharmacy school in other areas and have great regard for the School and its leadership. This is a terrific partnership.”
This is the second dual-degree program established at the pharmacy school. A PharmD/MBA program was launched in 2011 in partnership with the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.
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