Becoming a Pharmacist: Applying to PharmD Programs

Ace your Pharmacy Interview: Your Preparation Starts Here

Preparing for the Multiple Mini Interview for Pharmacy School

Applying to Pharmacy School to become a Pharmacist in Canada and the United States has become increasingly challenging as a healthcare career path. The most important component of the Pharmacy School admissions pathway is the Pharmacy Interview. Most pharmacy programs in North America have adopted the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI). The Pharmacy School MMI challenges candidates with diverse scenarios that assess critical thinking, communication, conflict resolution, healthcare ethics and interactions with actors. At MedApplications™, we specialize in MMI preparation for Pharmacy. As the leading MMI preparation firm in North America, we know exactly what it takes to be successful in the Pharmacy MMI. Many of our Pharmacy interview coaches are MD/PhD’s with a background as clinical and academic pharmacists. We specialize in assisting Canadian pre-pharmacy students, American pre-pharmacy students and International pharmacists interested in practicing in North America.

Our Pharmacy School Interview Preparation Experts become your Consultants

At MedApplications™ our diverse team of Pharmacists, Clinical Pharmacologists and MD/PhD Scientists are here to build you confidence in the pharmacy MMI. As the leading interview preparation firm in Medicine, we have incorporated our many years of expertise into the field of Pharmacy with a greater than 90% admission rate in Canada and the United States. We also specialize in assisting High School students interested in a career in Pharmacy early on their education.

Pharmacy Interview Practice Questions; The Main Concepts

There are a variety of essential qualities that are assessed by Pharmacy School interviewers in the Pharmacy Multiple Mini Interview (Pharmacy MMI).

1. Critical Thinking: A major aspect of acing the Pharmacy School Interview is the skillset adapt quickly on your feet. At MedApplications™ our interview coaches teach you how to successfully navigate even the most complicated Pharmacy school MMI stations.
2. Communication: As a Pharmacist, whether in an Academic or Community setting, interacting with patients and educating them about their prescriptions is vitally important. Our MedApplications™ Pharmacy Interview Preparation program will confidently prepare you for high level communications with, examiners, interviewers, actors and real patients through our reproducible MMI interview algorithms.
3. Ethics: Integrating an advanced knowledge of ethics in healthcare is critical in demonstrating an effective grasp of what it is to be a Pharmacist. For many applicants, they are unsure how best to approach these challenging scenarios in the Pharmacy MMI. Our Pharmacy School Interview experts help students prepare for the Pharmacy MMI interview scenarios with confidence.

Why choose an MMI prep program from MedApplications?

It’s simple: MedApplications has designed the leading Multiple Mini Interview preparation program in North America. Our pharmacy consultants and MMI experts for PharmD programs are top professionals (including past MMI adjudicators) who will equip you with everything you need to succeed in your Multiple Mini Interview.This includes specialized tips and tricks, patented Multiple Mini Interview algorithms, and hundreds of Multiple Mini Interview scenarios and practice questions. With MedApplications, you get:

• Coaching by Pharmacy Consultants and past MMI interviewers from the school at which you are interviewing. You get paired with an MMI expert with first-hand experience of the school you are applying to.
• Preparation in understanding issues relevant to the MMI: Pharmacy ethics, pharmaceutical regulations, pharmacy-legal matters, Canadian and American pharmaceutical issues, and relevant pharmacy content as needed.
• Best practice approaches to the most common Multiple Mini Interview stations
• Personal guidance to master acting, critical thinking and communication stations
• Focused training via mock interview circuits designed with increasing level of difficulty to build your confidence, skillset and finesse
• Both English and French language programs available
• 100% success rate with our Ultimate MMI program*. No other MMI prep program offers you THIS much.

100% Money Back Guarantee.

We Match You With the Best Doctor for the Job and Guarantee Your Success When You Purchase our Ultimate MMI Interview Package.

Meet Our Coaches

Writing the PCAT: What to Expect

The Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT) is a specialized test that measures an applicants’ general academic ability and scientific knowledge in the context of pharmacy study. Through multiple-choice sections and a writing component, the PCAT assesses competency in five content areas (Biology Processes, Chemical Processes, Quantitative Reasoning, Critical Reading, and Writing) as a means of pre-screening the initial pool of applicants.

All applicants to the PharmD program are required to write the PCAT in North America.

How to get accepted to Pharmacy Schools in Canada?

Would you like to be a pharmacist one day? There are 10 pharmacy schools in Canada in which one can enroll to obtain their pharmacy degree. Most pharmacy schools require at least 2 years of undergraduate education in order to complete prerequisite requirements. The interview process varies between each school as some do panel style interviews  or multiple mini interviews.

University of British Columbia

Admission requirements:

• PCAT is not required for admission.
• To be considered for admission, an applicant must have completed 60 credits of post-secondary coursework with a minimum average of 65% (or 2.50 GPA on a 4 point scale). However having a high 70 to low 80 admission average is considered competitive to score an interview. The average GPA for the Class of 2020 was 80% (or 3.67 on a 4 point scale).
• Interviews are conducted following the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) format where applicants rotate through several interview stations and respond to situational and behavioural based questions.
• There are 224 seats in the Entry-to-Practice PharmD program per year.

University of Alberta

Admission requirements: 

• Admission to the program is based on academics and ability to perform well in full-time study coursework (based on your transcript) as well as career goals, knowledge of the profession and overall interpersonal and communication skills (based on the other requirements including the pharmacist consultation form, letter of intent and an online interview)
• For students who have done their pre-requisite courses in Alberta, having a GPA of 3.5 or greater is considered competitive. However, students with a slightly lower GPA average have been considered depending on other admission considerations. For out-of-province students, they must present a higher GPA average of 3.7 or higher to be considered competitive. Both in-province and out-of-province are considered within the same pool of students.
• There is about 130 spots each year

University of Saskatchewan

Admission requirements:

• There are three constituent factors in the admission process to the PharmD program at the University of Saskatchewan. These factors are as follows: academic performance (weighted 60%), a Test of Critical Skills (30%), and a personal video interview (10%).
• Prerequisites to application include the completion of 60 U of S credit units of pre-pharmacy courses (or equivalent course credits at other universities)and a minimum overall average of 70%. The deadline for application is February 15 of the year of admission.
• Generally 76 seats in province, 14 seats out of province for 90 total seats.
• One seat is available for self declared aboriginal applicants. You can also apply for the one seat under special consideration for compassionate reasons

University of Manitoba

Admission requirements:

• Preference given to Manitoba residents
• PCAT is a requirement

University of Waterloo

Admission requirements:

• PCAT is not a requirement
• must complete Computer Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics (CASPer) Test
• during interview process a fundamental skills assessment will be completed
• preferable to have pharmacy experience beforehand as need reference letter from a pharmacist

University of Toronto

Admission requirements:

• requires PCAT and minimum 70% average
• If minimum requirements are met will be offered Multiple mini interview (MMI) interview
• now requires undergraduate physiology course to be completed before applying

Université de Montreal

Admission requirements:

• Admission is based on :
  • 80% academic record
  • 20% CASPer Test score
  • (an applicant can be invited for an interview if judged necessary)
• PCAT is not a requirement
• Pass the French Admission Test (obtain a score of at least 850/990 on the International French Test)
• 200 new students per year (typically half from the college network and half from the university network)
• French-speaking candidates from Ontario and Maritime provinces have priority over the French-speaking candidates of other provinces

Université Laval

Admission requirements:

• Applicants for the PharmD are evaluated according to the excellence of their academic record, their CASPer situational judgment test results and the results of an autobiographical questionnaire.
• Students from other provinces are welcome to apply, however if they are English-speaking, the student must complete an International French test and obtain a score of at least 860/990
• French-speaking candidates from Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have priority over the French-speaking candidates of other provinces
• 192 new students a year
  • half of the students accepted comes from the college network and the other half of the students comes from a university network
    • the autobiographical questionnaire is only for the candidates coming from the university network!

Dalhousie University

Admission requirements:

• For September 2020 admission, will require at least two full time academic years of prerequisite courses.
• Preferences are given to maritime residents

Memorial University of Newfoundland

Admission requirements:

• No PCAT required
• Minimum 70% average required to be eligible for an interview
• Only 96 interviews are offered per year
• Interviews must be completed in person
• There are both written and oral sections
• The seat reservation is  35 for NL residents, one of which is for an Aboriginal student. 5 are open to anybody from Canada or international.