UCC Master of Pharmacy Overview

Students will graduate with the new integrated 5-year Undergraduate-level Master’s degree. Once you have successfully completed your first four years (BPharm) you will then progress to the fifth year (MPharm). The degree programme is an integrated programme with 14 months of placements undertaken throughout the 5 years. Placements can be carried out in community, hospital or industry as well as within a regulatory organization but the final eight-month placement in your fifth year must be carried out in a patient facing setting.

This degree gives QP status, which means a graduate can work as a qualified person in the pharmaceutical industry anywhere in the EU.

The MPharm enabled UCC’s School of Pharmacy to rank amongst the world’s top universities.

There are four main areas of study within the pharmacy degree: Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Drug Delivery, Drug Action in the Body and the Clinical and Practice aspects of pharmacy. These subjects are taught in every year of the pharmacy degree.

10 good reasons for studying Pharmacy at UCC:

1. Ranked #66 in QS World University Ranking, 2022
2. Professional qualification recognized globally, including in Canada
3. Degree recognized by the HPRA for Qualified Person (QP) status in the Pharmaceutical industry throughout Europe
4. High calibre students
5. Ireland’s leading Pharmaceutical Research Institute
6. MPharm competency-based programme
7. Students are prepared for the working environment in community, hospitals and industry
8. Strong links with the pharmaceutical industry and geographic proximity
9. Purpose-built pharmacy building which houses a model pharmacy, spacious teaching laboratories and a processing suite and clean-room facility
10. Beautiful campus close to all amenities, student accommodation & hospital for pharmaceutical practice

Career prospects

There are many and diverse career prospects for pharmacists, both in Ireland and abroad. Career opportunities include the healthcare sector, such as community and hospital pharmacy; the pharmaceutical industry; medicines research and development, and regulation and quality control. Other broad areas such as pharmacy law, animal health, academia and research are also open to graduates of pharmacy.

Entry Requirements

• Entry standards for students presenting the OSSD:

Overall minimum of 80% in top 6 U,U/C,M courses including Gr 12 U English.  Students must obtain competitive scores in Chemistry, Mathematics and either Physics or Biology.

• Entry standards for students presenting the BC Diploma:

Overall minimum of 86% in top 5 acceptable Gr 12 courses (including provincial exams where applicable).

• Entry standards in International Baccalaureate:

Minimum attainment of 36 points in the International Baccalaureate as follows:

Minimum Higher Grade 5 in Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics or Biology
Minimum Subsidiary Grade 5 in the remaining three subjects

Professional Recognition

The Master of Pharmacy offered through the University College Cork, Ireland (UCC) is recognized by the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI)

It is the student’s responsibility to contact their local credentialing body for re-entry pathways. The Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) is the national certification body for the pharmacy profession in Canada. Upon returning, students must go through an evaluation procedure with the PEBC.