Breaking news! Kaplan has partnered with the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) to launch the Foundation of the Future Pharmacist Program. This program is designed to provide greater access to PCAT prep for all pre-pharmacy students. AACP is confident in Kaplan’s ability to prepare students successfully for the PCAT and for pharmacy school. As such, Kaplan has become the only test prep provider to be endorsed by AACP.
Kaplan is making PCAT prep more accessible to pre-pharmacy students by significantly reducing course prices, with some course prices reduced by nearly 30%. Students can also take advantage of Kaplan’s new tuition assistance program, Starting Line, which aims to help all students prove their abilities and advance their career options by being able to step up to the same starting line as everyone else. Kaplan also provided AACP with 250 scholarships to Kaplan courses to give to students at their discretion.
AACP believes that students who prepare for their PCAT are also better prepared for pharmacy school. They note that PCAT scores correlate with pharmacy school success, based on pharmacy school GPA. AACP wants to increase the number of qualified pharmacists, and thus is seeking to have more qualified applicants.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects pharmacist positions to increase 25% between 2010 and 2020, from 274,000 to 345,000. Advances in healthcare and technology, coupled with great career opportunities, make now an ideal time to pursue pharmacy school, for those with the interest and drive for it. With a low 3.1% unemployment rate (less than half the national average) and a median annual salary of nearly $115,000, pharmacist is currently ranked as the third best job in the United States, according to the 2013 U.S. News & World Report Best Jobs ranking — just behind dentist and registered nurse.
Despite the growing need for pharmacists, there has been a decline in the number of PCAT exam takers. In the most recently recorded academic year (2012-2013), the PCAT was administered 28,400 times to aspiring pharmacists , its lowest level in nearly a decade. According to the Pharmacy Manpower Project, a shortfall of as many as 157,000 pharmacists is predicted by 2020, which, added with the projected physician shortage, could have a sharply negative effect on patients and their access to healthcare.
AACP CEO & EVP, Lucinda L. Maine, Ph.D., R.Ph., said, “AACP looks forward to working with Kaplan to increase access to PCAT preparation for prospective students seeking careers in pharmacy.” Dr. Maine also added, “This type of partnership assists us in meeting our strategic goal of assisting our member institutions in attracting, motivating, developing and retaining the highest quality and most diverse students.”
In order to help Kaplan prepare future pharmacists for the PCAT even more successfully, AACP has created a Curriculum Oversight Committee. This committee will work with Kaplan’s team of expert curriculum developers, content authors, and learning scientists to ensure that the Kaplan PCAT course aligns well with the evolving PCAT Blueprint.
For more information on this exciting new partnership, please go here.
