Continued increase in applicants for the Master of Science Programme in Pharmacy

(Image removed)  115 persons applied to the Master of Science Programme in Pharmacy

At the start of this year’s autumn term, 115 students have been admitted to the Master of Science Programme in Pharmacy, equal to the number for the autumn term of 2019. The Bachelor of Science Programme in Pharmacy admits 90 students, which is ten percent fewer compared to the previous autumn term.

“We know from experience that some students in each group for different reasons will end their studies before graduation. Because of this we make a over-admission of new students every year, and the reduction in the Bachelor of Science Programme in Pharmacy is explained by the fact that we have chosen to lower that over-intake somewhat,” says Ingrid Nylander, former Deputy dean at the Faculty of Pharmacy.

The number of applicants for the Master of Science Programme in Pharmacy remains high. A total of 1,287 people, of which 244 were first-choice applicants, applied for the program's 115 places, which is a clear increase compared with the number of applicants before the autumn term 2019. Unfortunately, interest in the Bachelor of Science Programme in Pharmacy seems to remain lower. Here, 504 people applied, of which 86 were first-choice applicants, for the 90 places.

(Image removed) Ingrid Nylander, Faculty of Pharmacy

“Few applicants for Bachelor of Science Programmes in Pharmacy is a challenge for society. We have worked intensively in recent years to increase the number of applications, both on our own and in collaboration with, among others, the industry, the Swedish Pharmaceutical Society and numerous academic institutions. But despite that this is a relatively short education leading to a strong labor market, we are experiencing a downward trend. Even though we saw a modest step in the right direction this year, attracting more applicants remains an important task.”

At the Faculty of Pharmacy's third largest program: Complementary Programme for Pharmacists with a Foreign Degree, the number of applicants remain very high. This year, 200 first-choice applicants registered their interest in 35 places.

“Here we also experience a very good throughput with students that also get jobs quickly after the education. Several of them even get a job even before graduation,” states Ingrid Nylander.

At Uppsala University, a total of 49,299 students were admitted in the second selection for the autumn term 2020. This equal an increase of 9.81 percent compared with the autumn semester 2019.

In all of Sweden, 268,494 people were admitted to at least one higher education. Compared with last year, this is an increase of almost nine percent, or approximately 21,800 people. The number of admissions to distance education has increased by a total of more than 15 percent.

Also read Deputy dean Anja Sandström: We must work together to raise the number of applicants for our educations
More information Temasida om farmaceutiska fakultetens utbildningar (In Swedish)

text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Mikael Wallerstedt, Alex&Martin