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Admission/Preferred Admission
The Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences (B.S.P.S.)
degree curriculum includes courses in the professional Doctor
of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree curriculum, which are only
accessible to students who have been admitted to the Pharm.D.
program (unless an exception is granted by the School of
Pharmacy). The B.S.P.S. degree curriculum includes all of the
courses required for admission to the Cedarville University Doctor
of Pharmacy program. The final course in the B.S.P.S. degree
curriculum is typically completed during the fall semester of the
second professional (P2) year in the Doctor of Pharmacy program.
Students intending to pursue a career in pharmacy - thus,
pursue a Pharm.D. degree – should choose pharmaceutical
sciences as their major. NOTE: Failure to be granted admission to
the Pharm.D. program (which would occur during the academic
year prior to the 1st professional (P1) year in the Pharm.D.
program), or be granted an exception to complete the B.S.P.S. by
the School of Pharmacy in the absence of such admission, will
result in an inability to complete this degree.
Undergraduate students at Cedarville University in the
pharmaceutical sciences major may compete for Preferred
Admission to the Pharm.D. program as early as their senior year
in high school and continuing throughout their undergraduate
studies. Preferred Admission is awarded to a select number
of students who have demonstrated the aptitudes and skills
necessary for successful pursuit of a career in pharmacy. This
status reserves a seat for the student in the class size-limited
Pharm.D. program, associated with a specific School-established
start date in the Pharm.D. program. Students with Preferred
Admission status are exempt from competing against other
applicants for a seat in the program. The granting of Preferred
Admission status involves two steps.
First, students obtain admission to the University. Second,
students compete for preferred admission to the School of
Pharmacy. That competition begins with an invitation by the
Pharmacy Admissions Committee to apply for Preferred Admission
to the School of Pharmacy. Those invitations are based upon the
following criteria:
1. Declared interest in pharmacy
2. Academic curriculum
3. Cumulative GPA (high school or collegiate)
4. ACT composite and subscores of at least 23 (or SAT
subscores of 530 or higher)(for high school students)
The Pharmacy Admissions Committee begins inviting students
to apply by the first week of October. The application process
involves submitting an essay and scheduling an interview with
the Pharmacy Admissions Committee. Interviews typically begin
in mid-November and continue until all Preferred Admission
seats are filled. Final selection is based upon performance in the
interview and on the essay.
Students who do not wish to compete for preferred admission or
who do not qualify for preferred admission as a new student may
still take the B.S.P.S. curriculum and apply for Preferred Admission,
or make direct application to the Pharm.D. program, later in
their academic journey. The Admissions Committee considers
applications of undergraduate students for Preferred Admission at
the end of each academic year.
Preferred Admission Continuation Requirements
In order to continue with Preferred Admission status, students
must meet the following requirements:
1. Maintain a cumulative undergraduate GPA of at least
3.00. For purposes of Preferred Admission, the School
of Pharmacy calculates the GPA using a course-
repeat and grade-replacement policy that considers the
repeated course grade in place of the original course
grade, regardless of when such occurred during the
undergraduate experience (i.e., any undergraduate course
may be repeated for this purpose). Note, this Preferred
Admission policy does not affect the student’s official
transcript – the policies for which are established and
managed by the Registrar.
Students who do not achieve a 3.00 GPA according to these
policies will be subject to the following actions related to their
Preferred Admission status:
• Conditional Status: Applied to student failing to achieve
a 3.00 cumulative GPA after their first undergraduate
semester at Cedarville University.
• Probation Status: Applied to student failing to achieve a
3.00 cumulative GPA after their first undergraduate year
at Cedarville University.
• Loss of Preferred Admission Status: Occurs if student
fails to achieve a 3.00 cumulative GPA after two years of
undergraduate study at Cedarville University.
Note: All status decisions are at the discretion of the Admissions
Committee; students who do not hold Preferred Admission status
may continue to enroll in the B.S.P.S. degree curriculum with an
aim toward regaining Preferred Admission status and/or applying
directly to the Pharm.D. program at the appropriate time.
2. Earn a minimum grade of “C” in all courses identified as
prerequisites for admission to the Pharm.D. program (see
Graduate and Adult Programs Academic Catalog). Students
may repeat any course for which a “C” was not earned.
Exceptions to this requirement are applied to select two-
semester sequence courses (General Chemistry, Organic
Chemistry, Human Structure and Function) in which
students may continue with a C- in either semester of the
sequence as long as they earn a grade of at least C+ in the
complementary course of the sequence.
All prerequisite and application requirements for the Pharm.D.
program are found in the Graduate and Adult Programs Academic
Catalog.
Financial Aid
B.S.P.S. students benefit from all scholarship programs available
to other Cedarville University students. For students continuing
into the professional Pharm.D. program (completing their B.S.P.S.
degree as part of their professional studies) after three years of
undergraduate study at Cedarville University, the University aid
will continue to be available through the first professional year.
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2015–16 Undergraduate Academic Catalog
School of Pharmacy
Admission/Preferred Admission