Alla Marks, Director of Distance Education and Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Health Professions Building, Office 269, (540) 678-4451, amarks@su.edu
ICPH Fairfax, Office 3322, (540)-542-6274

In transitioning to patient-focused care, the success of future health care practitioners hinges upon the ability to manage and market health care services. The goal of the Dual PharmD/MBA program is to educate students to assume responsibilities as managers, administrators, consultants and executives in health care systems.

The program is directed toward providing the education students need to develop an understanding of the major functional areas in health care organizations, and to design strategic plans and policies to cope with the changing pharmaceutical and healthcare environments.

Entrance Requirements

The requirements for admission to the Dual PharmD/MBA program are: Full-time student status in good academic and professional standing in the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy pursuing the PharmD degree with a grade point average of 3.0 or better, possession of an undergraduate degree from a regionally/nationally accredited college/university, submission of an MBA application by March 1 of the first professional year (online application can be found at https://shenu.radiusbycampusmgmt.com/ssc/aform/B0880oI70G12k0x671I721.ssc), a potential interview with the MBA Admissions Committee, and completion of all required MBA foundational courses.

Foundational Courses

Foundational courses may be completed with equivalent undergraduate courses prior to the first professional year of the PharmD program or during the summer term between the first and second professional years. Foundational courses must have been completed within the last ten years prior to admission in order to be waived and must be approved by the MBA program. The foundational courses are:

• ACCT 501 Foundations of Accounting  (3 credits)
  Equivalent to undergraduate Accounting I (3 credits) and II (3 credits)
• FIN 502   (1.5 credits)
  Equivalent to undergraduate Introduction to Finance (3 credits)
• ECN 501 Foundations of Economics  (3 credits)
  Equivalent to undergraduate Principles of Microeconomics (3 credits) and Principles of Macroeconomics (3 credits)
• MKT 502 Foundations of Marketing  (1.5 credits)
  Equivalent to undergraduate Introduction to Marketing (3 credits)
• QM 502 Business Statistics  (1.5 credits)
  Equivalent to undergraduate Statistics and Data Analysis for Business (3 credits)
• QM 504 Business Analytics  (1.5 credits)
  Equivalent to undergraduate Quantitative Methods (3 credits)

Degree Requirements

Students who are jointly enrolled in the Dual PharmD/MBA program will complete both degrees within the four academic years of the PharmD program. The MBA portion of the degree must be completed within five calendar years of admission to the program. Students must complete the requisite 36-hour program, which includes three PharmD courses accepted as three MBA electives.

Students should have an overall 3.0 GPA in all PharmD courses and 3.0 GPA in all MBA courses, including the PharmD courses accepted as MBA electives. All MBA courses are offered on a semester/term basis, similar to PharmD courses. The academic year for the Dual PharmD/MBA program consists of fall, spring and summer terms.

Each MBA course meets on one of the following days: Friday evening for 4 hours, Saturday morning for four hours, or Saturday afternoon for four hours. Summer term MBA courses are held on alternating weekends on the days indicated above. Students enrolled in the Dual PharmD/MBA program take MBA courses along with PharmD courses during the fall and spring terms, then take a full load of MBA courses for two consecutive summer terms starting after the second professional year.