A Global Comparison of Internationalization Support Characteristics Available on College of Pharmacy Websites.

Objective. To compare the information regarding entry-level pharmacy degree programs available on college websites worldwide from the perspective of international students. Methods. Data on pharmacy colleges and schools were extracted from the Official World List of Pharmacy Schools on the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) website. The website of each pharmacy college was accessed and the content was analyzed. A scoring method was created to compare the websites. Results. Of the 1839 pharmacy colleges listed worldwide, 246 had no website. Approximately half of pharmacy colleges with websites did not have a complete English version of their site. Academic information considered important by students, including the course syllabi, admission requirements, program costs, and a faculty directory, was not available on 73%, 44%, 65% and 43% of the websites, respectively. The websites of pharmacy colleges in Oceania, North America, and Europe provided the best information for international students, with these regions scoring an average of 9.2, 8.8, and 6.7, respectively out of 12 points. In comparison, pharmacy colleges in Central Asia and East and Southeast Asia scored an average of only 0.2 and 1.5 points, respectively. Conclusion. There are still a high proportion of global colleges of pharmacy without websites. Also, the quality of pharmacy colleges' websites is unevenly distributed around the world. To fulfill the information needs of international students, pharmacy colleges should provide an English version of the website and include at least a complete syllabus of all the courses, financial information (costs and grants), a complete faculty directory, and all the administrative requirements for application and enrollment.

A Comparison of Patient-Centered Care in Pharmacy Curricula in the United States and Europe.

Objective. To compare United States and European Higher Education Area (EHEA) undergraduate pharmacy curricula in terms of patient-centered care courses. Methods. Websites from all pharmacy colleges or schools in the United States and the 41 countries in the EHEA were retrieved from the FIP Official World List of Pharmacy Schools and investigated. A random sample of schools was selected and, based on analyses of course descriptions from syllabi, each course was classified into the following categories: social/behavioral/administrative pharmacy sciences, clinical sciences, experiential, or other/basic sciences. Results. Of 147 schools of pharmacy, 59 were included (23 in US and 36 in the EHEA). Differences existed in the percentages of credits/hours in all of the four subject area categories. Conclusion. Institutions in EHEA countries maintain a greater focus on basic sciences and a lower load of clinical sciences in pharmacy curricula compared to the United States. These differences may not be in accordance with international recommendations to educate future pharmacists focused on patient care.