PGDip Pharmacy Practice

Before you apply:

1. Confirm you meet the professional entry requirements:  

• A pharmacy degree (BSc, BPharm, or MPharm).
• Registration as a pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council.
• A practice-base with access to a workplace educational supervisor. The programme is suitable for pharmacists working in patient-facing roles in primary or secondary care. You should discuss your application with your manager prior to applying as workplace-based support is essential to the programme.

For entry directly to the PGDip modules, you need at least 60 academic credits at a level 7 of an equivalent and comparable programme. To have your previous academic credits recognised, contact pace@reading.ac.uk to discuss your case before making an application.

If you want to start your entry with the PGCert module, visit the PGCert Pharmacy Practice page for information on how to apply. 

2. Complete a statement of purpose.

The student statement should be between 300 and 500 words. It is used to support evidence of meeting the entry criteria, as well as determining your preparedness to undertake the programme of study. You may wish to consider some of the following questions when writing your statement:

• What support networks do you have whilst you are completing your studies?
• How do you keep up to date in your practice and reflect on your impact on patient care?
• If you are currently studying another programme at the same time, how will you manage your workload?

3. Prepare the following documents, as you will need to provide all of these documents during the application process:

• Checklist for foundation programme (PDF, 149KB)
• Workplace-based learning declaration (PDF, 223KB)
• If you are being part sponsored: Proof of funding (PDF, 120KB). Some NHS organisations require a Purchase Order number for the payment of invoices. This must be stated on this letter to ensure invoices are paid promptly.
• If you are self-funding, or doing your learning in practice hours with an organisation who is not your employer, the self-funding declaration (PDF, 146KB).

How to apply:

4. Access the University's online application portal.

All communication from the application system is via automated email. Some National Health Service (NHS) email servers flag these email addresses as spam, so we recommend using a personal email address to ensure you receive all communications at this stage.

When you have started an application, the system will email you to remind you to start, and/or complete, your application at regular intervals. If your account is flagged as dormant for three or more weeks, your application may be automatically removed.

5. Once you have created an account, select your programme choice from the drop-down menu:

• PGDip Pharmacy Practice (part-time)

6. Complete all the required fields (marked with an asterix *) and upload all of the documents stated above (step 2 and 3).

Make sure you upload your statement of purpose to the 'statement of purpose' field in the application portal.

The application portal cannot accept multiple uploads. Therefore, you will need to scan the documents from step 3 into one document and submit your combined documents to the 'other' field.

7. References

Once you have submitted an application, an automatic email will be sent to your referees (if you have provided an email address for them). It is your responsibility to make sure that your referee supplies a reference. We would therefore advise that you contact them in advance of submitting an application so that they have time to prepare a reference. They can use our template to prepare their reference in advance. Please also note that emails from the application system may be sent to their 'spam' folder, which they should check if they have not received the email when expected.

If you have completed postgraduate study, you should provide details of one academic and one non-academic referee. If you have not completed postgraduate study, you can provide details of two non-academic referees. A suitable non-academic referee is typically a past or current employer, or your pre-registration tutor or diploma supervisor.

8. The outcome of your application

Applications are reviewed throughout the year. However, the greater the number of applications we receive, the longer it may take to inform you of the outcome. The admission tutor may contact you to discuss your application if:

• it is unclear whether you have support from your manager
• the workplace has not been approved as a training centre by the programme team
• it is unclear who your workplace based supervisor will be
• your ability to attend all the study days is not clear.

Pre-sessional English language Programme

Our Pre-sessional English Programme is for international students who need to meet their degree programme English language requirements.

Our courses equip you with the skills and language needed for academic success, including critical thinking, self-reflection, learner autonomy, research skills and integrating sources. The Pre-sessional English Programme is accredited by the British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes (BALEAP), which guarantees you will receive a high-quality student experience.

To find out more, visit Pre-sessional English.