The Knust College of Health Sciences was established in line with the collegiate system and runs a three-tier system. It emerged from the former Faculty of Pharmacy and the School of Medical Sciences. The College has three schools and two faculties, with over twenty Departments and a Research Centre. During your six-year education period, we expect you to not only learn current medical knowledge and apply it to patients, but also to contribute to medical science on behalf of our institution.

Admission to the Knust College of Health Sciences is highly competitive and requires strong academic performance in science subjects such as Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. Prospective students must also pass the university’s entrance examination and meet specific criteria set by the College. Additionally, candidates must demonstrate a passion for healthcare and a dedication to serving others.

The admission process at the Knust College of Health Sciences involves submitting an application, sitting for the university’s entrance examination, and participating in a selection interview. Successful candidates will be notified of their acceptance and provided with further information regarding enrollment. It is essential for prospective students to familiarize themselves with the admission requirements and deadlines to ensure a smooth application process.

Tuition Fees

Programme Name	Year 1 (GH₵)	Year 2 (GH₵)
Diploma in Architectural Technology	3,688.65	3,340.12
Diploma in Business Administration	2,768.65	2,810.12
Diploma in Horticultural Management	2,768.65	3,295.12
Diploma in Information Technology	2,768.65	3,340.12

About KNUST School of Medical Sciences

The School of Medical Sciences (SMS) was founded in 1975. Its original mandate was to train Physicians, Medical Scientists and Medical Laboratory Technologists. A 3-year BSc (Human Biology) programme was to be the basic programme to be followed by the three categories of programmes. At present, the School concentrates on training Physicians at the undergraduate level, and Medical Scientists at the postgraduate levels. The Medical Laboratory Technology programme is run separately in the Faculty of Allied Health Sciences. The School is involved in the training of postgraduate doctors for the professional membership and fellowship certification of the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons and the West African Postgraduate Medical College.CHECK: 2021/2022 Admission And Recruitment In Ghana

Vision & Mission

The vision of SMS is to be internationally recognised as a premier centre of excellence in teaching, research, professional and academic training in medical sciences in Africa producing high calibre doctors and medical scientists to support the health sector in Ghana and the rest of Africa.
The mission of SMS is to provide the environment for community-based professional and academic medical training, research and support for health care delivery in Ghana and Africa. SMS  also provides community services, consultancies, creates collaborative links and attracts scholars and from the international community.

KNUST School of Medical Sciences BSc Human Biology

This is the pre-clinical programme and prepares students for further training in two disciplines: Medicine (MB ChB in the School of Medical Sciences) Dentistry (BDS in the School of Dentistry). Students are given a broad foundation in the Basic Medical Sciences for further training in the above clinical disciplines. The  level of training is comparable with international standards as reflected by the design of the curriculum, teaching methods, structure and conduct of assessments.
A wide range of subjects is studied. These are coordinated so that teaching is developed around themes or body systems.  Students are introduced early to clinical problems as well as laboratory work. Students are exposed to nursing care and procedures and oriented to the concept of the health needs in the community by involving them in community health activities.

YEAR ONE
SEMESTER ONE 
COURSE CODE           COURSE TITLE
BIOL 151                      CELL STRUCTURE
BIOL 153                      MEDICAL GENETICS
CHEM 151                    CO-ORDINATION CHEMISTRY
CHEM 153                    ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
CHEM 155                    PHYSICALCHEMISTRY
CHEM 261                    ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
ENGL 157                     COMMUNICATION SKILLS
MATH 121                     POST SSS’ MATHS
MATH 141/143              STATISTICS
SEMESTER TWO      
COURSE CODE           COURSE TITLE
SMS 152                      ANATOMY I
SMS 154                      BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCE I
SMS 158                      COMMUNITY HEALTH I
SMS 164                      MICROBIOLOGY I
SMS 166                      BIOCHEMISTRY I
SMS 174                      PHYSIOLOGY I
YEAR TWO
SEMESTER ONE  
COURSE CODE           COURSE TITLE
SMS 251                      ANATOMY II
SMS 257                      COMMUNITY HEALTH II
SMS 263                      MICROBIOLOGY II
SMS 265                      BIOCHEMISTRY II
SMS 271                      PHARMACOLOGY I
SMS 273                      PHYSIOLOGY II
SEMESTER TWO
COURSE CODE           COURSE TITLE
SMS 252                      ANATOMY III
SMS 258                      COMMUNITY HEALTH III
SMS 264                      MICROBIOLOGY III
SMS 266                      BIOCHEMISTRY III
SMS 272                      PHARMACOLOGY II
SMS 274                      PHYSIOLOGY III
YEAR THREE
SEMESTER ONE   
COURSE CODE           COURSE TITLE
SMS 353                      BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES II
SMS 357                      COMMUNITY HEALTH IV
SMS 363                      MICROBIOLOGY IV    4
SMS 369                      GENERAL PATHOLOGY I
SMS 371                      PHARMACOLOGY III
SEMESTER TWO
COURSE CODE           COURSE TITLE
SMS 354                      BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES III
SMS 364                      MICROBIOLOGY V
SMS 370                      GENERAL PATHOLOGY II
SMS 372                      PHARMACOLOGY IV

KNUST Doctor of Pharmacy, Entry Requirements and Course Outline

What is Doctor of Pharmacy

Doctor of Pharmacy is a professional undergraduate degree that is required by several countries including Ghana, Nigeria and the USA as a basic requirement for registration as a pharmacist.

This pharmacy degree is offered as a six-year duration programme in most countries but some countries offer it as a two year top up programme to people who already have a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy.

Click here for a list of all the pharmacy related courses and their respective duration

In Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) was the premiere university to institute this 6 years Doctor of Pharmacy degree programme. 

All the other institutions offering Pharmacy in Ghana have now successfully transitioned to the Doctor of Pharmacy programme too.

This means that any one who wants to become a pharmacist by studying in Ghana will have to apply to study the Doctor of Pharmacy in any of the institutions offering the programme.

Admission requirements for KNUST Doctor of Pharmacy

KNUST accepts three different categories of people into their Doctor of Pharmacy programme. These three categories are:

• Applicants with WASSCE/SSSCE qualification
• Applicants with A’ Level qualification
• Applicants who are considered Mature applicants

Applicants with WASSCE/SSSCE qualification

You need to have a minimum of three passes in the elective subjects (Chemistry, Biology, and Physics or Mathematics). This means that individuals who get anything beyond a C6 in more than one of these elective subjects are not eligible or do not qualify for this course.

Applicants with A’ Level qualification

If you have an A’ Level qualification, you need a minimum of five (5) credits which should include English Language and Mathematics, together with three (3) passes in any of the electives (Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics).

You should also have a pass in General Paper. 

Mature Applicants

To qualify as a mature applicant, you must be at least 25 years at the time of submitting your application forms.

Mature applicants can be applicants with either WASSCE/SSSCE or O’ level qualification.

For O’ Level, a minimum of five (5) credits including English Language and Mathematics.

For WASSCE/SSSCE, a minimum of credit passes in three (3) of your electives (Biology, Chemistry, and Physics or Mathematics)

Duration of the KNUST Doctor of Pharmacy Course

The doctor of pharmacy programme is a six-year programme leading to the award of a professional undergraduate doctorate degree in pharmacy.

The first five (5) years of the course is spent on campus with the fifth year comprising outside campus work. During the fifth year, students choose an elective for which they will be attached to a particular company or institution to train under depending on the elective of choice.

The following electives are available to every fifth year student:

• Research and Academia
• Community Pharmacy
• Hospital Pharmacy
• Industrial Pharmacy
• Regulatory
• Pharma marketing

These electives represent the various facets of pharmacy that students can look into venturing as future job prospects. As such, this training is to expose students to all potential jobs that they may encounter in the near future.

Students get to choose at least two of these, one for each semester in their fifth year. You are therefore advised to choose those that you have higher interest in or the ones that you want to explore.

The final year is spent fully in an accredited hospital for practical application of all the knowledge the students have acquired over the previous five years.

Course outline (Programme Curriculum)

First year course outline

The following are the various courses with the respective credit hours that first year pharmacy students in KNUST will study;

First semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 181	HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY	4
PHARM 161	ORIENTATION TO PHARMACY AND DISPENSING	4
ENGL 157	COMMUNICATION SKILLS I	2
PHARM 155	INORGANIC AND PHYSICAL PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY	4
PHARM 191	INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FOR PHARMACISTS	3
MATH 151	POST SHS MATHS	2

First semester course outline

Second semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
ENGL 158	COMMUNICATION SKILLS II	2
PHARM 162	DISPENSING	4
PHARM 182	HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY II	4
PHARM 172	INTRODUCTORY PHARMACOGNOSY	4
MATH 152	CALCULUS	2
PHARM 152	ORGANIC PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY I	4

Second semester course outline

Second year course outline

First semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 261	PHYSICAL PHARMACY	4
PHARM 271	PHYTOCHEMISTRY	3
PHARM 263	PHARMACEUTICAL MICROBIOLOGY I	3
MATH 153	STATISTICAL METHODS I	2
PHARM 281	BIOCHEMISTRY I	4
PHARM 251	PHYSICAL PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY	4

Second semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 294	PHARMACY COMMUNICATION AND PATIENT COUNSELING	3
PHARM 262	PHARMACEUTICAL MICROBIOLOGY II	4
PHARM 252	ORGANIC PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY II	4
PHARM 282	BIOCHEMISTRY II	4

Third year course outline

First semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 363	PHARMACEUTICAL BIOTECHNOLOGY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY	4
PHARM 381	INTRODUCTORY PHARMACOLOGY	4
FC 181	FRENCH FOR COMMUNICATION PURPOSES	2
PHARM 351	MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY I	4
PHARM 361	PHARMACEUTICAL TECHNOLOGY I	4

Second semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 362	PHARMACEUTICAL TECHNOLOGY II	3
FC 182	FRENCH FOR COMMUNICATION PURPOSES II	2
PHARM 382	SYSTEMS PHARMACOLOGY I	4
PHARM 352	PHARMACEUTICAL ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY	3
PHARM 372	NATURAL DRUG PRODUCTION AND EVALUATION	3
PHARM 366	IMMUNOLOGY	2
PHARM 392	PATHOPHYSIOLOGY AND THERAPEUTICS I	4

Fourth year course outline

First semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 493	BIOSTATISTICS AND RESEARCH METHODS	2
PHARM 481	SYSTEMS PHARMACOLOGY II	4
PHARM 491	PATHOPHYSIOLOGY AND THERAPEUTICS II	4
PHARM 485	CHEMICAL PATHOLOGY I	2
FREX 1	FRENCH FOR PHARMACISTS	1
PHARM 461	BIOPHARMACEUTICS	3
PHARM 451	MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY II	3
PHARM 471	PHYTOPHARMACEUTICALS AND VETERINARY PHARMACY	2

Second semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 450	PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY PROJECT	4
PHARM 482	CHEMICAL PATHOLOGY II	2
PHARM 484	CHEMOTHERAPY	3
PHARM 492	PATHOPHYSIOLOGY AND THERAPEUTICS III	4
PHARM 494	PHARMACOECONOMICS	2
PHARM 496	SOCIOLOGY FOR PHARMACISTS	2
PHARM 498	PHARMACY JURISPRUDENCE	2

Fifth year course outline

First semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
MGT 471	PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT	2
PHARD 559	ELECTIVE (ACADEMIC RESEARCH, COMMUNITY PHARMACY, HOSPITAL PHARMACY PRACTICE, REGULATORY, MARKETING)	2
PHARD 573	COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE	2
PHARD 591	PUBLIC HEALTH I	2
PHARD 593	PHARMACY PRACTICE I	5
PHARD 595	PHARMACOEPIDEMIOLOGY	2
PHARD 597	CLINICAL PHARMACOKINETICS AND THERAPEUTIC DRUG MONITORING	2
PHARD 599	SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT	2

Second semester

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
MGT 472	ENTREPRENEURSHIP	3
PHARD 556	ELECTIVE (ACADEMIC RESEARCH, COMMUNITY PHARMACY, HOSPITAL PHARMACY PRACTICE, REGULATORY, MARKETING)	2
PHARD 582	CLINICAL TOXICOLOGY	3
PHARD 594	PHARMACY PRACTICE II	5
PHARD 596	SEMINARS	2
PHARD 592	PUBLIC HEALTH II	2

Sixth year

The whole of the sixth year is spent in a chosen hospital on rotational basics. You will be rotating every 6 weeks. There will be a final examination after the end of all six (6) rotations.

Course Code	Course Name	Credits
PHARM 691	EXPERIENTIAL PRACTICE: INTERNAL MEDICINE	5
PHARM 692	EXPERIENTIAL PRACTICE: MATERNAL HEALTH	5
PHARM 693	EXPERIENTIAL PRACTICE: EMERGENCY MEDICINE	5
PHARM 694	EXPERIENTIAL PRACTICE: CHILD HEALTH	5
PHARM 695	EXPERIENTIAL PRACTICE: SURGERY	5
PHARM 696	EXPERIENTIAL PRACTICE: ELECTIVE (HIV/TB, ENT, MENTAL HEALTH, ONCOLOGY)	5

The video below gives you details about the final year rotation for the doctor of pharmacy student.data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==

Nature and Duration of Examination

Pharmacy students in KNUST undertake two major examinations in the course of any semester. The first one is taken at the middle of the semester and a final one is taken at the end.

The mid-semester examination usually lasts for one week and this involves all courses registered for that semester. This means that students may be required to write more than one exam paper in a day depending on the number of courses they registered in that particular semester.

With the end of semester examination, students usually have two to three weeks to write such exams. Mostly, the laboratory related examinations will be written a week prior to the main exams. As such the main exams are usually two weeks long.

Either of the exams may be in the form of multiple choice questions or theory questions depending on the course and the lecturer’s preference. Majority of the courses will be multiple choice questions.

For the multiple choice questions, there are about 4 or 5 different sections involved with each coming with a different set of preamble. Some of the sections include:

• Assertion type of questions
• Single Best Answer (SBA) questions
• Matching
• True or False
• Multiple select type of questions

Assessment of students and Pass mark

The faculty employs the weighted average score which is the system of grading used by KNUST. This involves scoring students based on the total credit for the respective courses that were taken.

The pass mark for the doctor of pharmacy students is 50% (CWA). That is for the cumulative weighted average (CWA). Thus, in the course of study a student stands the chance of being repeated or withdrawn from the institution if their CWA is below 50%.

Also, at the level of the courses, a pass mark of 50% is set for all pharmacy related courses while a 40% pass mark is set for all other borrowed courses or general university courses like Calculus, Statistics and Communication skills.

A chunk of the students score in each semester comes from their end of semester examinations. Most of the courses in the faculty allocate a 70% score to their end of semester exams and 30% to all the other forms of assessment including the mid-semester exams.

Some other courses allocate in the ratio 60:40

Departments in the faculty of Pharmacy, KNUST

The faculty is known as the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical sciences (FPPS) and falls under the College of Health Sciences (CoHS). 

FPPS offers two main undergraduate programmes; Six years Doctor of Pharmacy and Four years BSc. Herbal Medicine.

Currently, the faculty has 6 (six) different departments and they are;

• Department of Pharmaceutical chemistry
• Department of Pharmacology
• Department of Pharmacognosy
• Department of Pharmaceutics
• Department of Pharmacy Practice (Previously Department of Clinical and Social Pharmacy)
• Department of herbal Medicine

Unlike other faculties where students will choose a particular department to belong to, every student in the faculty of Pharmacy will work with all the available departments. That is to say, if you are a student of the faculty, you will be lectured by lecturers from all these departments.

It is only during your fourth year project work that you will get to choose one of these departments to work with.

Doctor of Pharmacy Class schedule in KNUST

From the first to third year, each class is divided into two main groups and each group is further divided into sub groups.

The two major groups will be alternating in terms of what time (morning or afternoon) to be attending class every semester.

On a regular day, one set will go to class from 8:00 am to 12:30 pm while the other group will be in their respective lab groups. The groups then switch after 12:30 pm so that the group in class now moves to the lab and vice versa.

The subgroups are for laboratory purposes. For instance during a particular semester where a year group has about 4 different courses to take that comes with labs, there will be four subgroups.

This means that during the period for labs, each group will be in their respective lab.

Student Associations in the faculty

(Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, KNUST)

There are two main student associations in the faculty. Every student will automatically belong to one of these two associations depending on their programme of study. These two associations are;

• Ghana Pharmaceutical Students’ Association (GPSA)
• Ghana Herbal Medicine Students’ Association (GHEMSA)

Aside from these two main associations, there are a number of interest groups that students can choose to belong to.

Some of these interest groups include:

• Pharmacy Christian Fellowship
• Pharmedia (Media Committee for GPSA)
• Editorial committee
• Health committee
• I.T Committee
• Organizing committee
• International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation (IPSF)
• Welfare committee

Postgraduate programmes offered by the faculty

The faculty offers various postgraduate courses not limited to just pharmacy students. Anyone with the requisite undergraduate qualifications can apply to study for any of the following degree types in the faculty;

• Master of Philosophy (MPhil)
• Master of Science (MSc)
• Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This is offered by all the departments (except the Herbal Medicine department) and so depending on your interest you can choose what to study. For instance if you are interested in the Pharmaceutical Chemistry Department, you can choose to read MPhil. Pharmaceutical Chemistry.