Admitted Student Information

All offers of admission are provisional. Conditions are outlined in the admission offer documents and may vary depending on the student. Admission is contingent upon:

• Completion of the required Certiphi background check and Background Information Disclosure Form
• Submission of required immunization records and health-related trainings
• Completion of any remaining prerequisite coursework prior to the PharmD Orientation in August
• All official summer transcripts must be received by the PharmD Admissions Office no later than August 20
• Successful completion of all in-progress and future pre-pharmacy courses (earning grades below C or term GPA’s lower than a 2.5 will result in the admission committee re-reviewing your application)
• Other requirements specific to your application found on the admissions checklist

As a participating school in the AACP Cooperative Admissions Guidelines (CAGs), we adhere to deposit guidelines.

There are two non-refundable deposit payments that total $500. All money paid for deposits will be credited to the first semester tuition upon enrollment.

1. When you are accepted, you must submit a $200 admission deposit.
2. After March 1, you are required to pay an additional deposit of $300.

If you are admitted after March 1, you will be required to submit the full $500 deposit.

The deposit will be forfeited for students not enrolling in the School of Pharmacy for the term in which they were admitted.

PharmCAS Schools receive reports from PharmCAS (PharmCAS Shared Offer Reports) indicating those accepted students with multiple acceptances at other institutions. The UW–Madison School of Pharmacy reserves the right to request that accepted applicants commit to UW–Madison by March 1. If a student refuses to decline offers from other programs by March 1, the UW–Madison School of Pharmacy has the right to revoke the offer of admission. This is consistent with our participation in the AACP Cooperative Admissions Guidelines (CAGs).

The online Admissions Checklist contains required admission documents such as reading and signing the Technical Standards, completing your background check, and more. These items must be completed by the due dates that are displayed on the Checklist. Please be sure to check back frequently, as additional items will be added to the checklist throughout the enrollment process.

You can access the Admissions Checklist by selecting “Login” for Current Students in the upper right corner of the School of Pharmacy web site. Use your Net ID and password to access the checklist.

We require all PharmD students to complete the American Heart Association’s Healthcare Provider Basic Life Support (BLS) course and to maintain this certification throughout the program. Incoming PharmD students are encouraged to take the BLS class here at the School of Pharmacy during orientation. Students are responsible for the cost of the BLS course.

The UW–Madison School of Pharmacy requires that admitted students undergo a complete criminal background check prior to contact with patients. The student is responsible for all background check fees.

Certiphi Background Check

Background checks are conducted by Certiphi, a national background screening company working with PharmCAS. There is a fee. The results of the check will be made available to the student and the student has a right to appeal the check results. You should have received a background check email from studentedition@certiphi.com at the time of acceptance with instructions. You may have already received this email if you were accepted at a different PharmCAS institution.

Wisconsin Caregiver Law and Background Information Disclosure Forms

In addition, the State of Wisconsin “Caregiver Background Check Law” (“Caregiver Law”) requires that PharmD students complete the Wisconsin Department of Justice Background Information Disclosure (BID) form prior to matriculation via the Viewpoint Screening (available to incoming students in April of each year).

Background Check Requirements for IPPE and APPE Rotations

Students are required to submit background check results and updated BID forms from our provider of choice at the time of admission (pre-matriculation) and again during the third year (DPH-3) in preparation of 4th-year advanced pharmacy practice experiences or anytime there is a change is a student’s BID status. Problematic background check results may result in significant limitations in practice experience options. Because practice experiences are part of the program graduation requirements, failure to pass background checks might compromise the ability to graduate. BID documents for students with a positive BID check will be sent to the students’ pharmacy practice sites. Students with a positive BID check may be denied placement at a pharmacy practice site at the discretion of the pharmacy practice site.

If, during the PharmD program, a student notifies the program that they have been convicted of a crime, or is under investigation for a crime, or if the program learns of this information from another source, another background check will be conducted.

The Annual Security Report and Annual Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous three calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous three calendar years. UW–Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department at uwpolice@mhub.uwpd.wisc.edu or 1429 Monroe St., Madison, WI.

IPPE and APPE Expenses

Pharmacy students complete Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experiences (IPPEs) in the first, second and third years of the curriculum. IPPE rotations range from 16- to 80-hours. Students complete Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPEs) in the fourth year. APPEs are 240-hour rotations. Most rotations are in practice settings located in the state of Wisconsin. International elective APPEs are located abroad. Students select their rotation dates and IPPE and APPE locations from available sites in our clerkship system. These rotations are valuable experiences that help students transition from pharmacy students to practice-ready pharmacists who are ready to obtain their pharmacist license upon graduation. When completing these rotations there are associated expenses that students should be aware of. Our goal is to be transparent so that students are prepared and aware of costs associated with IPPE and APPE rotations.

Travel Expenses

Students are responsible for travel expenses to and from their rotation sites, with most sites located in the state of Wisconsin. It is recommended that students have access to reliable transportation to complete their rotations. Students should have a driver’s license and access to a car. Students without a car will need to find alternative transportation, such as borrowing a car from a family member or friend, getting a ride from a colleague, utilizing a Zipcar, renting a car, using public transportation (i.e., city bus), and/or checking out ride boards.

Housing Expenses

Students are responsible for housing expenses while completing their rotations. In addition, it is the responsibility of the student to secure their housing while completing IPPE and APPE rotations.  Students may not change rotation sites due to housing. To assist students with this, the School of Pharmacy has a housing network coordinator who provides information about housing options for practice sites located in the state of Wisconsin. Students may obtain housing information on the clerkship webpage and by contacting the housing network coordinator.

Health Expenses

Health policies are in place to keep students and patients safe. Students are responsible for compliance with all School of Pharmacy health policies. In addition, students are responsible for compliance with practice site requirements for each of their IPPE and APPE rotations. Health policy compliance expenses may include costs for lab work, immunizations, and basic life support certification. The health policies are listed on the clerkship webpage. In addition, site requirement costs may include health portal fees, physical exam costs, and additional lab work and immunizations. Site requirements are listed for each site on the clerkship webpage. Non-compliance with health policies or site requirements may result in course grade deductions and delays in completing rotations. Students may not start rotations unless compliant with health policies and site requirements.

APPE Expenses

Students complete APPE rotations in the summer, fall, and spring semesters of the fourth year of the curriculum. The School of Pharmacy utilizes a region placement for required APPE rotations in the fourth year. Of note, students may complete elective APPE rotations in any region. Students may be placed in one of six different regions. Regions include areas around the following cities: Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay, Wausau, Eau Claire, and La Crosse. Not all students will complete rotations in the Madison region during the fourth year. Students are responsible for their living expenses during the fourth year, which may require moving to one of the six regions listed.

Students may select an international elective APPE rotation during their fourth year which may have additional costs including fees for passports, VISAs, travel, housing, insurance, and necessary travel medications.

General Expenses

Students are responsible for additional expenses that may occur while on pharmacy practice experiences. These may include costs for name badges, duplicating handouts, printing posters, and participating in professional meetings.

The UW–Madison School of Pharmacy experiential education will be both rigorous and rewarding, providing the base of your future career. Make it as powerful as possible by planning ahead and giving careful thought to experiential expenses.

All Doctor of Pharmacy students are required to have a Windows or Macintosh laptop for their classes and exams that meets these required hardware and software specifications.

Your PharmD academic advisor will be assigning you to your courses for your first two years in the program. You are guaranteed a spot in our required coursework and will have blocks of time built into your schedule so that you are available for group activities completed outside of the classroom.

Please do not enroll in any courses until you receive further instruction from your academic advisor, which will be emailed to you in May and you will enroll in courses in June.

Students are required to have current immunizations and/or tests as a condition of enrollment. Please note that some requirements, such as the two-step TB test, can take several weeks to complete. Please see the School of Pharmacy’s Health policy for specific details.

All PharmD students must complete the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) training and the Safety Infection and Control (SIC) Training. The Safety Infection and Control training must be completed prior to starting the PharmD program (details will be provided). HIPAA training will be offered during the Fall semester of your DPH-1 year.

The majority of PharmD students live in off-campus housing near the School of Pharmacy.  Madison has a variety of housing options.  Please see the links below for more information.

• Campus Area Housing
• Madison Campus and Downtown Living
• UW-Madison Graduate and Family Housing

Important information concerning Curricular Practical Training (CPT) and Optional Practical Training (OPT)

Curricular Practical Training (CPT) is an employment authorization for students on F-1 visas. Eligible students may seek authorization to work in an internship, co-op, or practicum that is directly related to their major field of study. The purpose of CPT is to apply the knowledge and skills gained in the classroom to practical work experience in the U.S.

CPT Guidelines

• Students who are authorized for 365 or more days of full-time CPT*, are not eligible for post-completion OPT.
• Students will need CPT authorization when completing any APPE rotation during the Fall or Spring term. *Note that completing all APPE rotations in the PharmD program is equal to less than 365 days. Students are not required to use CPT for their IPPEs.
• Accumulating part-time CPT (20 hours or less per week) generally does not affect eligibility for post-completion OPT.

Optional Practical Training (OPT) is a benefit for students on F-1 visas. It allows students to work off-campus in a job directly related to their major field of study. The purpose of OPT is for students to apply the knowledge and skills gained in the classroom to practical work experience in the U.S.

All newly admitted PharmD students will be required to attend a mandatory New Student Orientation, which will be held a week prior to the start of the fall semester. More details will be provided.

Review the PharmD Policy Handbook for all PharmD student policies.  Also review the School of Pharmacy Policy on Graduate Assistant Positions.

All UW–Madison students are eligible for SHIP (Student Health Insurance Plan) through University Health Services for an additional fee. Health insurance is not required for domestic students. All international students and visa dependents are required to have UW–Madison approved health insurance coverage. International students must enroll in SHIP or file a qualifying waiver by the compliance deadline unless you qualify for an automatic waiver.

All admitted students must read and sign the Student Promotion Policies and Procedures & Student Alcohol and Other Drug-Related Policies. Students must adhere to these Policies while enrolled in the School of Pharmacy.

All applicants accepted into the University of Wisconsin–Madison PharmD program need to meet the Technical Standards with or without reasonable accommodations.

Tuition and fees for the next academic year are typically determined during the summer.  For additional details, see our PharmD Tuition and Fees Page.

The general timeline for processing the FAFSA and receiving a financial aid offer is as follows:

• After you complete the FAFSA (School Code #003895), you may check the progress of your financial aid application by logging into MyUW with your NetID and finding the Student Center section. The general timeline for processing the FAFSA and receiving a financial aid offer is as follows:
  • October 1 – FAFSA application opens for the upcoming school year.
  • January – Processing of PharmD FAFSA begins for the Health Professions Pharmacy Loan (HPPL). Students can continue to submit FAFSA after January for HPPL consideration.
  •  Mid-April – Financial aid offers begin to arrive to the Student Center.
• If you have questions, please contact the Office of Student Financial Aid at 608-262-3060 or finaid@finaid.wisc.edu.