TL;DR: BS Pharmacy is a four-year, 169-unit degree under CHED CMO No. 25, series of 2021, ending in a mandatory 1,200-hour internship split across five practice areas: institutional (120 hrs), public health and regulatory (180 hrs), community (300 hrs), hospital (300 hrs), and industrial pharmacy (300 hrs). Graduates then sit the Pharmacist Licensure Examination under RA 10918; the April 2026 PhLE posted a 57.26% passing rate. Tuition runs roughly ₱400,000-₱700,000 total at mid-range private schools, or is free at state universities like UP Manila under RA 10931. Reported pharmacist pay varies widely by source, from an Indeed job-posting average of ₱22,869/month to a considerably higher ERI SalaryExpert compensation-survey estimate.
BS Pharmacy searches usually split into two camps: students confirming it's a real four-year degree (not the "6-month pharmacy course" myth), and students who already know that but want the actual subject list and internship structure. This guide works from CHED CMO No. 25, series of 2021, the current policy governing the program, to lay out what you'll study by year, exactly how the required internship hours break down across pharmacy's different practice tracks, what it costs, and what the licensure exam and pay look like. For the exam itself in detail, see our pharmacist board exam guide; for the years-and-myths question specifically, see how many years is pharmacy in the Philippines.
What Is BS Pharmacy?
BS Pharmacy is a four-year undergraduate program governed by CHED CMO No. 25, series of 2021, "Policies, Standards and Guidelines for the Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy Program," which took effect for Academic Year 2021-2022. The curriculum totals a minimum of 169 units across eight semesters, built to prepare graduates for the Pharmacist Licensure Examination under Republic Act No. 10918, the Philippine Pharmacy Act of 2016.
Unlike programs where internship hours are scattered across multiple years, BS Pharmacy under CMO 25 front-loads coursework into years one through three, then dedicates the entire fourth year to supervised internship across five distinct pharmacy practice settings.
Disclaimer: curriculum sequencing and elective offerings can vary by school within CHED's framework. Confirm the current year-by-year course list with your target school's pharmacy department.
What Subjects Will You Take, Year by Year?
The table below summarizes CHED's sample curriculum from CMO 25's Annex B, condensed by year. Full General Education courses run alongside these each semester but are omitted here for readability.
| Year | Major Subjects |
|---|---|
| First Year | Pharmaceutical Botany with Taxonomy, Pharmaceutical Inorganic Chemistry, Perspectives in Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Calculations & Techniques, Pharmaceutical Organic Chemistry, Introduction to the Health System, Introduction to Pharmacy Administration/Management/Leadership, Human Physiology and Pathophysiology, Pharmaceutical Analysis 1 |
| Second Year | Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms/Drug Delivery Systems/Medical Devices, Dispensing I, Pharmaceutical Biochemistry, Physical Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Microbiology and Parasitology, Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Organic Chemistry, Pharmacognosy and Plant Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Analysis 2, Pharmacology 1, Pharmacy Informatics |
| Third Year | Biopharmaceutics & Pharmacokinetics, Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (with Regulatory Pharmacy/QA/cGMP), Dispensing II, Drug Discovery/Design & Development, Pharmacology 2, Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacotherapeutics 1 & 2, Pharmacy Research Methods with Pharmaceutical Statistics, Hospital Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Toxicology, Public Health Pharmacy, Cosmetic Product Development, Pharmacy Research and Thesis Writing, Health Technology Assessment, Social and Administrative Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Marketing and Entrepreneurship, Legal Pharmacy and Ethics |
| Fourth Year | Experiential Pharmacy Practice (internship) across Institutional, Public Health & Regulatory, Community, Hospital, and Industrial Pharmacy — no classroom coursework |
This is CHED's sample sequence; a school may adjust term placement as long as prerequisites are respected and the full course list is delivered.
What Is the Internship Requirement?
CHED CMO No. 25 requires a minimum of 1,200 hours of internship, formally called Experiential Pharmacy Practice, completed entirely in the fourth year after a student passes every course from years one through three. It's split into five areas, each with its own required hour count.
| Experiential Pharmacy Practice Area | Hours | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Institutional Pharmacy | 120 | 2.4 |
| Public Health and Regulatory Pharmacy | 180 | 3.6 |
| Community Pharmacy | 300 | 6 |
| Hospital Pharmacy | 300 | 6 |
| Industrial Pharmacy | 300 | 6 |
| Total | 1,200 | 24 |
CHED's policy also allows a student to opt into an additional 120 hours of Community Pharmacy on top of the required 300, for a total of 420 hours in that track, if they want deeper retail/community exposure. Internship sites must be CHED-accredited, with trained preceptors, and CHED maintains the official list of accredited facilities that schools use to place students.
Disclaimer: internship placement and exact scheduling (including whether it runs on weekends) vary by school and by internship site. Confirm the current process with your target school's pharmacy internship coordinator.
Clinical, Industrial, or Community Pharmacy: Which Track Fits You?
Because CHED's internship structure rotates every BS Pharmacy student through all five practice areas before graduation, you don't have to choose a specialization before enrolling, the degree exposes you to community, hospital, industrial, and regulatory pharmacy by design. What differs is where you look for your first job afterward.
- Community pharmacy (retail drugstores): patient-facing dispensing, medication counseling, and over-the-counter guidance. The most common first job for new graduates given the sheer number of retail pharmacy positions nationwide.
- Hospital pharmacy: inpatient medication dispensing, clinical rounds with physicians, and drug therapy monitoring, generally requiring stronger clinical pharmacology knowledge from third-year coursework.
- Industrial pharmacy: manufacturing, quality assurance, and regulatory affairs roles inside pharmaceutical companies, drawing directly on the Pharmaceutical Manufacturing and cGMP coursework from third year.
- Public health and regulatory pharmacy: work with government regulatory bodies or pharmacovigilance functions, connecting to the Public Health Pharmacy and Legal Pharmacy and Ethics subjects.
Does BS Pharmacy Lead to a Board Exam?
Yes. Every BS Pharmacy graduate must pass the Pharmacist Licensure Examination (PhLE), administered by the PRC's Board of Pharmacy under Republic Act No. 10918, the Philippine Pharmacy Act of 2016, before legally practicing as a Registered Pharmacist. The April 2026 PhLE recorded 1,085 passers out of 1,895 examinees, a 57.26% passing rate, per the PRC's official results release. Because this guide focuses on the degree itself, see our dedicated pharmacist board exam guide for the full exam coverage, schedule, and fees.
Disclaimer: passing rates vary significantly between exam sittings depending on the mix of first-time takers and repeaters. Treat any single sitting's rate as a snapshot, not a permanent baseline.
How Much Does BS Pharmacy Tuition Cost?
Based on SchoolFinderPH's own pharmacy school tuition research, a full four-year BS Pharmacy degree typically costs ₱400,000-₱700,000 in tuition alone at mid-range private schools, rising to ₱85,000-₱105,000 per semester at premium schools like University of Santo Tomas. It's free at state universities, including University of the Philippines Manila, under RA 10931, subject to admission and retention requirements.
Disclaimer: tuition and fee figures change by school year. Always verify the current rate directly with your target school's admissions office.
What Schools Offer BS Pharmacy?
Pharmacy programs range from state universities to specialized private schools, including University of Santo Tomas, University of the East, Centro Escolar University, Manila Central University, Adamson University, and De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute. For a full ranked comparison by PhLE passing rate and tuition tier, see best pharmacy schools in the Philippines.
How Much Do Pharmacists Earn?
Reported pharmacist pay varies notably by source and methodology. Indeed's job-posting-based data shows an average of ₱22,869 a month nationally, with actual listed openings commonly in the ₱20,000-₱26,000 range for retail roles. ERI SalaryExpert's broader compensation-survey estimate runs considerably higher, averaging around ₱708,774 a year (about ₱59,000/month), with its cited entry-level figure (1-3 years' experience) at roughly ₱492,371 a year (about ₱41,000/month).
| Source | Average Pay | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Indeed (job postings) | ~₱22,869/month | Aggregated live job listings |
| ERI SalaryExpert (compensation survey) | Broader compensation-survey methodology |
Disclaimer: the gap between these two sources likely reflects different data collection methods (live retail job postings vs. broader compensation surveys covering more senior and corporate roles) rather than either figure being incorrect. Treat both as estimates and confirm actual offers with individual employers, since pay also varies significantly between retail, hospital, and pharmaceutical-industry roles.
Choosing BS Pharmacy: Practical Tips
- Expect the entire fourth year to be internship, not classroom study. Plan your board-exam review timeline around finishing 1,200 internship hours first.
- Ask which internship sites your school is accredited with for each of the five practice areas, since site quality and location affect both your training and your post-graduation job leads.
- Don't confuse BS Pharmacy with short pharmacy-assistant courses. A "6-month pharmacy course" is a separate, non-licensure track that does not lead to the PhLE.
- Budget for the full four years, not just tuition, since laboratory fees, uniforms, and internship-related costs (travel to affiliated hospitals, for instance) add up separately.
- Decide early whether community, hospital, or industrial pharmacy interests you most, since your internship performance and preceptor relationships in that track can shape your first job offer.
Ready to find the right school? Browse schools or compare BS Pharmacy programs and tuition across hundreds of Philippine schools on SchoolFinderPH.
Sources
- CHED CMO No. 25, s. 2021 — Policies, Standards and Guidelines for the BS Pharmacy Program (official PDF)
- PRC — April 2026 Pharmacists Licensure Examination Results
- Indeed — Pharmacist Salary in Philippines
- ERI SalaryExpert — Pharmacist Salary in Philippines
- SchoolFinderPH — Pharmacist Licensure Exam Guide 2026
- SchoolFinderPH — How Many Years is Pharmacy in the Philippines
- SchoolFinderPH — Pharmacy School Tuition in the Philippines
- SchoolFinderPH — Best Pharmacy Schools in the Philippines
