Greater focus on career preparation and professionalism, both through curriculum and through introductions and networking, again leveraging our alumni and partners

Core Area
Education
Strategic Area
Graduate and post-graduate program development and refinement aligned with areas of learner and industry and sector demand
Goal Status
In Progress
Objectives
  • Continuing Pharmacy Professional Development (CPPD) to continue to develop new programs (2026).
  • Continuing Pharmacy Professional Development (CPPD) to look into opportunities to increase the number of events offered, in particular to address the changing scope of practice (2026).
  • Continue exploration of combined degrees with UBC Sauder School of Business, particularly with BPSc program (2026).
Achieved Goals

Post-graduate Education

  • Continuing Pharmacy Professional Development (CPPD) and the Office of Education Technology and Learning Designs (OETLD) developed and implemented the College of Pharmacist of BC’s Regulatory module for Pharmacist prescribing for minor ailments and contraception (Jul 2023). CPPD continued to develop expanded injection training programs to be offered from 2024/2025; as well as other projects with significant internal and external partners (2025).
  • Launched CPPD website (July 2023).
  • Update Conference provided fully online accredited events: 239 attendees (April 2023); 139 attendees (April 2024); 119 remote attendees + 24 in person workshop attendees (April 2025).
  • Released Update Independent Study Units to prepare for minor ailments prescribing launch (June 2023).
  • Continuing Pharmacy Professional Development (CPPD) reviewed current practices and identify where revisions may be required to best align its accreditation process with  the upcoming revisions to the Canadian Council on Continuing Education in Pharmacy (CCCEP) Standards and Guideline (2023).
  • Continuing Pharmacy Professional Development (CPPD) reviewed options with regard to marketing for Canadian Pharmacy Practice Program (CP3) (2024).
  • Launched Introduction to Ordering and Interpretation of Laboratory Tests for Pharmacists continuing professional development (Jan 2025).
  • Launched UBC Faculty of Pharmceutical Sciences Independence Research Grant to aid outstanding postdoctoral fellows in developing their first research grant application as an independent academic researcher by offering a small amount of independent funding of $10,000 (to support 1 grant), to support them in making the transition to become competitive candidates for tenure-track faculty positions in academia (2024).

Graduate Education

  • ADGPS Office organized a professional development event aimed at equipping students with valuable career insights. The event featured a talk by a Pharm Sci grad program alum who shared their career journey and provided practical advice on navigating the transition from academia to industry and then to entrepreneurship and beyond (fall 2024).  
  • ADGPS Office organized a 4-week interactive Catalyze Your Career Workshop Series was held, designed to support students in career exploration, job searching, resume building and interview practice (2025).
  • ADGPS portfolio formed a Professional Development Liasion Team, which allowed students to play a central role in organizing and shaping the future programming of professional development events and initiatives for graduate students (2025).
  • ADGPS Office organized a series of career-focused events . Examples include "Designing Your Grad School and Career Strategy (Nov 2024) and UBC President Bacon gave a presentation on "Growth Mindset: Continuous Improvement for Individuals and Institutions" to graduate students, researchers and staff (Jan 2025). Further events were aligned with the feedback from the Professional Development Engagement Liaison Team who met in July 2025. The office organized various events including: the Catalyze Connection Networking Workshop, covering different networking strategies and activities. It was hosted the same day as the BioConnect BC Networking night to encourage trainees to attend and utilize their networking skills; Ask ADGPS! All About Postdoc Funding, a session on strategies and resources postdocs could use to find and apply for funding, including organizations to look at; GPDN Career Symposium, a 3-day virtual career symposium; and Catalyze Your Career Workshop, a 1.5-hour interactive workshop tailored for Pharm Sci research trainees covering techniques for reflecting on career interests, exploring career options, and jumping into the job market prepared (fall 2025); and Ask ADGPS! Preparing for Comp Exams with high level information about the exam process, studying and exam strategies (Nov 2025). As part of the Research Trainee Professional Development speaker series, Dr. Roshane Francis from Crohn’s & Colitis Canada delivered a talk to our graduate students, offering guidance and insights on building a career in knowledge translation (2025). Dr Cragg led a Red Pen Exercise workshop focused on editing techniques to help trainees strengthen their scientific writing skills, preparing them for successful careers in academia and beyond (2025).

Graduate Diploma in Pharmacy Leadership (GDPL)

  • Initiated admissions to Graduate Diploma in Pharmacy Leadership (GDPL) (spring 2024). Launched program (Sep 2024); first 7 graduates in Nov 2025.
  • Drs. Gerber and Jarvis-Selinger presented "Shaping Tomorrow’s Healthcare Leaders: An Innovative Curriculum for Leadership Identity Development” to share their efforts to embed activities focused on the "leader identity formation" into the Graduate Diploma in Pharmacy Leadership (GDPL) curriculum (Oct 2024).

Undergraduate Education

Entry-to-Practice PharmD Program

  • Released Minor Ailments prescribing training for all students to ensure they are prepared for the expanded scope of practice (June 2023). Continued to offer training to meet the ongoing changes available to pharmacists such as lab testing (2025).
  • Introduced Professionalism Accolades to recognize select students for outstanding and impactful acts of professionalism. The purpose is to promote a culture of professionalism to prepare students for their future careers  by highlighting positive behaviours and contributions (fall 2025).

BPSc Program

  • Implemented career-focused workshops in BPSc program in partnership with UBC Careers Centre (Jan 2025); students who undertake co-op or internship experiences will need to participate in a number of workshops prior to the experience.
  • Approved "Co-operative education” course in the BPSc program with plan to implement in 2026W (Sep 2025).
  • Initiated exploration of combined degrees with UBC Sauder School of Business, particularly with the BPSc program (2026).

Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences

2405 Wesbrook Mall
Vancouver, BC Canada
V6T 1Z3
info.pharmsci@ubc.ca

UBC Crest The official logo of the University of British Columbia. Urgent Message An exclamation mark in a speech bubble. Arrow An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Caret An arrowhead indicating direction. Chats Two speech clouds. Facebook The logo for the Facebook social media service. Fax A lineart image of a fax machine. Information The letter 'i' in a circle. Instagram The logo for the Instagram social media service. Linkedin The logo for the LinkedIn social media service. Location Pin A map location pin. Mail An envelope. Menu Three horizontal lines indicating a menu. Minus A minus sign. Telephone An antique telephone. Plus A plus symbol indicating more or the ability to add. Print A lineart image of a printer. Search A magnifying glass. Twitter The logo for the Twitter social media service. X The logo for the X social media service. Youtube The logo for the YouTube video sharing service.