Seminars and Interview Sessions

The Role of Pharmacists in the UK: With the separation of prescribing & dispensing, how are British pharmacists playing a bigger role in the healthcare system? Why and how their role is expanding under the latest reform in pharmacist’s training regime?

In Hong Kong, the separation of prescribing and dispensing is only really practised in hospitals. On a everyday level, when we patients go to a local private clinic, it’s the doctor’s responsibility to prescribe and dispense the right medication. For Hongkongers, speaking to a Pharmacist is a far less common encounter!

But in countries where the separation of prescribing and dispensing is more widely practised, patients will only get a prescription from doctors and have to make a trip to a pharmacy to obtain the medicines. So what extra services and advices can Pharmacists in the UK provide for patients? How will their roles and responsibilities be further expanded after the latest reform in Pharmacist’s training regime, which will be fully implemented for those starting their Foundation Training in 2025/26?

In this section, Dr. Kim will walk us through a typical patient’s journey in the UK to illustrate the idea of the separation of prescribing and dispensing and show us how Pharmacists in the UK are playing a bigger role in the healthcare system.

Becoming a Pharmacist in the UK and in Hong Kong

Now when it comes to professional qualifications, if students wish to return to Hong Kong to practise, they must first become a registered Pharmacist in the UK, before they are eligible to sit the registration examination of the Hong Kong Pharmacy & Poisons Board. And to become a registered Pharmacist in the UK, students must complete a four-year Integrated Master’s in Pharmacy (MPharm (Hons)), as well as passing the one-year Foundation Training and the GPhC Registration Assessment.

In the section, Dr. Kim will provide a step-by-step guide about the route to become a registered Pharmacist in the UK, including the latest changes to the Foundation Training programmes, details of the GPhC Registration Assessment, etc. How can students enhance their chances of securing a place in the Foundation Training programmes? What will the visa arrangements be during the training programmes?

MPharm (Hons)

4 Years

If students wish to return to Hong Kong to practise, they must first become a registered Pharmacist in the UK. And to become a registered Pharmacist in the UK, students must complete a four-year Integrated Master’s in Pharmacy (MPharm (Hons)) approved by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), as well as passing the one-year Foundation Training and the GPhC Registration Assessment. For students starting their Foundation Training in 2025/26, they’d be eligible to register as a Prescribing Pharmacist

Foundation Training

1 Year

After completing the MPharm (Hons), students will undertake a 52-week Foundation Training organized by the NHS

Exam

2 Parts

The GPhC Registration Assessment is a two-part examination that covers Pharmacy Calculations and the Safe and Effective Pharmacy Care of the Public. Students are required to pass both parts in the same sitting and do so within 8 years after starting their MPharm (Hons)

Qualify as a UK Registered Pharmacist

Exam

3 Parts

The registration examination of the Hong Kong Pharmacy and Poisons Board is a 3-part examination that covers Pharmacy Legislation in Hong Kong, Pharmacy Practice and Pharmacology

Qualify as a HK Registered Pharmacist

Related Subject Areas about Drugs: What’s the difference between Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences? Which to go for, if students have an interest in drug development?

Apart from the MPharm (Hons) which aims at training patient-facing pharmacists, other common drug-related programmes include Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences! How are they different from each others and from Pharmacy? If students are more interested in drug and vaccine development instead of becoming a frontline medical practitioner, is it better to go for Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences? Dr. Kim will provide a comparison and show us what careers these different courses can lead to.

Programme Highlights: the 8^th in the World for Pharmacy & Pharmacology (QS 2026)

Dr Kim will provide an overview of Pharmacy, Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences programmes available in University of Nottingham, detailing on professional qualifications, course structure, entry requirement, as well as mode of assessment and career prospects, to help students select the right programme for themselves:

• MPharm (Hons) Pharmacy ^{Four-year Integrated Master’s}
• BSc (Hons) Pharmaceutical Sciences ^Three-year
• BSc (Hons) Pharmaceutical Sciences (with a Year in Industry) ^Four-year
• BSc (Hons) Pharmacology ^Three-year
• MSc Drug Discovery ^One-year

Pathway Programme Highlights:

In this last section, an admissions representative of University of Nottingham International College will provide an overview of their pathway programmes, covering progression degree choices, entry requirements and other useful information. The representative will also explain how the promise of “Guaranteed Progression” works!

• 544-444 – Undergraduate (Year One) ^{(3-Year Programmes) Graduating in 2030}
• 322* – University Foundation ^{(1-Year Programmes, leading to Year 1 of Undergraduate Degree) Graduating in 2031}

* F.5 students are also accepted into University Foundation