Pre-reg abroad

[paul2008]

Thanks to the PharmSoc we now have to jump through hoops to work in Aus or NZ. Not sure why they couldn't keep the reciprocal and have EU free access.
Probably scared of having some legal test case thrown at them?

Ah but no other country has a £7000 year long hoop called the Overseas Pharmacists Assessment Program yet. All you have to do is pass the exams and redo a pre-reg year, still much easier and cheaper.

Some years ago a number of pharmacists were going to the middle east for short contracts because the pay was very good and if they could live a couple of years without wine and women they would leave with a nice nest egg.

[Asterix]

Ah but no other country has a £7000 year long hoop called the Overseas Pharmacists Assessment Program yet. All you have to do is pass the exams and redo a pre-reg year, still much easier and cheaper.

Some years ago a number of pharmacists were going to the middle east for short contracts because the pay was very good and if they could live a couple of years without wine and women they would leave with a nice nest egg.

I am not sure if the OSPAP course will continue for much longer with the increase in home grown candidates studying pharmacy. We must have the easiest system for overseas pharmacists to enter here.

Can I ask what is the procedure now for wanting to work in aus or nz?

[Asterix]

there is that option but it is dependent on the country in question and their regard for the percieved quality of the uk pharmacy degree.

When i did the MPharm course (as one of the first few bunches to do so) it wasn't an honours couse although this may have changed - check with the establisment you are applying to or with UCAS for specific info.

mpharm (hons)

[paul2008]

It depends if it is an undergraduate or post graduate Mpharm. I think Mpharm (HONS) is effectively an undergraduate honours degree not much different from the BSc/BA (HONS). Its the same formula 3 years +1 year=4 years.

A masters degree is usually a post graduate qualification. It would be either with distinction or without distinction. IIRC the levels are: Bachelors, Honours, PGDip, Masters, PHD. Call it what you want other countries will just fit it into the appropriate box. But unless you want go there why worry.

These days all the requirements for most countries are on the internet if you look. Some people have put it together in a package and sell it, a very interesting read but grossly over priced. Currently the New South Wales Pharmacy board of Australia only requires a baseline exam, and around 4 weeks of pre reg followed by a law exam for UK trained pharmacists. If you think this hard look at the requirements for an Austrailan coming the other way. The UK system is the hardest in the world to discourage people from coming here, don't even think of making it harder. There needs to be a door for foreigners, for a number of reasons not limited to these.

1. So British pharmacists can work in other countries should they choose for personal or humanitarian reasons. I gather from this forum that most of Europe is out of the question unless you are fluent in the local lanuage.
2. To cater for pharmacists who are silly enough to move to the UK for reasons of the heart or any other reason. No reason why these people should not use their skills to benefit the UK population and economy.
3. To allow for recruitment of specialist pharmacists from other parts of the world to share experiance and develop the profession. The more pharmacists isolate themselves the weaker they become.

I do think that the OSPA programme should be replsace by an exam that selects candidates for the OSPAP course and pushes candidates who don't need it into a pre-reg position. This is a sensible position, it also means that those who have had a better pharmacy education than the UK offers for example the PharmD will not gain a negative opinion of the Mpharm with or without its honours.

[TigerSwift]

During your prereg year you are able to do up to 13 weeks in an EU country, as long as the site is able to meet the RPSGB requirements. You have to apply to society so they can allow you to do this so make sure you look into it well in davance.

I know the European Pharmaceutical Students' Association (www.epsa-online.org) has a scheme called the 'individual mobility project' that helps students facilitate such activities.

Unless you speak the language of that country you are most likely to find yourself working in accademia or industry for the time you are there.

[Grandy]

I would like to add another spin to this. Can a pre-reg who has failed the UK pre-reg exam three times be eligible to take say for example the pre-reg exam for Canada and become Canadian registered pharmacist? Or do you have to be a registered pharmacist in the country where the individual completed their undergraduate course?

Unless you are from the UK does it matter to RPSGB whether you are a registered pharmacist in your country of origin? As you will still have to pass the UK criteria and registration exam.

Grandy

[paul2008]

I would like to add another spin to this. Can a pre-reg who has failed the UK pre-reg exam three times be eligible to take say for example the pre-reg exam for Canada and become Canadian registered pharmacist? Or do you have to be a registered pharmacist in the country where the individual completed their undergraduate course?

Unless you are from the UK does it matter to RPSGB whether you are a registered pharmacist in your country of origin? As you will still have to pass the UK criteria and registration exam.

Grandy

I doubt it as most countries say registered or eligible to register in the country that you trained in. So you have to be recognised as a pharmacist or eligible to register, usually in the country that you trained in and every other country you have worked as a pharmacist in.

If you had not failed three times and the RPSGB could be persuaded to write a letter that you were eligible to register as pharmacist if you passed the exam another country may accept this, or not.

Most bodies, such as the American and Australian boards require up to date letters of good standing so unless you are registered it is very difficult. The RPSGB requires more than one letter of good standing, so even if you are registered in your home country and you misbehave, every country you apply to will know and can decline your application.