Ospap 2009

[paul2008]

Sorry I got distracted with the replies some answers for you:

Hi, i know that some of the students tried to start this thread but it ended up in depressing situtaion regarding status of OSPAP gradutes so i m starting the same thread again hoping that it wont end up in same thing again. i

Yes you need to be aware the rules have changed and if the only reason you are coming to the UK is to work as a pharmacist it may be difficult but it is still possible and a good experience especially if you choose from the beginning to go down less well paid hospital pharmacy career. I won't lie to you it won't be easy and only you can decide if it is worth it. It won't make you unbelievably rich or probably even give you a better quality of life than most other countries working as a pharmacist.

was planning to apply for ospap and was curious if anyone can tell me if they still ask people to come for an interview and what kind of questions do they ask. i have searched whole forum but i couldn't find any details regarding interviews.

If people have successfully come from your country and unversity before without any problems, I think it is unlikely you will be asked to an interview, but this is my own view and I could be wrong. As for the questions it could be anything covered by an undergrad pharmacy degree, according to the website. I only know of a few people who went for the interview and they have kept quiet about what was asked as they should.

what will be the stauts of society as it wont be royal pharmaceutical society anymore.

Early next year the regulatory functions will be taken over by a new body the GPhC, consult the RPSGB website or search the forum for more details.

As for rumours, I have not heard any but would advise you to consult the RPSGB website and that of the immigration authorities, it does not hurt to check every now and then as things change, I checked now and then in the years before I came and regularly before I submitted my application (of course many of the details have changed since then). I even emailed the RPSGB and some universities to answer some questions I had (which were not answered on the websites) before I submitted my application.

May i also refer you to the NHS careers page on pharmacy, Pharmacist - NHS Careers (career details), the site also has detail for foreigners wishing to work in the NHS and links to the International Health Care Professionals - NHS Careers (for overseas qualified professionals). If the links are broken search for yourself on NHS Careers

Best of luck, I know it won't be easy to decide what to do but look all your options including other countries and remember it won't be easy.

Paul

[rainbow121]

paul, that was very comprehensive and i appreciate the time u put to express ur thoughts and general information which not only helped me but i m sure it would also help other newbies. once again thanx a lot for sharing the information.

[rainbow121]

ok guys. i have another question. which university is better for OSPAP. i m kinda stuck bewtween aston and robert gordon. looking at their contents course at aston university looks slightly better. anyone has expereince of robert gordon university. it looks like they r emphasizing more on patient interaction rather than clinical studies but i can be wrong as well. paul, i assume u were in robert gordon. would u like to tell me about ur study experience. i know u did say few things in another thread but can you give more details if possible please. i was more interested in pharmacology and clinical side hence aston course looked interesting to me however i dont have any other choice but to go to robert gordon for some tricky reasons and i was kinda dubious if education at university was useful to gain some knowledge. thank you in advance...

[paul2008]

Not sure if anybody can tell which is better unless they have experienced both, although talking to friends I formed an impression that Robert Gordon is better than atleast one of the other providers. Both universities seem to have a different style of teaching and assessment, exams versus coursework and of course a different character. You will have to decide which suits you best, if possible visit them.

I suggest staying close to family or friends if possible, as having a support network in place during stressful times can make all the difference.


Aberdeen is nice, a good place to live. A few valuable placements built into the course but not really a cheap place to live and accommodation can be a problem, although you may be able to get a room in the residences which are reasonably priced and comfortable. The course as you mentioned is very practical and more applied clinical knowledge than learning of facts, you are assumed to know the basics and if you have forgotten have to play catch up.

Didn't someone else on the forum recently pass the RGU OSPAP?


Talking of pass rates: have not heard of anyone failing the conversion course but was surprised to see the pass rate for the pre-reg exam is around 90% for Mpharm graduates and 86% for OSPAP graduates, I wonder if pre-reg training site may be a signifcant factor in this.

[fgthomas]

mate..any update on the pre reg issue? did any one doing ospap start a community pharmacy pre reg this yr?

[rainbow121]

well so far no news. society is trying to convince border agency aka immigration to review their decision later this year so lets hope for good. check pharmalife for details.

[rainbow121]

[w w w.P h a r m a l i f e. c o. u k ]

keep on looking for any updates.

[Pradeep]

At present am having 3 years HSMP tier1 visa approved. By the time my OSPAP Course & pre reg training would finish my visa will also expire. Wil the current changes in visa rules ie removal of community pharmacist from shortage skills job would affect my chances of renewal of my visa under HSMP Tier 1. Would like to have some info about this.

[Japie]

I find the OSPAP two-year pre-registration extremely discriminatory, not to mention expensive and hypocritical. One might even go so far as to say racist. The UK only introduced a 4-year "MPharm" degree around 1997; having a 3-year BSc degree prior to that. On the contrary, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand (ANZAF) has had 4-year BPharm degrees since the late 1970's. Content-wise there is no academic difference between the UK's 4-year MPharm and ANZAF's 4-year BPharm degrees; it's merely a matter of semantics, but the UK qualification is hypocriticaly held out to be superior to our qualifications.

In SA an MPharm-degree is a 2-year full-time research degree (requiring peer-reviewed journal publications and a formal research thesis) which is obtained AFTER your 4-year BPharm degree. An SA research MPharm-degree is a pre-requisite for pursuing a DPharm. I know of at least one case in SA where a UK MPharm was deemed on par only to our BPharm (by the SA qualifications authority) and a UK applicant was refused registration for a DPharm without completing a proper 2-year MPharm research degree first.

I received my 4-year BPharm degree 20 years ago and have as many years of retail pharmacy experience, including owning my own pharmacy. As I have a family to support there's no way in which I can complete the one-year full time OSPAP (repeat of my 4th year undergraduate?) without detrimental consequences to my family. The OSPAP requirements are essentially impossible for me to meet and not only discriminates against my qualifications and experience, but also against my family status. Not even the US and Canada have such strict requirements.

[paul2008]

Hi Japie,
The MPharm is the current name for the UK undergraduate degree, which is at approximately the same level as a bachelor with honours (ie contains a research project). Some universities tell their students that it is a full masters degree, others here are more honest and make it clear that it is an undergraduate degree, and most UK pharmacists know that they need to do clinical diploma's to get their careers on track, or a masters/PhD to get on the academic career pathway. Prior to standardization a variety of degrees were awarded. Some Scottish universities award a masters as the first degree, however it is considered to be a first degree by other universities.

Until recently A level's were aproximately equivalent to the first year of an undergraduate degree in countries with matric as the school leaving standard, such as South Africa so traditionally these countries have had slightly longer degrees.

THre OSPAP course is very effective at keeping immigrant pharmacists out, not quite as effective as South Africa's one year compulsory community service and obscure recruitment rules. South Africa is expert at keeping foreign pharmacists out especially those who trained in Africa, if the UK were to implement similar policies it would certainly be accused of discrimination, if not the r word.

I agree that it is very difficult for people with families to jump through the hoops, although I have known some older pharmacists who have successfully registered in the UK, despite having families. Certainly the USA and Canada not to mention Australia and New Zealand are much easier, possibly also cheaper to live and have a greater chance of escaping the recession. In addition as the UK is in the process of regulatory reform, it is probably not an ideal time to consider applying to register.

If you are as I am guessing based in South Africa, for all its troubles, I would swop places with you tomorrow. When I looked into it I was not so much bothered by the community service but being told: ****is a developing country, we do not recruit from developing countries.

I wish regulatory authorities would see that what goes around comes around and ease some of these barriers, if only so their registrants will get similar and fair treatment if they wish to relocate.

Good luck with your plans

Paul