In India, the demand for Pharmacy education is rising alongside the growth of the Pharmaceutical sector. The Pharmacy Colleges in India are recognised by Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) to offer a wide range of programs to the students at the Diploma, Undergraduate, Postgraduate, Post-Baccalaureate, and Doctorate levels. Admission to these Pharmaceutical courses are generally offered to the students based on their merit scores in the National / State / University level entrance test like GPAT, CUET UG, BITSAT, KEAM, GUJCET, etc. Other processes include academic merit-based and direct admission.
Moreover, the total fees for pursuing higher education in Pharmacy discipline ranges from Rs. 40,000/- to Rs. 3,00,000/- (for Government) and Rs. 4,00,000/- to Rs. 12,00,000/- or more (for Private). Since Pharmacy is a high-demand sector, the career prospects in the same are available in diverse roles including Medical Representatives, Drug Inspector, Clinical Research Associates (CRA), Quality Assurance / Control (QA / QC) Manager, to name a few.
There are 1886+ Pharmacy Colleges in India wherein students can apply for admission in courses like D.Pharma, B.Pharm, M.Pharm, Pharm.D, Pharm.D (Post Baccalaureate), etc. These educational Institutions may be Private / Government / Public-Private Partnership (PPP).
The top Pharmacy Colleges in India accept the following National level entrance test scores:
Some of the State level entrance exams conducted for admission to Pharmacy courses are as follows:
Admission to Pharmacy courses depends on the regulations followed by the specific Institutions. However, the general admission and selection process practised in Government & Private Pharmacy Colleges in India involves the following methods:
Counselling Process
The key stages of the counselling process often includes online registration / choice filling, seat allotment, fee payment, etc. The stages are discussed below:
Application Timeline
The Pharmacy Colleges in India generally open the admission portal from January till July. Following this, the counselling process is concluded between June and July, often extended till October. Shortly after this, the academic sessions commence.
The fee of the Pharmaceutical programs at the best Pharmacy Colleges in India is significantly variable wherein the annual fee for Government Colleges ranges from Rs. 10,000/- to Rs. 75,000/- and in case of Private Institutions, it is between Rs. 1,00,000/- to Rs. 4,00,000/- or above.
Similarly, the entire fee range is between Rs. 40,000/- to Rs. 3,00,000/- and Rs. 4,00,000/- to Rs. 12,00,000/- or more for the top Government Pharmacy Colleges in India & Private Colleges, respectively.
The top Pharmacy Colleges in India follow a rigorous curriculum and provide adequate industrial exposure to the students through internships / training, field trips, research projects, to name a few. On an average, the period of internship / industrial training is usually 2-6 months to equip the students with relevant professional skills.
Upon completing the requisite Degree, students can secure roles with the following average packages:
|
Course |
Average Package |
|
D.Pharma |
2-4 LPA |
|
B.Pharm |
3-6 LPA |
|
M.Pharm |
4-8 LPA |
|
Pharm.D |
4-9 LPA |
|
Pharm.D (Post Baccalaureate) |
3-10 LPA |
Some of the top Pharmaceutical firms that offer employment opportunities to the students are:
