University of California, San Francisco (10/20/25) López González, Laura

A new initiative at the University of California, San Francisco School of Pharmacy is supporting ambitious pharmacy technicians in the state as they pursue their dreams of advancing to pharmacist status. About 75% of these workers in the United States want to become pharmacists, which would give them greater flexibility and the opportunity to work on an up-close-and-personal basis with customers, Even so, a mere 1% actually go on to earn a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree. The new PharmTech to PharmD Pathway Program at UCSF's pharmacy school aims to elevate those numbers and, hopefully, alleviate the trend toward pharmacy "deserts" by stabilizing the state's pharmacy workforce. The year-long agenda prepares prospects through course road maps, monthly seminars, and insights and advice from faculty and School of Pharmacy graduates. Anyone who has held a pharm tech position within the past 5 years can take advantage of the free program; and those who complete it, satisfying the prerequisite course requirements, are guaranteed an interview with UCSF's PharmD program. “This program is really to reach out to those who might think that going to pharmacy school is not in the cards for them,” says School of Pharmacy Executive Vice Dean Sharon L. Youmans.

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