Department of Pharmacy
Department of Pharmacy, University of Dhaka founded in 1964. It is the first and foremost institution providing pharmacy education in Bangladesh. Approximately 90 percent of the Bangladeshi pharmacists working home and abroad are graduates of the University of Dhaka. With the ever-increasing demand and timeliness of this noble profession, the department has been raised to a full-fledged faculty in 1995 owing to the tireless efforts of its faculty members, researchers and scholars. Recognized as the most innovative institution for pharmacy education in the nation, the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Dhaka has been serving as a model for other progressive pharmacy departments, particularly in private sectors throughout the country.
During inception the B. Pharm course was two years and it was turned into three years B. Pharm (Hons). In 1968 first M. Pharm in Pharmacy was started on the demand of then students. In 1996 the three year B. Pharm (Hons) was converted to four year. Then in 2010 again the course was changed to Five year professional course emphasizing on clinical subjects. At present the students are being oriented in Dhaka Medical College hospital as part of their clinical exposure under the supervision of senior professors in Cardiology, Nephrology, General Surgery, Pediatric, Emergency and Pharmacy departments.
The faculty has now an annual average of approximately 350 full-time students in the five year Bachelor of Pharmacy Professional program conducted under the Department of Pharmacy.
Unfortunately in 2003 the Departmental academic program was closed abolishing the Department of Pharmacy and the academic program was transferred to the newly established faculty initiated three independent departments in masters level under the heading of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Technology, which offer Master of Pharmacy and postgraduate degrees (M.Phil. and Ph.D.) to approximately. A writ petition was filed against the decision on abolishing the academic program of the Department of Pharmacy at University of Dhaka in 2005. The judgment was ordered in 2012 and requested for execution in 2014 passed by the High Court Division. The University appoint a Chairman on the judgment and opening the all departmental activities under the chairman. Again a Civil Petition for leave to appeal was made immediately thereafter in 2014. Accordingly the Civil Petition for leave to appeal was dismissed in 2015. Now all the five year B. Pharm Professional program is conducted by Department of Pharmacy with cooperation of the faculties of three Departments under the Faculty of Pharmacy.
Pharmacy is a dynamic and fast growing profession all over the world including Bangladesh. Because of its enormous contribution to our health-care system, “Pharmacy” has always been a high (if not the highest) priority choice to the students coming for university education. As a consequence, the Pharmacy Professional courses are being taught by intellectually rich, adroit and properly trained members from three departments in masters’ level under the Faculty of Pharmacy to disseminate quality education amongst the next generations. We have now 75 full-time faculty, 2 part-time teachers. In addition, the Department utilizes many affiliated hospitals, health care clinics and pharmaceutical industries in the country for its in-term clinical and experiential programs. Our faculty members have achieved higher degrees and trainings from many developed countries including the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, France, Australia, India, Chain, South Korea and Japan.
With the advent of new information and cutting-edge technologies, the curriculum of the Department of Pharmacy is timely and continually modernized to cope up with the radical advances in pharmacy profession. According to the GMP/WHO guidelines, the department provides broad range of courses rendering the students as qualified personnel. Combining the rigor of MBA, our students are equipped to meet the growing challenges for pharmacists knowledgeable in business administration and the legal profession. As a result, pharmacists are now becoming more involved in drug therapy decision-making in clinical settings. Our philosophy of pharmaceutical care reaches beyond didactic courses into hospitals, clinics, pharmacies, managed care facilities and pharmaceutical industry practice sites throughout the country. Extensive resources are available to our students, researchers and faculty members.
The University of Dhaka is the largest public university in the country and is the top "Research" class university in the nation. Its Department of Pharmacy has been an integral part of the country's health care programs for over 54 years. Since its inception, this department has been a place of innovation, creativity, and excellence in pharmacy education. The total faculty members under the Faculty of Pharmacy have always been actively involved in multifaceted research in a number of disciplines including medicinal and natural product chemistry, pharmacy and pharmacology, molecular biology and biotechnology, pharmacogenomics, formulation and bioavailability studies.s
