Washington State University students will be able to earn both a doctor of pharmacy degree and a master of business administration degree simultaneously starting this summer, says Linda Garrelts MacLean, associate dean of the WSU College of Pharmacy.  

MacLean says the WSU College of Pharmacy and the university’s Carson College of Business established the joint degree program to enable eligible students to earn both degrees, which will prepare them for future leadership positions in the pharmacy profession, and will also develop globally competitive business leaders in the health care field. 

The collaboration between the business school and the pharmacy school means students will graduate with the credentials, including a business plan, to not only be competent pharmacists but also successful health care system leaders, says MacLean.

“We have a lot of students who are in the pharmacy program who may want to own a pharmacy business, and this may give them different opportunities as an entrepreneur in business, opportunities within health care,” MacLean says. “They could set up a business to deliver immunizations or contract with other businesses and/or schools to provide services.” 

The WSU MBA degrees are the kinds of credentials pharmacy students need, and will allow them to go into pharmacy management, she adds. 

Students must apply separately and gain admittance to each college, she adds. 

The WSU MBA is an online program enabling students to complete business courses intermittently with their pharmacy courses as they have time. The joint degree can be completed in as few as four years, MacLean says.