Pharmacy ranking reflects steady rise to stand among the best

The UNMC College of Pharmacy’s arrival in the top 20 of the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings is merely the latest marker of steady momentum that has been growing for decades.

UNMC’s College of Pharmacy was tied at No. 19 among the nation’s 143 schools and colleges of pharmacy in the latest edition of the magazine’s prestigious annual rankings, released earlier this year.

“These high rankings, based on academic quality, are an affirmation of the UNMC College of Pharmacy’s reputation as being among the best in the nation for training students in pharmacy and pharmacological sciences research,” said Interim Chancellor Dele Davies, MD. “They also reflect the hard work of our clinical and research faculty and staff in providing the best environment for training the excellent pharmacists and pharmacology sciences experts who are helping meet the workforce needs of Nebraska and our nation. I commend Dean Olsen and all members of the College of Pharmacy for their continued commitment to excellence.”

“It’s a testament to sustained excellence by our faculty and students over the past 15, 20 years, maybe even longer,” said Keith Olsen, PharmD, Joseph D. Williams Endowed Dean of the UNMC College of Pharmacy.

While the College of Pharmacy annually finishes among the nation’s very best in passing of licensure exams, punches far above its weight in research dollars generated per faculty member and does groundbreaking research on point-of-care innovation in community pharmacy, it’s still an “arrival” moment to see these achievements recognized. The U.S. News & World Report rankings are largely driven by peer assessment.

“It is a testament to what your peers think of you,” Dr. Olsen said. “And all those schools that are in the top 20 are schools and universities that everyone would recognize right away. It’s an elite company, being in that top 20.”

The seeds were planted long ago. Dr. Olsen, noted that UNMC was the first pharmacy school outside of California to adopt the PharmD degree, in 1979. “We’ve been innovators and leaders ever since,” the dean said.

Among the UNMC College of Pharmacy’s recent milestones:

• A new Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences (BSPS) degree program, to broaden the pathway for future pharmacists and other health professionals, as well as further develop a workforce for biomedical, biochemical, agriculture scientists and technicians, and the development and approval of new drugs;
• A new Center for Drug Design and Innovation, which works to bridge the gap between drug discovery and drug delivery, between bench science, biotechnology companies and large pharma;
• An endowed deanship and a cohort of endowed scholarships, established through transformational benefactor support;
• Continued achievement and enthusiasm among students, including the ongoing, award-winning “Operation Immunization” project, which has administered more than 15,000 flu shots and counting on UNMC’s Omaha campus and throughout the community.