Accredit vs Non-Accredited schools

Question: In an earlier post, you mentioned to a student that he might consider looking at non-accredited schools of pharmacy if he thought he couldn't get into an accredited school Could you explain the difference?


Answer: ACPE accredits schools of pharmacy. In most cases, schools are "fully" accredited. However, there have been a number of schools that have opened in the past several years and before they can be accredited, they must go through a multi-year accreditation process. Thus, some are considered "pre-candidate" or "candidate" depending on if they have students enrolled yet or have yet to graduate a class. Here is a listing of schools and their current status.
http://www.pharmcas.org/collegesschools/AAGAccreditation.htm
In rare instances, schools can be placed on "probation" or have their accreditation denied or withdrawn.

Additional information from ACPE:
http://www.acpe-accredit.org/students/faqs.asp

For some applicants, the thought of attending an "non-accredited" school is concerning because of the theoretical risk that upon graduation the degree will not be accepted by their respective state board of pharmacy. I believe this "risk" to be more perceived than real and would not discourage an applicant from choosing this route if it enabled entrance into the profession, particularly if they feel admission is more likely at a non-accredited school than an accredited school.

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