Complete Your Pharm.D. in 3.5 Years | Accelerated Curriculum

Learn how you can earn your Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) in 3.5 years taught with a hybrid format using a variety of focused opportunities!

Start the path to a rewarding professional career with the heart of Christian service. Scholarships available!

3.5-Year Curriculum

At Harding University College of Pharmacy (HUCOP) you will earn a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree in a 3.5-year program of study. An emphasis on service and professionalism will equip you with the knowledge and skills to make a difference in your community and around the world. Applications are now open for Summer 2025! Learn more in the academic catalog.

A Unique Experience

The first program of its kind in the country, Harding’s College of Pharmacy 3.5-year curriculum utilizes blended teaching and practice models to prepare students for graduation at least one semester earlier. The result allows pharmacy graduates to enter the workforce sooner, for a net financial benefit as compared to traditional four-year pharmacy programs. The extra salary earned gives you a quicker return on your investment in pharmacy education.

Designed Around You

Designed around the student, the Harding program offers hybrid modes of learning with the flexibility of online coursework in the summer and on-ground classes during the traditional fall and spring semesters. Students learn experientially in real world settings, all with Harding’s commitment to teaching from a foundation of Christian ethics and values.

By partnering with PioneerRx Pharmacy Software, our program allows you to learn in a real-world environment using the most installed software for independent pharmacies. You will enhance your clinical and functional skills by training in a pharmacy system that is innovative, robust, and feature-rich.

Curriculum

Our 3.5-year program begins with 2.5 years of classroom instruction and introductory pharmacy practice experiences followed by a final year comprised of advanced pharmacy practice experiences. Harding helps you find your inspired purpose, and that starts with a student-centered focus. Faculty mentors and dedicated staff are committed to encouraging you to seek more and expect more of yourself. Your student cohort is a community of its own as you navigate classes, labs and experiences together. As a group, you have many opportunities to make a difference in the Harding, Searcy and central Arkansas communities through campus organizations, volunteer opportunities and other co-curricular activities that track alongside the formal curriculum. Harding also provides national and international opportunities through medical mission trips and experiential opportunities.

Pharmacy program

Required Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences:

Inpatient Acute Care General Medicine
Inpatient Care I & II
Ambulatory Care
Advanced Community I & II
Advanced Hospital/Health-System
Health and Wellness — You are challenged to take your professional passion and care for the community around you. This required experience allows you to choose a health education initiative addressing a documented health concern in communities of need.

Elective Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences:

Cardiology
Compounding
Corporate Management
Infectious Disease
Military/Federal
Nuclear Medicine
Psychiatry/Substance Abuse
Regulatory/Government
Veterinary Medicine
and more!

Specialized Trainings and Certifications:

American Heart Association Basic Life Support (Health care Provider CPR)
APhA-Based Immunization Delivery
APhA Delivering Medication Therapy Management Services
Point-of-care testing (blood glucose, lipid panels, BMI, pulmonary function, etc.)
Disease State Management Credentialing

Graduate with your doctor of pharmacy one semester earlier and start your path to success! Since our program started in 2008, our students have a 97% job placement rate within six months to one year of graduation, including a significant portion offered positions prior to graduation.
Our pharmacy program is personal and relational. Our faculty and staff care about what they do, and in turn, create pharmacists who care, too.
The Farrar Center for Health Sciences building enhances your learning with smart classrooms, well-equipped laboratories and examination rooms, a student library and full-service cafe. Our Patient Skills Center offers 10 exam rooms for patient interactions and simulations. Enjoy access to additional interprofessional simulation spaces in the Swaid Center for Health Sciences building shared by Harding’s other Allied Health programs.
Our service-minded attitude and a strong commitment to ethics, accuracy and quality care.
Opportunities to particpate in pharmacy organizations at local, state and national levels:

American Pharmacists Association
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
American College of Clinical Pharmacy
American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy
National Community Pharmacists Association
The Rho Chi Society
Arkansas Pharmacists Association
Arkansas Association of Health-System Pharmacists
You'll graduate with two APhA pharmacist certifications including advanced training in immunizations and medication therapy management.
Study with students representing more than 45 states and more than 50 nations and territories who call Harding home. We strive to foster a culture of diversity, and we value people both near to us and new to us.
Searcy, Arkansas, combines small-town charm with big time opportunities. The recently revitalized, vibrant downtown area has everything from local coffee shops, restaurants and soda shops to farmers markets and community events.
As the 'Natural State', Arkansas has much to offer, from outdoor activities to cultural arts to health care opportunities. The capital city of Little Rock is a 50-minute drive from Searcy, with sites like Pinnacle Mountain State Park, Little Red River and Heber Springs within an hour’s drive, too.
Attend on-campus events at low or no cost, including concerts, theatre productions and esteemed speakers (including former presidents) from around the globe.

Harding College of Pharmacy makes a global impact.

Medical missions are available in:

Cameroon
Haiti
Honduras
Ghana
Guatemala
Nicaragua
Peru
Zambia
Tanzania

Countries represented by students and faculty:

Bahamas
British Samoa
Cameroon
Ghana
Italy
Ivory Coast
Nigeria
South Korea
Ukraine
United States
Vietnam
Zambia
Zimbabwe

Dual Degree Programs

PharmD/MBA
Focuses on entrepreneurship, health care management and principled leadership

PharmD/MSIS
Focuses on data integration, information assurance and security, and project management

PharmD/MAOL
Focuses on ability to establish goals, recruit teams, manage conflict and develop individuals/teams

Attention High School Seniors!

Gateway for Onboarding Learners of Distinction (GOLD) Program
Are you an incoming freshman and interested in a Pharmacy career? The GOLD Program is intended to guarantee highly qualified students a position in the College of Pharmacy Pharm.D. program after the successful completion of prerequisite courses and maintenance of certain academic criteria at Harding University or a GOLD partner school.

GOLD Program

HUCOP is creating a way for their program to be successful and competitive by offering a great educational experience that can offer a job placement at a time of need.

Dr. Steve Sparks (2013)

We value relationships

Faculty mentors support your success not only in the pharmacy profession but in your personal and spiritual life as well. Unite around a common purpose with students from Harding’s other health sciences programs (CFIT, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, physician assistant, speech-language pathology) as you learn together through patient-centered interprofessional collaboration.

We value community

Coming together through authentic professional connections, you will provide transformational care to our community neighbors locally, nationally and internationally. From classroom learning to pharmacy practice experiences, you will be equipped to help those in need. Our students put all of their hearts and energy into accomplishing our purpose and mission through:

Health fairs and wellness screenings
Community immunization programs
Medication take back programs
Tobacco prevention and cessation education
Appropriate medication use counseling

Dive into independent, innovative research projects with highly qualified, research-active faculty or join fellow student pharmacists throughout the nation as you take your pharmacy education to the next level with professional student organizations.

We value our commitment to purpose-driven education

Our program focuses on the development of Christian scholarship, the promotion of fair and just decisions, and the courage and confidence to make a global impact. We train pharmacists to be patient advocates who take responsibility for patient outcomes.

Pharmacy Curriculum