School of Pharmacy

Overview

The School of Pharmacy at the Lebanese American University (LAU) is located in the city of Byblos, Lebanon. The School was founded in 1993 in response to the growing healthcare needs in the country and the region for pharmacists who have advanced knowledge and practice skills in clinical pharmacy. The School is a member of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP).

The LAU School of Pharmacy is nationally and regionally recognized for its progressive pharmacy education. The School offers two professional degrees: a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Pharmacy that requires five years of study and a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) that spans six years. The Pharm.D. program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE).

The School enrolls about 450 students every year, including students in the pre-pharmacy and professional academic years. Annually, the School graduates approximately 75 students with a B.S. in Pharmacy, and 30 students with a Pharm.D. degree. School graduates pursue post-graduate training or studies, or work in diverse fields such as in community and hospital pharmacy, pharmaceutical sales, pharmaceutical industry, and academia.

Program Goals

The goals of the program are to prepare graduates to:

  1. Provide evidence-based patient centered care to optimize pharmacotherapy outcomes in various multidisciplinary healthcare practice settings;
  2. Manage pharmacy operations in hospitals, community pharmacies, and industrial settings;
  3. Promote public health awareness and disease prevention, through innovation in the practice of pharmacy, for the benefit of the individual and community being served;
  4. Perform duties in accordance with legal, ethical, socioeconomic and professional standards; and
  5. Integrate scholarly research with clinical pharmacy practice and commit to self-directed lifelong learning.

Program Outcomes

Upon graduation, students will be able to:

  1. Gather, interpret, and evaluate needed patient-related data to identify actual or potential drug therapy problems (Rx and OTC) and develop a complete medical and drug therapy problem list;
  2. Select and recommend appropriate drug and non-drug therapy to design patient centered treatment plans;
  3. Devise and implement a patient monitoring plan to ensure achievement of desired therapeutic outcomes;
  4. Collaborate and communicate with other healthcare professionals to engender a team approach to patient care;
  5. Educate patients, caregivers, other health care professionals and the public about drug therapy, medical goods and devices;
  6. Prepare, dispense, and store medications appropriately and accurately according to professional standards and/or supervise their preparation;
  7. Develop skills to collaborate with policy makers, payers, members of the community, health providers, other stakeholders and decision-makers to promote public health and resolve public health problems;
  8. Apply patient- and population-specific data, quality assurance strategies, and research processes to assure that medication use systems minimize drug misadventuring and optimize patient outcomes.
  9. Assure efficient, cost-effective utilization of human, physical, medical, informational, and technological resources in the provision of patient care;
  10. Describe and demonstrate appropriate utilization of management principles and use of healthcare resources in the American and Lebanese healthcare systems;
  11. Retrieve, analyze, and interpret the professional and scientific literature to make informed, rational and evidence-based decisions;
  12. Explain the moral standards and professional conduct as well as discuss the ethical obligations related to the profession of pharmacy in order to resolve ethical conflicts and dilemmas;
  13. Demonstrate compliance with local, state, federal and international regulations affecting pharmacy practice; and
  14. Exhibit intellectual curiosity and personal commitment to ensure ongoing professional competency by identifying and analyzing emerging issues, products, and services that may impact patient-specific and population-based pharmaceutical care.

Degrees Offered

Extracurricular Activities

SOP students participate in a variety of extracurricular activities that complement their academic endeavors. The most popular are:

LPSA (Lebanese Pharmacy Student Association) is a non-political, non-religious, and non-profit student organization that was founded at LAU and is accessible to all pharmacy students in Lebanon. 

The association’s main activities are:

  • Raising awareness all over Lebanon and particularly in high schools about drug abuse, medication use, and many drug related topics;
  • Facilitating volunteer opportunities at cancer centers, drug abuse rehab centers, elderly homes, and much more;
  • Participating in annual health days in underprivileged areas where healthcare professionals from different backgrounds can gather to provide health care services for free; and
  • Gathering all Lebanese pharmacy students in one annual GALA dinner.

SSHP (Student Society of Health-system Pharmacy) is a society offers pharmacy students a platform to engage with other students, shape their own studies, connect globally to those within the pharmacy field, and build their future careers.

The society’s main activities are:

  • Supporting career development;
  • Participation in a Clinical Skills Competition;
  • Arranging for health-system pharmacy speakers;
  • Providing residency training information sessions;
  • Supporting professional development;
  • Engaging in projects directly related to health-system pharmacy practice; and
  • Recruting new members  (SSHP + State Affiliate + ASHP)

NAPHASS (No Apathy-Pharmacy & Health Awareness Student Society) is a society of pharmacy students who want to volunteer their time, knowledge and energy to reaching out to people and raising health awareness in LAU.

The society’s main activities are:

  •  Celebrating International Pharmacist day;
  •  Providing disease screening;
  •  Encouraging healthier lifestyles, especially among dorm residents;
  •  Clarifying health related misconceptions among students, such as appropriate use of antibiotics;
  •  Fundraising on campus for medical-related charities, such as cancer organizations;
  •  Providing services and outreach to underprivileged populations; and  Engaging in community outreach activities.

Contact Information

Beirut:

  • Extension 1065
  • Orme Gray Building 320
  • Website

Byblos:

  • Extension 2442
  • CHSC, Office 6103
  • Website