Clinical Pharmacy (Thesis)

Throughout the development and modernization process of the pharmacy profession, the role of the pharmacist has evolved beyond simply being a healthcare professional who delivers prescribed medications from the pharmacy shelf to the patient. Pharmacists have also taken on the role of personal healthcare specialists and consultants who optimize patient treatment processes and help healthy individuals improve their health status and maintain a higher quality of life.

The definition of specialization in the field of Clinical Pharmacy is not limited to being a pharmacist working only in clinical or hospital settings.

In practice, clinical pharmacy involves acquiring and integrating fundamental knowledge and principles in areas such as pharmaceutical care, individualized and rational medication use, clinical sciences, ethics, sociomedical and cultural approaches, and pharmacoeconomic perspectives through postgraduate education, while combining this knowledge with undergraduate pharmacy education.

As a result of this process, pharmacists acquire specialized therapeutic knowledge along with clinical, academic, and social experiences, enabling them to easily adapt to different professional environments and situations, engage in discussions, conduct research, and provide professional interpretations.

Based on this fundamental approach, the Faculty of Pharmacy and Faculty of Medicine at Istanbul Medipol University have combined their academic knowledge and experience with the Medipol Hospital Complexes, one of Türkiye's leading healthcare institutions, and have established the Clinical Pharmacy Master's Programs under the Institute of Health Sciences, as detailed below.

Program Features and Introduction

• Clinical Pharmacy Master's Programs consist of two programs based on the same academic framework: a Master's Program with Thesis and a Master's Program without Thesis.
• The programs are designed exclusively for candidates who have completed an undergraduate degree in Pharmacy.
• The standard duration of both programs is planned as 2 years (4 semesters).
• Candidates applying for the Master's Program with Thesis are required to provide an ALES certificate, whereas an ALES certificate is not required for candidates applying for the Master's Program without Thesis.
• Candidates in both programs are required to have sufficient foreign language proficiency to follow professional books and publications. Applicants may demonstrate their foreign language proficiency by obtaining a minimum score of 50 from the Foreign Language Proficiency Certificate (Interuniversity Foreign Language Examination) or an equivalent score from an examination recognized by the Interuniversity Board (ÜAK). Alternatively, candidates may take the foreign language proficiency examination administered by Istanbul Medipol University.

Course Programs and Academic Process

The compulsory and elective courses designed for both the Master's Program with Thesis and the Master's Program without Thesis are based on a common structure. During the course selection and planning process, candidates select elective courses offered during the relevant semester in accordance with their academic, hospital pharmacy, community pharmacy, or pharmaceutical industry interests through consultation with their academic advisors.

Master's Program with Thesis

• Students enrolled in the Master's Program with Thesis are expected to complete a minimum of 2 semesters of coursework and conduct thesis research for 2 semesters.
• At the end of the Master's Program with Thesis, students are required to submit a master's thesis prepared under the supervision of an appointed faculty advisor and successfully defend their thesis.
• Students are recommended to complete approximately 120 ECTS credits in order to graduate from the program. (Program tuition fees are calculated based on course credits, not ECTS credits.)

Master's Program without Thesis

• Students enrolled in the Master's Program without Thesis are expected to complete a minimum of 3 semesters of coursework and conduct a project study for 1 semester.
• At the end of the Master's Program without Thesis, students are required to submit and present a project report prepared under the supervision of an appointed faculty advisor.
• Students are recommended to complete approximately 120 ECTS credits in order to graduate from the program. (Program tuition fees are calculated based on course credits, not ECTS credits.)