Education based on quality, competitiveness and cooperation
The Faculty of Pharmacy was designated as a unit in the structure of the Medical University of Plovdiv by a decision of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria in 2006. The Faculty conducts training in professional field 7.3. Pharmacy for obtaining Master’s degrees in full time form of education. With the Accreditation Council decision of the National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency from 27.07.2017, the specialty received program accreditation with an overall score of 9.32 and a training capacity for the specialty of 800 students. The faculty conducts training on accredited programs for the acquisition of the educational and scientific degree “Doctor of Philosophy”.
The mission of the Faculty of Pharmacy at MU of Plovdiv is to provide comprehensive and contemporary pharmaceutical education, which will provide students with knowledge, skills and ethical values. The excellent theoretical preparation and development of practical skills of the graduate pharmacists are guaranteed both by the presence of lecturers with the necessary scientific and pedagogical potential, and by the modern facilities.
Education at the Faculty of Pharmacy meets European and world standards in the field of higher education. The obtained degree is valid throughout the European Union. A European diploma supplement in English is provided to graduates, in accordance with the active State Standard. The training in the specialty “Pharmacy” for obtaining a Master’s degree is conducted in Bulgarian and English and lasts 5 years (10 semesters), including a pre-graduate internship. The pre-graduate internship lasts 6 months and is planned and organised at the end of the studies. Compulsory subjects (basic and specialised) are distributed from the 1st to the 9th semester in a logical sequence. The elective courses are tailored to the requirements to provide additional specialised training. Students’ views on all aspects of the educational process are regularly surveyed and improvement measures are taken based on the feedback received.
The facilities used for training students from the specialty of “Pharmacy” are provided with modern equipment, tailored to the specifics of the specialty. The auditoriums, specialised training rooms and laboratories are equipped in accordance with the contemporary standards and provide very good conditions for the implementation of the educational process and research work. Training is conducted with the help of interactive teaching methods. In the Faculty of Pharmacy, opportunities have been created for the active participation of students in research projects, regulations for funding regional and international conferences, as well as for the publication of articles with an impact factor.
The scientific research activity at the Faculty of Pharmacy – Plovdiv includes a wide variety of scientific interests and experimental methods, following the priority scientific directions of the Medical University – Plovdiv. In addition to research directly related to pharmaceutical science, the Faculty carries out numerous collaborations in the fields of medicine, dentistry and fundamental sciences. Currently, scientific interests of the Faculty are: research on biological activity of substances of natural and synthetic origin, chemical, pharmaceutical and clinical laboratory analysis, pharmaceutical technologies, microgravity studies with laboratory animals. The faculty is comprised of 8 departments. The facilities include the research laboratories built on the territory of the Faculty, equipped with modern appliances. In terms of infrastructure, the organisation of research is distributed in several bases – the Main building of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical College, as well as on the territory of theoretical departments in the newly built Training Building 1. An important integrative element is the active participation of researchers in intra-university scientific projects. Numerous international projects have been successfully implemented, utility models and patents have been registered. Several new projects with national and European funding are underway. The lecturers from the Faculty of Pharmacy are both participants in prestigious congresses and conferences and organisers of scientific forums on a national and international scale, with the active participation of students and doctoral students. Priority in publication activity is the presentation of experimental works in journals referenced in authoritative databases, including Web of Science and Scopus.
16 classes have already graduated the Faculty of Pharmacy which is equal to 1727 graduates. A large number of foreign citizens from the Republic of Greece, the Republic of Türkiye, the Republic of Serbia, Moldova, Ukraine, the Kingdom of Morocco, Great Britain are among them. The training process meets the European standards and complies with Directive 36/2005, which creates good opportunities for student mobility and teacher exchange. The Faculty of Pharmacy is a member of European and international pharmaceutical associations and supports liaison with industry organisations and pharmaceutical companies. Commitments to international mobilities are a mandatory element of staff development in the field of teaching and research skills. Many incoming and outgoing mobilities of students and teachers are implemented annually in the Faculty, which asserts it as an educational and scientific institution on a global scale.