Pharmaceutics is the discipline of pharmacy that deals with all facets of the process of turning a new chemical entity into a medication that can be safely and effectively used by patients in the community. Pharmaceutics is the science of dosage form design. Pharmaceutics deals with the formulation of a pure drug substance into a dosage form. The branches of pharmaceutics include:

• Pharmaceutical chemistry
• Pharmacognosy
• Pharmacology
• Pharmaceutical technology
• Regulatory affairs
• Pharmaceutical analysis
• Clinical pharmacy

Pharmacists are health professionals who practice the science of pharmacy. In their traditional role, pharmacists typically take a request for medicines from a prescribing health-care provider, in the form of a medical prescription, dispense the medication to the patient and counsel them on the proper use and adverse effects of that medication. In this role, pharmacists ensure the safe and effective use of medications. Pharmacists also participate in disease-state management, where they optimize and monitor drug therapy or interpret medical laboratory results, in collaboration with physicians and/or other health professionals. Pharmacists have many areas of expertise and are a critical source of medical knowledge in clinics, hospitals, medical laboratories and community pharmacies throughout the world. Pharmacists may also hold positions in the pharmaceutical industry, in pharmaceutical education and in research and development institutions.

Pharmacists working in independent pharmacies may become owners or part-owners after they gain appropriate experience and secure the necessary capital. Those in chain drugstores may be promoted to pharmacy supervisors or store managers, then to district or regional managers and eventually to executive positions at the headquarters. Hospital pharmacists may be promoted to supervisory positions. Those who work in the pharmaceutical industry may advance in areas including marketing, sales, research, or quality control. They advise physicians and other health practitioners on the selection, dosages, interactions, and side-effects of medications. They monitor the health and progress of patients in response to drug therapy and are able to advise patients and answer questions about prescription drugs, including questions about possible side-effects and interactions between different drugs. As a very important feature they provide information and make recommendations about over-the-counter drugs. Pharmacists may also give advice about diet, exercise, or stress management and help patients manage conditions such as diabetes, asthma, smoking cessation, or high blood pressure.

Pharmacists must have a scientific attitude and good communication skills and be detail-oriented.

To work as a pharmacist, you must have a pharmaceutical degree. The Pharmacy programs in Szeged last for 5 years. They include theoretical and practical courses in mathematics, chemistry, biology, pharmacology, technology, and social sciences. From the second year, it is necessary to work for one month each summer in a community pharmacy or in industry. After the fourth year, 2 months in August and September and 4 months from February to June are obligatory as board examination practice periods, including 1 month of clinical practice. At the end of the course of study a Doctor of Pharmacy degree is awarded, many workplaces will be waiting for you. You can work in public or hospital pharmacies, laboratories, pharmaceutical research institutes, international commercial trade in pharmaceuticals or the field of management.

The pharmaceutical diploma gives you the opportunity to acquire a scientific and life-long learning approach in an exciting, varied, well-paid profession. Everything depends on you to achieve an excellent goal.

The Academic Program offered by the Faculty of Pharmacy leads to the degree of Doctor of Pharmacy*. This program extends over a period of five years. It begins with an introduction to the basic sciences providing a basis for further pharmaceutical studies. In the second part of the program, students take part in general and special pharmaceutical education at the university departments, teaching pharmacies, institutes, laboratories and pharmaceutical works.

The faculty seeks to educate its undergraduates by promoting their intellectual development and their progressive accumulation of competence in all fields of modern pharmacy.

Students learn a synopsis of all pharmaceutical disciplines and are expected to acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes to qualify for their degree.

Attendance at the Faculty of Pharmacy requires some basic knowledge in Biology and Physics (see admission requirements). The diploma program consists of five years of basic and special studies.

The first two years are devoted to the basic sciences: Physics, Mathematics, General Chemistry (Inorganic and Organic), Qualitative and Quantitative Chemical Analysis, Physical Chemistry, Colloid Chemistry, Biochemistry, Pharmaceutical Botany, Biology, Physiology and Pathophysiology.

The 3rd and 4th years specifically stress the special pharmaceutical sciences: Pharmacognosy, Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Chemical Analysis, Pharmacodynamics and Toxicology, Microbiology, Pharmaceutical Technology, Public Health and Epidemiology, First Aid, Ethics, Social Pharmacy and Management of Drug Materials.

In the 9th semester the following subjects are taught: Biopharmacy, Radiopharmacy, Galenical Pharmacy, Veterinary Pharmacy, Biotechnology, Clinical Pharmacy, Clinical Laboratory Analysis, and laboratory work necessary for a written Thesis. After the 2nd, 3rd and 4th years, students take part in practical training on three occasions, in public pharmacies (4 weeks), in their countries.

In the 9th semester students must submit a written thesis, and in the 10th semester they are engaged for twenty weeks in a practical training program in public and hospital pharmacies, or at a pharmaceutical company in Hungary. After the practical training period, students take examinations in the presence of the State Board, where they have to prove their skills in pharmaceutical sciences (both practical and theoretical).

The pharmaceutical diploma entitles the bearer to work in public and hospital pharmacies, laboratories, pharmaceutical works, pharmaceutical research institutes, international commercial trade of pharmaceuticals, management of pharmaceutical materials.