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Board approves allowing qualified PharmD students to take MPJE before graduation
Summary
The board voted to permit pharmacy students who complete the didactic curriculum to take the Texas MPJE prior to graduation, aligning eligibility with coursework completion and preserving graduation as a licensure requirement.
The Texas State Board of Pharmacy voted May 11 to amend examination rules to allow pharmacy students who have completed their three didactic years (P1–P3) to sit for the Texas Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (MPJE) prior to graduation.
Board staff said the amendment clarifies an exception allowing candidates who complete didactic coursework to test one time before graduation. Diane Ginsberg, who identified herself as a pharmacist and spoke in support of the change, told the board the amendment ‘‘preserves all public protection safeguards’’ while aligning testing with educational sequencing and pilot programs in other states.
Ginsberg argued that linking eligibility to completion of pharmacy law coursework — rather than degree conferral — matches how curricula are structured and should not affect licensure issuance; the board must still verify educational completion and no license will be issued before graduation. She cited pilot experiences in North Dakota and Wisconsin and described safeguards that limit eligibility, preserve board discretion and prohibit early licensure.
After brief board discussion and a public comment period that included no objections from pharmacy schools, the board voted to adopt the proposed amendment to 283.7 permitting qualified students to take the MPJE once prior to graduation.
What happens next: The rule change was adopted at the meeting and will be reflected in the board’s rule set; staff will maintain verification and licensure safeguards to ensure no licenses are issued prior to graduation.
