UBT Pharmacy Teaching and Learning
The EU Directive EC 2005/36 and EU Directive EP 2013 provide the basic and minimum standards of the profession of Pharmacist.. Kosovo has not yet consolidated a Pharmacy Competence Framework nor the legal basis to ensure that minimum standards are being followed. The newly proposed law on Regulated Professions outlines the need to regulate the nursing profession and provide coordination points to oversee the implementation of nursing profession standards.
While awaiting further institutional developments, UBT has adopted the EU Directive minimum standards of the profession to both ensure future student mobility and ensure that students meet the competency frameworks of advanced countries in dental practice. According to EU Directive EC 2005/36, The training of Pharmacy shall comprise a total of at least five (5) years of study, which may in addition be expressed with the equivalent ECTS credits, and shall provide at least four (4)theoretical training and at least six (6) months of practice. The UBT curriculum generally adheres to the EC Directive and meets the minimum theoretical/practical ratio defined therein.
The learning activities in theoretical component of the course of education are organized to support the subject and the competences the student must explore and develop. Education and study methods comprise a broad range of activities varying between: lectures, student presentations, theoretical exercises and assignments, dialogue-based and discussion-based education, case-based education, training in skills lab, authentic patient/citizen contacts through patient organizations. as well as project-based education including presentation and communication of result and product; counseling in connection with individual and common assignments also including projects; different types of virtual learning facilities; reading and study groups.
The ECTS are a value allocated to course units to describe the student workload required to complete them. They reflect the quantity of work each course requires in relation to the total quantity of work required to complete a full year of academic study at the institution that is, lectures, practical work, seminars, self-studies –in the library or at home – and examinations or other assessment activities. ECTS credits express a relative value. In ECTS, 60 credits represent the workload of a year of study; normally 30 credits are given for a semester. One ECTS credit is equivalent to 30 hours of students’ workload. Credits are awarded only if the course has been completed and all required examinations have been successfully taken. Students must have completed at least 75% of this workload to remain registered for the upcoming academic year.
The students participating in ECTS will receive credits for all academic work, successfully carried out at any of partner institutions and they will be able to transfer these academic credits from one participating institutions to another on the basis of the prior learning agreement. The learning agreement is based on the content of a study program abroad and concluded between the student and the home institution. If the student has successfully completed the study program previously agreed in the learning agreement and returns to the home institution, credit transfer will take place and the student will continue her/his studies at the home institution without any loss of time or credit. ECTS also enables further study abroad. The transcript of records is particularly useful in this context as it provides a history of the student is academic achievements.
Clinical education is organized at clinical placements within the social and health areas. The education is organized in close collaboration between the educational institution and the clinical placement in order to strengthen the connection between the students’ learning in theory and practice. The clinical education and evaluation is made by clinical educators in collaboration with the education institution and the lecturers at the institution.
The practical work is primarily organised in cooperation with University Clinical Centre and Ministry of Health through an Agreement for Access to Clinics’ Facilities. The institution also has an Agreement with the Ministry of Health that provides access to primary and secondary Family Medical Centres. Several individual agreements have been concluded with Municipalities. Agreements with the Municipality of Prishtina and Ferizaj offers access to all Family Medical Centres for pharmacy students. The institution has several agreements with private clinics to offer further opportunities for graduates, exchange of practices and research.
The programme emphasizes the importance of practical work both in terms of the share of hours dedicated to practical laboratory experience and its focus on an industry-based thesis and application. The programme includes a Practicum component which aims to promote and generate industry-relevant research, knowledge and projects. The pracitum component is well beyond the needed 6 months stated at the EU Directive.