University Accreditation Results(Results for Certified Evaluation and Accreditation for university)

Osaka University of Pharmaceutical Sciences

Basic Information of the Institution
Ownership: Private

Location: Osaka, Japan

Accreditation Status
Year of the Review: 2018
Accreditation Status: accredited （Accreditation Period: April.01.2019 – March.31.2026）

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Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Resultsfor Osaka University of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Overview
Osaka University of Pharmaceutical Sciences (hereafter, the University) has beencommitted since its establishment to the founding philosophy of “fostering the spirit ofself-help and independence, and imparting in-depth pharmacy knowledge to cultivate
humane and compassionate pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists, thereby
contributing to improving people’s welfare and culture.” Based on its mission to “createknowledge through an enterprising spirit and contribute as a community-based university
to building a fulfilled and healthy society through healthcare services,” the University
undertakes educational and research activities related to pharmacy and trains
pharmaceutical professionals. To realize this mission and the objectives of humanresources development, it formulated a six-year medium-term plan starting in fiscal 2014,and has strived since to enhance its educational quality based on six priorities, including
strengthening governance in education and research, and launching new initiatives as auniversity that contributes to the local community. In fiscal 2018, the Faculty of
Pharmaceutical Sciences stopped accepting applications for the Division of
Pharmaceutical Sciences (four-year program) and focused exclusively on the Division of
Pharmacy (six-year program).
The medium-term plan features close cooperation between pharmacy andmedicine to promote advanced pharmaceutical education and research as a key item. Inaccordance with its new pharmaceutical education model and core curriculum, theUniversity designs distinctive curriculums by actively encouraging inter-professional
education (IPE) in collaboration with regional medical universities and institutions. It ishighly commendable that through these educational approaches the University is able tofacilitate the acquisition of advanced knowledge and skills required to handle
pharmaceuticals, while nurturing high moral values and training pharmacists who canparticipate in clinical practice as medical team members. In addition to working together
with regional universities and medical institutions, the University is returning its
education and research outcomes to society and expanding its recurrent education
programs (continuing education after graduation) in line with its medium-term plan.
Among its notable efforts are planning and organizing diverse courses and training
sessions to support pharmacists’ continuous self-improvement, and launching theLifelong Learning Center in fiscal 2017. These distinctive initiatives are expected to spur

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further development.
To undertake these initiatives, the University has strengthened its governanceand internal control and developed an effective internal quality assurance system.
Specifically, the Internal Quality Assurance Committee led by the president has served
as an organization promoting the University’s internal quality assurance since fiscal 2016.
The committee has drawn up various policies to conduct annual verification and clarified
the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle from educational planning and design tomanagement, inspection, and improvement to develop a system that provides
improvement support for the faculty council and other internal committees. It has also
undertaken other improvement activities, including reviewing its degree award,
curriculum design and implementation, and admission policies (hereafter, “the threepolicies”) as well as reexamining the curriculum and introducing a system that inspects
syllabuses for students enrolled in the Division of Pharmacy, Faculty of PharmaceuticalSciences, in fiscal 2018 and beyond.
There are several issues the University needs to address, however. The
syllabuses do not clearly state the grading methods, and the development of a benchmark
for monitoring and evaluating the learning outcomes stated in the degree award policy isinsufficient. In addition, the faculty grants credits for incomplete subjects taken in thelower years after advancing to the following academic year solely on the test results
without attending lessons, and this inappropriate practice should be corrected in light ofthe purpose of the credit system. Meanwhile, the graduate school remains short of its
student quota, and its enrollment should be appropriately managed.
To address these challenges in the coming years, the Internal Quality AssuranceCommittee needs to play a central role in operating an effective internal quality assurance
system so that the University can advance its distinctive initiatives for furtherdevelopment.
Notable Strengths
Educational Program and Outcome
 The Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences has addressed the existing challenge ofreviewing its “Humanism and Medical Ethics Education.” To advance thiseducational initiative, it initially established joint multi-field subjects in collaboration
with Osaka Medical College, an institution that is run by the same school corporationand has participated in the faculty’s regular extracurricular activities. These subjects

4are newly designed as regular courses for the curriculum applicable to students
enrolled in fiscal 2018 and beyond, with basic to practical subjects assigned
progressively from the first to sixth years while reorganizing related existing subjects
allocated to each academic year. More specifically, the faculty’s courses include“Medical Professional Minds,” aimed at learning the mindsets befitting medical
professionals; “Interprofessional Collaboration of Medical Care,” designed to acquire
the basic skills essential for cooperating as medical teams; “Biomedical Ethics,”
focusing on ethical values required for medical professionals; and “Interprofessional
Collaboration Seminar,” offering practical guidance on team medical care throughdiscussions on medical safety and ethical judgments. It is commendable that thesecourses adopt group discussions and presentation methods to deepen theunderstanding of the pharmacist’s role on medical teams, with these approaches
expected to enhance ethical values and communication skills.
Faculty and Faculty Organization
 The University has set the target of enhancing faculty members’ performance tocontinuously improve education in its faculty organization policy, and accordinglyconducts faculty development (FD) activities involving students. To date, the “OpenClass Workshop” has been held for faculty members to discuss suggestions for
improvement based on classes open to students and present the outcomes. In fiscal
2017, the Student FD Committee was organized to hold joint meetings with the FD
Committee consisting of faculty members, with the two committees exchanging
opinions on class evaluation and its effectiveness. These discussions with students led
to the introduction of a smartphone questionnaire system and a question item review.
It is commendable that the University’s efforts to actively welcome students’ opinions
are proving effective in further improving lessons.
Social Cooperation and Contribution
 For many years, the University has offered the “Course for the Public” for local
residents and the “Open Educational Course” designed as a lifelong training support
project for pharmacists. In recent years the pharmacist support project has introduced
seminar courses, such as the “Satellite Seminar” and the “Physical Assessment
Seminar for Pharmacists.” It is commendable that these courses are helping toenhance the performance of pharmacists in a clinical setting by improving basic

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pharmaceutical knowledge and teaching the knowledge and skills required for home
medical care and other services. In addition, the Lifelong Learning Center was
established in fiscal 2017 with the aim of providing the latest knowledge and skills
required for pharmacists. These efforts are commendable as initiatives based on theUniversity’s mission and policy, with recurrent educational programs for pharmacists
expected to further expand in the coming years.
Suggestions for Improvement
Educational Program and Outcome
 The syllabuses of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Graduate School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences show that the grading of some subjects counts attendance
points and lists unclear criteria such as class performance and classroom attitudes.
This situation should be improved with the syllabus inspection system strengthenedto specify appropriate grading methods.
 To monitor and evaluate learning outcomes, the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
and the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences have drawn curriculum maps toanalyze the assessment of academic achievements with subjects allocated inaccordance with their degree award policies, but the benchmark for evaluating themonitored outcomes has not been developed. Since monitoring the learning outcomesstated in the degree award policies is insufficient, this issue should be improved.
Student Enrollment
 The ratio of student enrollment to the student enrollment cap is low at 0.13 in thePharmaceutical Sciences Major (first-term doctorate program) of the Graduate Schoolof Pharmaceutical Sciences. This ratio should be improved with the graduate school’s
student quota thoroughly managed.
Recommendations
Educational Program and Outcome
 The Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences grants credits for incomplete subjects taken

6in the lower years after advancing to the following academic year, on condition thatthe students pass “reexaminations” or “special reexaminations” administered during
the fourth year instead of retaking the courses. It is inappropriate to grant credits forincomplete subjects based solely on passing the examinations without attendingclasses in the following years. This issue must be corrected in light of the purpose of
the credit system.