If you are enrolled in an accredited university and pursuing a degree in pharmacy, there are several financing options to consider and pay tuition and board expenses in Canada. You can apply for grants, scholarships, and loans offered by private lenders and under government programs.
Universities Offering Programs in Pharmacy
Several Canadian universities offer degree programs in pharmacy, including School of Pharmacy – University of Waterloo, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg (URL), Dalhousie University, Halifax (URL), University of British Columbia, Vancouver, University of Alberta, and others. Some institutions offer Bachelor Degrees only while others also offer Doctor of Pharmacy degrees.
Financing Options Available
Grants
One option is to apply for a grant or scholarship. Grants are offered in the form of financial assistance whereby students don’t need to pay the money back. There are different types of grants targeted at students with disabilities, students with dependents, full- and part-time students, and those from middle- and low-income families. Bursary programs and grants are also available through the territorial and provincial authorities. There are certain eligibility criteria to meet when applying for grants. For instance, low-income students must be enrolled full-time at an accredited institution and pursuing a degree with a duration of at least 2 years. Income eligibility requirements vary by province and are based on family size.
Government-Sponsored Loans and Programs
There are two financing options available, government-sponsored loans and loans from private lenders, including banks, and credit unions. Government assistance is available under provincial and federal programs. Some jurisdictions run their own assistance programs, for example, Quebec and the Northwestern Territories. Again, there are eligibility criteria for students to meet. Only permanent residents and citizens qualify as well as protected persons. Applicants who demonstrate financial need and pursue a degree or are enrolled in a certificate or diploma program meet the criteria for financial assistance. Credit check is also required for applicants who are 22 years old or older. When it comes to benefits, one of the main features of government-sponsored loans is that there is an interest-free period, and interest charges begin to accumulate once this period ends. It must be noted, however, that government-sponsored loans in Ontario also have maximum lifetime limits; see here: https://osap.gov.on.ca/OSAPPortal/en/A-ZListofAid/UCONT004192.html Repayment assistance is available in different forms, including permanent disability benefit, revision of terms, debt reduction in repayment, and interest relief.
Loans Offered by Private Lenders
Students who fail to meet the criteria for government financial assistance can apply for loans offered by major financial institutions such as CIBC and RBC as well as small banks. One of the main differences between government and private loans is that the latter do not have an interest-free period. The interest rate is also high. In general, students can choose from fixed and floating rates, and floating rates go up and down with prime rate fluctuations. In addition, some financial institutions also offer student lines of credit, cash advance credit cards, which are available to landed immigrants and Canadian citizens. Even applicants who are enrolled abroad are eligible to apply for a credit line. There are minimum income requirements but borrowers who fail to meet them are allowed to apply together with a co-applicant. Financial institutions accept applications from students who are enrolled in accredited and recognized universities and colleges. This is one alternative to private and government-sponsored loans, and students are allowed to make interest-only payments up to 1 year after graduation. Another benefit for borrowers is that student lines of credit offer convenient access to finances. Many financial institutions also emphasize the fact that there are no set-up or withdrawal fees.
Getting financial aid or loan is not always possible, so in some cases you might want to consider getting a credit card and start paying for your education with it. If your credit is not pristine, then you may have to apply for credit card for bad credit.
The pharmaceutical industry is well developed and innovative, with companies working to develop over-the-counter and generic drugs and new medications. They focus on research and development and medications for asthma therapy, depression, vision loss, arthritis, autoimmune diseases, and many others. The sector pools different companies, including medical device businesses, contract service providers, medium-sized and small biopharmaceutical enterprises, generic drug and brand-name companies, and others. Most businesses in the sector are subsidiaries of foreign-based multinational companies.
Trends
Pharmaceutical companies in Canada and around the world begin to adopt new policies and strategies to boost productivity and minimize risk. One of the key issues is competition and the fact that companies working for emerging and developing markets post significant growth. The main challenges that companies face include pricing controls, legislation, cost effectiveness, and demand.
Major Classes and Market Share
Companies report modest decline across major classes of therapeutic drugs and significant gains for some subclasses, for example, biological response modifiers. Top classes include:
Major classes also include diabetes therapy, HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, ACE inhibitors, and calcium blocking agents. The pharmaceutical industry has seen a marked decline in generic prices while more and more customers prefer to buy low-cost medications. To this, the main pharmaceuticals by market share include cholesterol reduction medications, asthma therapy drugs, depression and antidepressant medications, and vision loss pharmaceuticals. Major players on the market focus on different drug classes. Some pharmaceutical companies specialize in medications and technologies to treat inflammatory diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular disease, and psoriasis. Others focus on medications for Parkinson’s disease, sleep medications, asthma, cancer, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and others. Canadian businesses develop medical devices and aids, OTC products, innovative medications, drug delivery systems, and a lot more.
R&D and Focus
The pharmaceutical sector is involved in immunotherapy, protein engineering, stem cell and regenerative medicine, and vaccine research and development. Some companies also specialize in proteomics and genomics. In general, many companies work to develop, patent, market, and sell medications, technologies, equipment, and devices. Some pharmaceutical companies are involved in early-stage development. Patents are issued for processes and technologies used to manufacture pharmaceuticals as well as for new products. The sector, on the other hand, develops medications for both widespread and rare diseases. Research and development accounts for about 5 percent of sales. The goal is to create improved or new medications and therapies as well as bio-equivalent products to treat and prevent diseases. Biologics is a new field whereby products are synthesized from biological sources.