Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) - After you apply

Successful completion of CASPer and Snapshot is mandatory in order to maintain admission eligibility. Visit the Waterloo Pharmacy CASPer and Snapshot web page for more information.

You will want to use a laptop or desktop computer to fill out and submit your AIF, as mobile phones are not compatible with the platform. To get you started, you may click here to view the AIF instructions, as well as a sample of the Pharmacy AIF questions.

After you have thoroughly read the instructions on the Welcome page, complete all of the questions on the Pharmacy page. Before you begin this task, we recommend that you first write out a rough draft of your answers and save them for your records in a program such as Microsoft Word or OneNote.

Most Pharmacy applicants will see only the Welcome and Pharmacy tabs. However, if you have previously applied to the University of Waterloo for an undergraduate program you may see the About You – Part A/B tabs on your Quest account, please disregard them and complete only the Pharmacy page.

The Save - Page in Progress button is available if you wish to go back to your answers and modify them. The admissions committee cannot access your answers until you have pressed the Submit - Page Finished button.

Before you submit your AIF, if you wish to change any of the information you previously saved in the questions that contain charts, you must DELETE the row(s) you wish to change, and click SAVE. Then you may ADD the new row(s) at the bottom of the chart and click SAVE. Please do not copy and paste any information into these charts, or you will receive an error message. If you receive an error, we recommend that you log out of Quest, clear your computer’s cache, log back in, and proceed with the deletion and addition of the row(s) in question.

Please be aware that no amendments can be made to the AIF after you submit it. Please ensure that all of your information is correct and up-to-date before pressing the Submit button.

Tips for filling out the course equivalencies chart on your AIF

• The grade field is mandatory and must be filled out for all of the corresponding courses listed on the AIF or you will receive an error when you attempt to submit the form. 
• All prerequisite courses must be accounted for, including courses you are currently enrolled in, or are planning to take in a future term. 
• If your course is in progress, input the grade as IP. 
• If you are missing a course, input the grade as NA.
• You may input your grades in alpha or numerical format depending on how your institution reports them on your transcript.
• If your institution grades labs separately from lectures, you may indicate this by using a slash (e.g. course code: BIOL 130/130L and grade: 75/95).
• If you are using a full-year (two-term) course to fulfill two 0.5-unit electives, you may identify the course in two rows.
• If you are using a high school transfer credit to satisfy a prerequisite, indicate the IB, AP or A-level course in the University column and input CR as the grade.

All applicants are required to submit a transcript by the end of the fall 2022 term for the first phase of the admissions process. Applicants who obtain an invitation for an interview will also be required to submit a transcript at the end of the winter 2023 term.

However, current and former Waterloo students are not required to forward official transcripts because we have access a copy of your Waterloo record (including any applicable transfer credit information).

Official transcripts are required from all post-secondary schools attended. If you are currently attending a university, please ensure that an interim transcript indicating your final fall grades and winter enrollment is sent to the Registrar’s Office (or uploaded to your Quest account) by Feb 6, 2023.

Please note you may request the automatic submission of your transcripts through your OUAC application. You are not required to send/upload duplicate copies.

• If you requested your transcripts through the OUAC (by checking “End of fall term” and “End of winter term” on the application), you need not send/upload duplicate copies.  
• If you did NOT request your transcripts through the OUAC, please ensure that your Registrar’s Office forwards the documents directly to Waterloo: 

  • REGISTRAR’S OFFICE
    University of Waterloo
    200 University Ave. West
    Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1
    Fax: 519-746-2882

• You may email unofficial transcripts to myapplication@uwaterloo.ca. 
• Alternatively, you can upload one copy of each transcript to your Quest account. You may upload only ONE unofficial transcript per institution per day in the Documents section of your Quest account. Find out more about submitting documents to Waterloo, as well as a tutorial on uploading your transcripts to Quest.
• High school transcripts are not required for admission (you can disregard the high school upload field in your Quest account). The exception is for students who received transfer credit for IB, AP or A-level courses. If you fall into this category, please forward your official examination results to the Registrar’s Office.

If the last four years of your education have not been taught completely in English, you must provide a score from an acceptable test of English proficiency. View Waterloo’s official English language policy, acceptable tests and required scores.

NOTE: If you were educated in English in a country outside of Canada, you may be asked to provide evidence of the medium of instruction at that institution.

A section within the AIF asks you to provide the name and contact information for someone who will serve as your reference. Once you complete the AIF, your reference will automatically receive a link to complete an online form.

The reference form serves to help the Admissions Committee understand the applicant’s suitability for a career in pharmacy. References from pharmacists are likely to offer better insights into the applicant’s fit for the profession, and are therefore preferred. Those from other health professionals likely to be familiar with the role of pharmacists (i.e. physicians and nurses) are also acceptable, if they speak to the candidate's likely success as a pharmacist.

You must indicate one Reference Type when completing your AIF. When filling out the information for your reference, you do not need to use the Occupation pull-down menu items, as you have already chosen the Reference Type.

When you press the Submit – Page Finished button on the Pharmacy page, your reference will receive an email from Waterloo (normally the following business day) that will direct them to a secure online form that they must submit by Feb 6, 2023.

Your references will receive a confirmation email after they have submitted the form (normally the following business day), and will be provided with an electronic copy of their letter.

When a reference letter has been received, the Documents section of your Quest account will be updated to show its receipt (normally the following business day).

IMPORTANT: Letters of reference must be submitted using the online reference system. Letters on stationery and hard copy forms are NOT acceptable. Relatives are not accepted as references.

Select applicants will move to the second stage of the admissions process. These applicants will be invited to participate in a virtual interview and to complete a Fundamental Skills Assessment.