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Liaison

PharmCAS Program User Guide

This guide provides you with documentation, reference guides, and direct links that answer common admissions questions about the PharmCAS Applicant Portal, Configuration Portal, and WebAdMIT. It also contains resources that may help you work more efficiently throughout your admissions process. If you have additional questions or need further assistance, please contact your Account Manager and Client Success Manager.

AACP Resources

Review the AACP 2022-2023 PharmCAS School Manual and the PharmCAS Resources page on AACP's website for additional information.

Cycle Timeframes

Applicant Portal

The Applicant Portal opens in mid-July and closes in late June. Applicants must submit all applications by the June deadline, if not earlier per PharmCAS program configurations. You can view the specific cycle dates, including final processing dates (e.g., last date to submit transcripts, last date to request letters of recommendation, etc.), on the PharmCAS Application Cycle Dates page.

Configuration Portal

Between early April and early June, configurations are entered into the prelaunch environment. The Account Manager, Client Success Manager, and AACP review submitted configurations in early June.

WebAdMIT

You can view new applicants and initiate a transfer settings shortly after the new cycle opens in mid-July.

Primary Program Contacts

Liaison requires all programs to designate two contacts at your institution who will receive all communication from AACP and PharmCAS, including the configuration, application, and WebAdMIT launch notifications. These individuals are responsible for creating and managing WebAdMIT accounts for all other faculty and staff users who are affiliated with the institution and authorized by the institution to access individual applicant data. Both AACP members and non-members are invited to join the PharmCAS online community in AACP Connect to receive important updates about the service. See the PharmCAS School Manual for details.

Applicant Portal

The first three sections of the PharmCAS application (i.e., Personal Information, Academic History, and Supporting Information) compose the core application. They contain questions that are commonly asked of applicants across all participating programs, such as an applicant's biographic information, standardized test scores, and experiences. The fourth section of the application is Program Materials, which is customized by you through the Configuration Portal (discussed in the next section).

You can access the PharmCAS application and PharmCAS Applicant Help Center to review the applicant experience. You can also create a test application in the Applicant Portal; we recommend creating a new account and adding "test" to your name (e.g., TestJohn TestDoe).

For a general overview of the applicant experience, review the following documents:

You can direct any applicant inquiries related to the application to PharmCAS Customer Service.

Configuration Portal

Use the Configuration Portal Quick Start Guide to make sure you configure your program(s) efficiently and completely in the prelaunch environment. Be sure to check out your CAS's configuration options and review the best practices found throughout. If any optional sections of the application are required for your program (e.g., experiences, test scores, etc.), you'll want to note this on your program home page.

Once you've configured your program, you'll need to have it approved by the Account Manager, Client Success Manager, and AACP before it is available to applicants. If your program is reviewed after the cycle launches, AACP will approve it.

Additionally, review the following recommendations:

Configure Questions and Question Rules (Optional):

  • Review current school and supplemental applications to help you determine which questions you need to ask.
  • AACP recommends that programs ask no more than 3-5 custom questions.
  • Consider removing any custom questions that are not essential to your local admissions review process or predicative of success in your PharmD program.
  • If your program's custom questions include an essay, consider reducing the character limit. Applicants already submit a personal essay through the PharmCAS application that is shared with all programs they apply to.

Configure Prerequisites (Optional):

  • Pull together information on prerequisites, including any instructions.
  • You can customize which and how many prerequisites applicants can match coursework to.
  • AACP recommends that programs list ten or fewer prerequisites.
  • If applicants matching prerequisite coursework is a barrier for your program, deactivate this feature.

Configure Documents (Optional):

  • Ensure you have specific instructions for any documents you are requesting.

Configure Kira Talent Integration (Optional):

  • Kira Talent offers on-demand, timed video and timed written assignments that can be combined with the standard admissions process. You can link your Kira assessment to your program in the application by selecting Kira Assessment.

WebAdMIT

Review the WebAdMIT Manual for any questions related to working in WebAdMIT. The Reference Guides and WebAdMIT Training and Support sections are additional resources as you configure WebAdMIT for your needs. Documents commonly requested include:

The Release Notes feature new enhancements in the Applicant Portal, Applicant Gateway, Configuration Portal, Letters by Liaison, and WebAdMIT, in addition to upcoming training opportunities.

For any questions, contact the Client Support Specialist Team.

Cycle Enhancements

2022-2023

The table below contains enhancements for PharmCAS for the cycle timeframes noted at the top of this page. Note that some sections have multiple enhancements. If an action is required by participating programs to use the enhancement, click the links under Enhancement Details to learn more. Additional enhancements may have been automatically released; review the Release Notes to learn more.

Portal

Section

Enhancement Details

Implementation

Availability

Applicant Portal

Fee Waivers

If an applicant is eligible for a fee waiver but the fee waiver fund is depleted, then applicants can be alerted that they qualified for the fee waiver even though they could not be awarded one.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Extended Profile 

A new Extended Profile feature was added, which are question(s) an applicant must answer after they create their application and before they can select programs or complete any part of the application.

The Extended Profile includes a question about program plans. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Personal Information – Release Statement

The Release Statement text was updated. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Personal Information – Other Information

The Misdemeanor and Felony questions were removed.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Academic History –Colleges Attended

PharmCAS will now only accept World Education Services (WES) electronic foreign transcript evaluations. 

Additionally, if an applicant selects Unlisted French Speaking Canadian or Other Foreign Institution, they must complete a new required field for the college’s country.

If you created exports to pull a college's country data, you must edit and select the new college country fields. Review the Country Field for Manually Entered Foreign Institutions release note for more information.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Configuration Portal

Organization Details

You can only access the Add Program and Copy Program buttons in the Configuration Portal prelaunch environment.

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available now

Configuration Portal

Organization Details and Program Details

You can preview your programs in the application using the Preview feature and continue making edits as necessary.

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available now

Configuration Portal

Organization Details

Instead of rebuilding your program in the prelaunch environment, you can import your program from a previous cycle's production environment into the prelaunch environment. You can access the Import from Previous Cycle button in the Configuration Portal prelaunch environment. Visit the Import Your Programs page for more information.

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available now

Configuration Portal

Program Details

A new Resume/CV Document Type is available. 

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available now

Letters by Liaison

Evaluation Form

The If you are a pharmacist, please indicate the pharmacy institution from which you graduated question now has a free text answer option. Previously, the answer options appeared in a drop-down list. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

WebAdMIT

In Progress Applicants Search Page

CASs can now create a custom Program Plans question and answer values that are available in:

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

2021-2022

The table below contains enhancements for PharmCAS for the cycle timeframes noted at the top of this page. Note that some sections have multiple enhancements. If an action is required by participating programs to use the enhancement, click the links under Enhancement Details to learn more. Additional enhancements may have been automatically released; review the Release Notes to learn more.

Portal

Section

Enhancement Details

Implementation

Availability

Applicant Portal

Fee Assistance Program

The Fee Assistance Program name and in-application instructions are updated to reflect CAS-specific information.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Early Decision

The Early Decision feature was removed.

All related features and fields were also removed from WebAdMIT. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Add Program Page

The Add Program page is now easier to navigate and offers more ways to search for programs. It also offers increased adherence to 508 Compliance standards.

Additionally, the instructional text was updated to better assist applicants. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Add Program Page 

A new Priority Deadline column is available on the Add Program page. 

Association users can configure this custom attribute in the Configuration Portal. In WebAdMIT, it appears at the bottom of the Program Details page. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Add Program Page 

A new State column is available on the Add Program page. 

Additionally, the existing Deadline column was renamed to Final Deadline.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Personal Information – Release Statement

The Code of Conduct text was updated to link to the Applicant Code of Conduct, Applicant Code of Conduct Violations, Interview No-Show Policy, and Dispute Resolution sections of the PharmCAS Applicant Help Center. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal 

Personal Information – Biographic Information

A new Legal Sex question replaces the existing Gender question.

Additionally, new Gender Identity and Pronouns questions were added. These questions are optional. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Academic History – Standardized Tests

The instructional text was updated to better assist applicants. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Configuration Portal

Question Rules

You can choose to request or require a document upload based on an applicant’s response to an Extended Profile or program-level question using the Show Document Question Rule.

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available now

Configuration Portal

Kira Talent Assessment

Kira Talent offers on-demand, timed video and timed written assignments that can be combined with the standard admissions process. You can link your Kira assessment to your program in the application by selecting Kira Assessment.

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available now

WebAdMIT

Applicant Details Page

You can now view which applicants reapplied from a previous cycle in WebAdMIT. The Applicant Previously Applied to Organization field tracks this information and populates as Yes or No

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

WebAdMIT

Competing Offers Accepted Page

The Designation and Offers Accepted Count columns can be removed from the Competing Offers Accepted page.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

WebAdMIT

Applicant Details Page

Applicants in Received and Complete statuses now appear in all searches, lists, and exports.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

WebAdMIT

Applicant Details Page

TOEFL MyBest scores are now available in the Standardized Tests panel. 

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

2020-2021

The table below contains enhancements for PharmCAS for the cycle timeframes noted at the top of this page. Note that some sections have multiple enhancements. If an action is required by participating programs to use the enhancement, click the links under Enhancement Details to learn more. Additional enhancements may have been automatically released; review the Release Notes to learn more.

Portal

Section

Enhancement Details

Implementation

Availability

Applicant Portal

Academic History – Colleges Attended

The workflow for entering colleges has been improved. Enhancements include:

  • The option to employ an e-transcript vendor from within the application (e.g., Parchment, National Student Clearinghouse, or Credential Solutions, where applicable)
  • An improved process for uploading and previewing unofficial transcripts
  • Enhanced display of requirements

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Add Program Page

Login Page

The PharmCAS School Directory has a new link: https://pharmcas.org/school-director...armd-directory.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Background Image

Logo

The PharmCAS background image and logo are updated with a new look and feel.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Coupon Codes

You can purchase coupons that cover the first program application fee ($175) or the additional program application fee ($55).

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Early Decision

The Apply Early Decision? page is updated to better assist applicants.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Personal Information – Other Information

Applicants can indicate how they were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Additionally, the Future Enrollment Plans questions include the current cycle years (e.g., 2020 and 2021).

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Personal Information – Release Statement

Applicants can update their Advisor Release agreement after submitting their application. 

Additionally, the Applicant Code of Conduct was updated.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

Applicant Portal

Supporting Information – Experiences

The help center text is updated to better assist applicants.

No action required by participating programs to use this enhancement.

Available at cycle launch

WebAdMIT

Transfer Settings

Typically when Transfer Settings is initiated, deferred applicants are carried forward as well. With the Liaison-assisted Deferral Process, deferred applicants are carried forward separately from Transfer Settings, at a predetermined date. Additionally, only select applicant information carries forward.

Action required by participating programs choosing to use this enhancement.

Expected to be available in fall 2020 (may be subject to change)

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