NBE to hold Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test GPAT 2024 tentatively on June 8: Pharmacy Council of India issues notice

New Delhi- Through a recent circular, the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) has announced the conduction of the Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test (GPAT) examination, a national-level entrance examination for entry into the Master of Pharmacy (M Pharm) program.

Along with this, PCI has also announced that it will disburse the stipend to the students who qualify the GPAT exam in the year 2023-24 and onwards.

The first GPAT examination was conducted in the year 2010 and thereafter it was conducted every year till 2018 by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) as per the instructions of the Ministry of Education, Government of India. Later, from the year 2019 till date, the examination was conducted through the National Testing Agency (NTA) as per the instructions of the Ministry of Education, Government of India.

“In accordance with the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India dated March 5, 2020, which states that the 'AICTE Act,' governing general technical education, would be amended to remove 'pharmacy' from its mandate, and pharmacy education would thereafter be governed by the Pharmacy Act, 1948”, the notice stated.

As per the judgment of the Honorable Supreme Court, PCI is the apex body of pharmacy institutes across the country. 

From this year, the PCI has taken the initiative to conduct the GPAT exam and disbursement of scholarships to GPAT qualified candidates, the council said.

In this regard, the PCI has announced that it is going to conduct the GPAT exam tentatively on 8th June 2024 through the National Board of Examination in Medical Sciences (NBEMS). 

Candidates who have a 4-year undergraduate degree in Pharmacy are eligible to apply for GPAT, however, candidates with a B.Tech degree or equivalent degree in Pharmaceutical and Fine Chemical Technology are not allowed to appear for the exam. Additionally, candidates in the last year of BPharmacy course are also eligible to take the exam. However, there is no age limit to apply for this entrance exam but they must be a citizen of India.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the NBE released its tentative calendar for forthcoming exams.

To view the circular, click the link below