Washington University plans to acquire St. Louis College of Pharmacy64%
By Sarah Fentem56%
2/24/2026, 10:13:04 PM
BS Summary: This article contains 19 faulty reasoning types, including Self-Serving Bias, Halo Effect, and Appeal to Authority, with Framing Effect as the most egregious example at 22.7% saturation with 153 hits. Analysis detected 759 faulty-reasoning hits from 673 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 58.5% and a BS Rank of 64% (7,746 of 21,192 articles). This article is worse (more manipulative) than 63.50% of the article peer group.
Washington University officials have announced plans to acquire the St. Louis College of Pharmacy and the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy campus in St. Louis.
The acquisition, which is pending approval from government regulators, would establish the “WashU St. Louis College of Pharmacy” as the university’s 10th academic school.
The University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy, which includes the St. Louis College of Pharmacy, has a campus in the Central West End adjacent to several buildings that house Washington University’s medical campus.
“This moment reflects the best of who we are as an institution,” said WashU Chancellor Andrew Martin in a news release.
“We are building on a legacy of partnership and taking a forward-looking step to ensure that pharmacy education in St. Louis continues to thrive.”
Students in the Pharm.D. program, the four-degree required to become a licensed pharmacist, would transition to Washington University, and those graduating after spring 2027 would receive Washington University degrees.
Students in other UHSP programs would also continue through spring 2027.
After that some – but not all – students would transition into Washington University programs.
“Students whose programs are not continuing will be communicated to support continuity and minimize disruption,” Washington University officials said in a “frequently-asked questions” section that accompanied the announcement.
UHSP President Brian Seiz said the decision was difficult but was the best way to ensure “long-term” viability for the institution.
“The challenges are hitting the smaller private schools a little bit harder,” he said.
“We think being attached to Washington University, with their excellence in world-class education, with their research collaboration and with their clinical collaboration, really is a nice spot and a mission fit.”
Around 660 students are enrolled in UHSP’s four colleges.
The university includes its flagship pharmacy school, a college of arts and sciences, a population health school and a graduate school.
The latter three programs will be phased out after spring 2027.
Seiz said around three-quarters of the current students will be able to complete degrees, and the remaining will need to find “teach-out” or transfer agreements with other schools.
Students in the newly minted WashU pharmacy degree program would likely continue to take classes at the current UHSP location, officials said.
Higher education institutions have struggled as enrollment has dipped nationwide and costs have risen.
Smaller universities in the region have cut programs or closed.
UHSP had tried to adapt to the financial pressures, said Neal Sample, chair of the school’s board, in a news release.
For years, the school offered pharmacy degrees only.
During the pandemic, the school rebranded and added additional academic and athletic programs.
But those efforts didn’t work.
Small institutions with a narrow focus are struggling more than larger flagship schools with dozens of programs, Seiz said.
“We're one of the [freestanding pharmacy institutions] left that’s out there,” he said.
“Almost all the other ones are really attached to other larger or bigger universities, so that you get away from being just dependent on one degree and the fluctuations that happen.”
Pharmacy programs saw a boom in popularity around 20 years ago, Seiz said.
But interest and enrollment in the field has “seen ebbs and flows.”
It’s unclear how many faculty and staff may lose their jobs due to the acquisition.
WashU officials said news will come later and be shared with “a focus on transparency, respect and thoughtful implementation.”
Officials said WashU’s addition of a pharmacy school makes sense for the university, which has a national reputation for drug development, science research and medical education.
The school in recent years has been among the top recipients in the nation of federal research grants from the National Institutes of Health.
“At WashU Medicine, we often talk about the virtuous cycle of academic medicine,” said the school’s medical dean David Perlmutter.
“Integrating a pharmacy school deepens that cycle.”
Before the acquisition is finalized, accreditors and regulators with the Department of Education and the Higher Learning Commission will need to sign off on the deal.
That could take more than a year, officials said.
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