If you have graduated from a pharmacy program outside of Canada, you can register as a pharmacist in Manitoba as an international pharmacy graduate (IPG).
Before the application process begins with the College of Pharmacists of Manitoba (CPhM), you must go through the Pharmacist Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) document evaluation process and complete all components of PEBCs. If your initial process with PEBC started after August 2014, you must enroll in Pharmacist’s Gateway Canada.
The Pharmacist’s Gateway Canada website provides information and telephone support to potential applicants.
Use the step-by-step process below to guide you through the registration and licensure application process. Be sure to click on and read through each step.
You must meet the following criteria before you submit an application for registration with CPhM:
Pass the PEBC Evaluating and Qualifying Examinations. You have three years to apply for registration and licensure with CPhM once you have passed these exams. Please visit www.pebc.ca for more information.
Language proficiency in either English or French. You must meet the minimum language proficiency requirements set by the National Association of Regulatory Authorities (NAPRA). All minimum scores in each section must be obtained within one test sitting.
The evidence of your language proficiency must be dated within two years of your CPhM application as described in Step 2.
CPhM may exempt you from the standard language proficiency requirement if you meet one of the following conditions:
If any of your Canadian secondary school (high school) grades are less than 70 per cent, and you attended a foreign non-English speaking university pharmacy program, we may require that you show proof of fluency.
Complete the College Application for Registration and Initial Licensure for Graduates of a Faculty of Pharmacy Outside of Canada.
If the application is incomplete, it will delay the review and approval process.
Send the completed application form to the College, in addition to the supporting documents listed below.
You must get all of the following documents notarized by a notary public in Canada:
You must submit a copy of your PEBC Qualification Certificate or a copy of your letter from PEBC confirming qualification. The date of this document must be within three years before completing registration and licensure with the College.
If you do not qualify for an exemption, you must submit documentation to the College of your language proficiency dated within two years before completing registration and licensure with the College. Note the following:
You can choose one of the following options to submit a letter of standing to the College:
Your letter of standing must be dated within two years before completing registration and licensure with the College.
If you cannot provide a letter of standing to satisfy this requirement, please provide a signed and notarized statement that includes the following:
Your application to the College to practice as a pharmacy student or intern, pharmacy technician, or pharmacist must include a
Your checks are considered current only if the Registrar receives them within six months or less of the dates they were completed.
For more information visit Criminal Record, Vulnerable Sector Search, and Adult and Child Abuse Registry Checks | College of Pharmacists of Manitoba (cphm.ca)
The College Registrar of designate will review your application and supporting documents. You cannot start your internship, as described in Step 4, until your application is approved by the College Registrar or designate.
The College processes a maximum of five international pharmacy graduate applications each month. Applications are reviewed in the order they are received. If the College cannot process your application in the month it is received, the College will send you an email to let you know when it will be completed.
The College may consider expediting your application only if you have found an internship preceptor who has a position available and who has agreed to hire you once you are registered and licensed as a pharmacist in Manitoba. For the College to consider expediting your application, the preceptor must address a letter to the College Registrar stating the pharmacy’s staffing needs and how you will help meet that need. Please send this letter by email to registration@cphm.ca.
Note: The pharmacist you selected to act as your preceptor must be approved by the College before they can act as your preceptor. Please see Step 4 for more information about internships and preceptors.
You can begin your internship only once the College has approved
You are responsible for finding a preceptor to oversee your internship. If you have not found a preceptor yet, please use CPhM’s Public Directory for Pharmacies to search for a practice site. Additionally, you can check the Pharmacists Manitoba Careers page for job postings.
Please note the following before you choose a pharmacist to act as your preceptor:
For details about the internship process, please read the IPG Internship Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) below or the Internship Manual. For more information on preceptorship, including the application form, visit the Preceptorship page.
Before CPhM can schedule you to write the Jurisprudence Examination (JP Exam), you must complete Pharmacy Jurisprudence Modules. The modules are hosted by the University of Manitoba (U of M) Continuing Professional Development (CPD) website and you can complete the modules at any time.
Registration for the Modules: College of Pharmacists of Manitoba Pharmacy Jurisprudence Modules
Cost: $100 (payable to U of M CPD)
Estimated time to complete: 12 – 15 hours
The JP Exam is offered remotely once per month by CPhM. You will have three hours to complete the online, live-proctored exam. The exam is closed book in a multiple-choice format that contains 85 questions. The JP Exam is graded on a pass-fail basis. You will only be provided with notice of a pass or a fail (no specific grade will be provided).
Additional information about the Pharmacy Jurisprudence Modules and the JP Exam, including supplementary study materials, can be found here.
After you have fulfilled the registration and licensing requirements listed in Steps 1 through 5. Your file will then be reviewed by the CPhM Registrar or designate.
Please allow 4-5 weeks for the Registrar (or designate) to review of your file.
Please see the FAQ below for additional information for interns and preceptors.
As an internship candidate, you must successfully complete the requirements outlined by the Manitoba Pharmaceutical Regulation and submit all required documents, including an application form, to the College of Pharmacists of Manitoba (CPhM). You cannot begin your internship program without authorization from CPhM.
If you are an IPG and you want to complete your internship in Manitoba, you must complete all of the steps outlined on the Pharmacists from Outside of Canada page.
You must serve a 600-hour internship to be completed in a period of 15 to 21 weeks. This applies to IPGs and to graduates of post-secondary pharmacy programs from Canadian provinces outside of Manitoba.
Interns are responsible for finding their own preceptors. The CPhM website provides a searchable listing of licensed pharmacies in the province of Manitoba. Interns can use this list to contact pharmacies to ask if there is a pharmacist on staff who is willing to act as their preceptor.
Interns must serve a minimum of 400 of the total 600 internship practice hours in a pharmacy that has direct contact with patients. If a practice site cannot meet this requirement, interns must contact CPhM to make additional arrangements.
Once a pharmacist has agreed to act as your preceptor, you can log into your online profile with CPhM and click on the “Name Your Preceptor” link to open a simple form. Once you submit the form, CPhM will automatically be notified of your request by email. CPhM will then notify your potential preceptor and provide them with instructions to apply to become a preceptor.
Please note that the preceptor role is entirely voluntary. If the pharmacist does not meet the requirements to become a preceptor, you will be responsible for finding another eligible pharmacist to act as your preceptor.
Any changes in preceptor pharmacist and/or pharmacy will require the advance approval of the Registrar. You cannot switch preceptors and/or pharmacies during your internship without approval from CPhM.
The preceptor will evaluate you three times throughout the internship using the assessment forms outlined in the CPhM Internship Manual. Your internship will be evaluated each time you complete 200 hours.
Following each evaluation, the completed assessment forms shall be signed electronically by both the preceptor and the intern and submitted to CPhM within seven days of the completion of the 200-hour portion of the internship. Success will be based on the preceptor’s assessment of your performance.
Interns and preceptors are also required to assess the internship program using the forms contained in the Internship Manual and submit them to CPhM within seven days of completing the internship.
An intern can engage in any pharmacy practice under the supervision of a pharmacist excluding practices that require additional training or CPhM certification. For instance, pharmacy practices such as administering injections or prescribing Schedule III Drugs require CPhM certification. You can only perform these tasks if you have completed the required training, and only under the supervision of a certified pharmacist who has received the appropriate training and certification.
You can also perform a final medication check only after successfully completing the demonstration of product release proficiency (DPRP) activity; however, this is allowed at the discretion of the preceptor who will remain accountable for the final medication check. Please see the Internship Manual for additional details.
No, if a preceptor has doubts about the competency of the intern, the preceptor should not recommend the intern to be licensed to practice pharmacy in Manitoba. The Statement of Completion of Internship contained in the Internship Manual offers the following options: