University of The Sciences - History

History

The history of the University of the Sciences began when 68 Philadelphia apothecaries met in Carpenters’ Hall in 1821 to establish improved scientific standards and to train more competent apprentices and students. They sought to enhance their vocation, as well as protect public welfare. A year later, they organized and incorporated the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy (PCP), the first college of pharmacy in the nation. Thus, education in the profession of pharmacy in the U.S. was born.

Today, the University continues to build on that reputation and is now home to 27 undergraduate and 21 graduate programs in five colleges. Its 3,000 students have enrolled in premier programs in the health sciences, ranging across pharmacy with its direct entry doctoral program to pre-med to physical therapy to healthcare business and health policy. Students study almost the entire range of the health sciences in one of its five colleges:

• Philadelphia College of Pharmacy—North America’s first school of pharmacy and the start of the University, graduates the pharmacists and scientists who deliver and discover the healthcare innovations that advance patient care.
• Samson College of Health Sciences—educates the vital healthcare professionals who add immeasurably to the quality of life at each step—from prevention to diagnosis to recovery—of the patient care continuum.
• Misher College of Arts and Sciences—provides a specialized undergraduate foundation for the sciences, with research and discovery at its core, for students seeking advanced degrees to lead in the basic and applied health sciences and serve humanity.
• College of Graduate Studies—promotes excellence in education and research to prepare students to become innovators and leaders in the health and natural science disciplines in academia, industry, and government.
• Mayes College of Healthcare Business and Policy—offers advanced degrees at the intersections of business, health policy, and public health enabling visionary students to serve their futures with leadership roles across the healthcare spectrum.

After its conception in 1821, the college began to grow in enrollment, curriculum, and stature. Although matriculation was originally limited to men, the college became coeducational in 1876. The college initially emphasized the biological and chemical sciences as mainstays of the curriculum in pharmacy but later instituted separate curricula in three other areas: bacteriology, biology, and chemistry.

In 1921, the name of the institution was changed to Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, with state authorization to grant not only the baccalaureate degree, but also the master’s and doctorate in all four disciplines.

As the world of science continuously made advancements throughout the decades, the college evolved and expanded its curriculum to prepare students for the new wave of scientific breakthroughs. The college also enhanced the role of the humanities and social sciences in its science-based curricula. Primarily a commuter campus in its early days, the institution began to transform into one in which residential life and extracurricular activities played a larger role in student development.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania approved the institution’s application for university status in February 1997. In recognition of the broad spectrum of new health and science programs introduced by the institution, the college changed its name to reflect the broader range of academic opportunities offered to its students. On July 1, 1998, Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science officially unveiled its new identity as University of the Sciences in Philadelphia.

A brand update in 2010 refocused the University’s messaging and logos. The overall name was simplified for marketing purposes to University of the Sciences in order to emphasize a national and global reach, while a new logo transitioned the USP acronym to USciences to address awareness issues. In addition, the tag line “Where science and healthcare converge” was adopted to define both what the University is and what it is not.