The 122 graduates of the FAMU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences who took the North American Pharmacy Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) in 2019 achieved an 82.79 passage rate on the exam, an 8 percentage improvement over 2018. FAMU fell short of hitting its internal goal of an 85 percent passage rate by 2.21 percent. The national average was 88.34.
Still, the 82.79 pass rate represents a big improvement for the college which had seen its pass rate drop to 59 percent in 2016, which was dead last among the nation's pharmacy schools. After FAMU made leadership changes at the college in 2017 scores began to rebound. The current dean, Johnnie Early returned to lead the college in October 2018.
FAMU's pass rate was third highest among the six predominately Black pharmacy schools. FAMU finished behind Xavier U of LA and U. Maryland Eastern Shore, and ahead of Chicago State, Texas Southern, Howard, and Hampton.