Administrative career planning: A ten-year update of the pharmacy deanship

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to describe the normative career paths and preparation strategies of pharmacy deans, as well to provide a longitudinal perspective on the pharmacy deanship. Methods. A self-administered questionnaire and 2 follow-up mailings were sent in mid-2002 to 82 current pharmacy deans of AACP member institutions. Results. Seventy-five deans responded yielding a 91.5% response rate. A hierarchical career path (faculty to department chair/head, to assistant/associate dean, to dean) described the career path of only 17.9% of deans who had assumed their first deanship in the past 5 years. Conclusions. The picture of the pharmacy deanship appears to be changing, with deans spending an increased length of time in the professoriate prior to their appointments and an increasing proportion of deans holding a PharmD as the highest degree earned. While no normative career path appears to exist for pharmacy deans, this study provides descriptive information on possible career paths to which aspiring deans can refer.