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It is “fundamentally inequitable” that pharmacy students in Wales are not currently eligible for the NHS Wales bursary scheme, according to the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS).
In response to a Welsh government consultation on the future of the scheme, published in January 2026, the RPS said: “Inclusion of pharmacy students within the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme is a necessary and vital step.
“We urge the Welsh government to address this anomaly as part of future reforms to the bursary scheme, so that pharmacy students are supported in a way that reflects their clinical role and their essential contribution to the health and care system in Wales.
“We recognise that the pharmacy degree has historically been classified as a ‘scientific degree’ and that this classification has contributed to its exclusion from the bursary scheme,” the response added.
“While of course, the scientific foundations of the MPharm degree remain essential and underpin the safe and effective use of medicines, over time the nature of pharmacy education has evolved significantly, with an increasing emphasis on clinical practice, patient-facing care and clinical placements across a range of care settings.”
Established in 2017, the bursary scheme provides financial support to healthcare students studying eligible courses at Welsh universities. These courses include nursing and midwifery, audiology and dental hygiene and therapy.
Pharmacy is not currently included on the list of eligible courses.
The scheme also covers payment of tuition fees, as well as includes a non-means-tested grant and a means-tested bursary. Recipients must commit to working in Wales for two years following graduation.
The Society added that excluding pharmacy students is at odds with the “modern clinical reality of the profession”.
The RPS consultation response also emphasised the need to increase the number of pharmacists working in Wales, highlighting that three universities now offer the MPharm degree.
It noted that continued exclusion from the scheme would risk “undermining this investment”, as it could deter people from applying for the courses.
Announcing the consultation in October 2025, Jeremy Miles, cabinet secretary for health and social care, said: “While we face ongoing financial pressures and are not in a position to increase the overall bursary budget, we are actively exploring how we can use the existing funding more flexibly and effectively.”
The consultation closed on 23 January 2026. The government confirmed that a high-level summary will be published in February 2026, with a final report to follow in April 2026.
In June 2025, pharmacy students in England were included, for the first time, in the NHS Learning Support Fund.
The NHS Learning Support Fund provides healthcare students with financial support for travel and accommodation during training placements; however, in previous years the fund had not been open to pharmacy students.
