This research aims to examine the racial and ethnic composition of faculty members in pharmacy, medicine, and dentistry schools in the U.S., and to propose ways to diversify the pipeline for faculty in pharmacy education. A retrospective assessment was conducted to compare the faculty diversity at pharmacy schools with that at medical and dental schools. The study focused on racial and ethnic diversity across various pharmacy schools, including top institutions, historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), and newer schools, using data from the 2019-2020 academic year. In addition, data from residency and fellowship programs, along with graduation rates, were analyzed to understand the potential pipeline for future pharmacy faculty. Across pharmacy, medicine, and dentistry, faculty representation of underrepresented minorities (URMs) was consistently lower than their proportions in the general U.S. population. Dentistry had the highest URM representation (13.9%), followed by pharmacy (8.5%) and medicine (7.1%). HBCUs produced 32.8% of the total Black faculty in pharmacy, although their graduates faced lower success rates in securing residency placements. The proportion of URM students in postdoctoral and graduate training programs was also smaller compared to their representation in pharmacy degree programs. Limited access to advanced training opportunities, such as residencies and fellowships, is a significant barrier to increasing URM representation in pharmacy academia. To ensure a more diverse faculty pool, these obstacles must be addressed. Without changes, the majority of pharmacy students will continue to be educated by faculty who do not represent the growing diversity of the patient population.
