A national level examination, GPAT is conducted by the MS University of Baroda acronym of Maharaja Sayajirao University located at Baroda, Vadodhara from the year it started in 2010 – ’11. As an agent of the All India Council for Technical Education (New Delhi) , the GPAT is taken for individuals who are pharmacy graduates who seek admission for M.Pharma. The GPAT also provides scholarship/fellowship to the candidates who deserve and earn it.  

Structure of GPAT

The Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test question paper constitutes of 150 multiple choice questions carrying 3 marks each with 4 options for a correct answer. The right choice as in the candidates’ thought have to be marked by darkening the bubbles under the right option with a pencil in an Optical response sheet (ORS) which will be provided. For wrong answers, 1 mark will be reduced for each wrong ones. Two or more markings of choices for one question is not allowed and will be considered invalid. The test is to be completed in or under 3 hours time.

The exam evaluates the candidates’ knowledge in the subject, his aptitude etc in the pharmacy field.

Syllabus for GPAT

Pharmaceutics:-

• Introduction to Physical pharmacy; Matter, Properties of Matter
• Micromeretics and Powder Rheology
• Surface and Interfacial Phenomenon
• Viscosity and Rheology
• Dispersion Systems
• Complexation
• Importance of microbiology in pharmacy; Structure of bacterial cell; Classification of microbes and their Taxonomy
• Identification of Microbes
• Control of microbes by physical and chemical methods
• Sterilization
• Immunology and Immunological Preparations
• Genetic Recombination
• Antibiotics
• Introduction to pharmaceutical jurisprudence & ethics
• Pharmaceutical Ethics; Pharmacy Act 1948
• Introduction to dispensing and community pharmacy; Prescription
• Principles involved and procedures adopted in dispensing
• Incompatibilities
• Community Pharmacy
• Organization and Structure of hospital pharmacy
• Hospital Formulary
• Drug Store Management and Inventory Control
• Drug distribution Systems in Hospitals
• Central Sterile Supply Unit and their Management
• Manufacture of Sterile and Non-sterile Products
• Drug Information Services
• Records and Reports
• Nuclear Pharmacy
• Importance of unit operations in manufacturing; Stoichiometry
• Fluid Flow
• Heat transfer
• Evaporation
• Distillation
• Drying
• Size Reduction
• Mixing
• Crystallization
• Dehumidification and Humidity Control
• Refrigeration and Air Conditioning
• Material of Construction
• Material Handling Systems
• Corrosion
• Plant location
• Industrial Hazards and Safety Precautions
• Automated Process Control Systems
• Liquid Dosages Forms
• Semisolid Dosage Forms
• Suppositories
• Extraction and Galenical Products
• Blood Products and Plasma Substitutes
• Pharmaceutical Aerosols
• Ophthalmic Preparations
• Cosmeticology and Cosmetic Preparations
• Capsules
• Micro-encapsulation
• Tablets
• Parenteral Products
• Surgical products
• Packaging of Pharmaceutical Products
• Designing of dosage forms; Pre-formulation studies
• Performance evaluation methods
• Biopharmaceutics
• Pharmacokinetics
• Clinical Pharmacokinetics
• Bioavailability and bioequivalence

Pharmaceutical Chemistry:-

• Importance of inorganic compounds in pharmacy and medicine
• Gastrointestinal Agents
• Essential and Trace Elements
• Topical Agents
• Gases and Vapors
• Dental Products
• Miscellaneous Agents
• Pharmaceutical Aids Used in Pharmaceutical Industry
• Acids, Bases and Buffers
• Inorganic Radio pharmaceuticals
• Importance of basic fundamentals of physical chemistry in pharmacy; Behaviour of Gases
• Kinetic theory of gases, deviation from ideal behavior and explanation
• Solutions
• Thermodynamics
• Thermochemical equations; Phase rule; Adsorption
• Photochemistry
• Chemical Kinetics
• Quantum Mechanics
• Importance of fundamentals of organic chemistry in pharmaceutical sciences; Structure and Properties
• Stereochemistry
• Stereoselective and stereospecific reactions; Structure, Nomenclature, Preparation and Reactions of
• Nucleophilic and Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution Reactions
• Electrophilic and Nucleophilic Addition Reactions
• Elimination reactions; Conservation of Orbital Symmetry and Rules
• Neighboring group effects; Catalysis by transition metal complexes; Heterocyclic Compounds
• Biochemistry in pharmaceutical sciences; The concept of free energy
• Enzymes
• Co-enzymes
• The Citric Acid Cycle
• Lipids Metabolism
• Biological Oxidation
• Metabolism of ammonia and nitrogen containing monomers
• Purine biosynthesis
• Pyrimidine biosynthesis
• Biosynthesis of Nucleic Acids
• Mutation
• Genetic Code and Protein Synthesis
• Basic Principles of Medicinal Chemistry
• Drug metabolism and Concept of Prodrugs; Principles of Drug Design (Theoretical Aspects)
• Synthetic Procedures, Mode of Action, Uses, Structure Activity Relationships including Physicochemical
• Autacoids
• Steroidal Drugs
• Drugs acting on the central nervous system
• Diuretics; Cardiovascular drugs
• Thyroid and Anti thyroid drugs; Insulin and oral hypoglycemic agents
• Immunosuppressives and immunostimulants; Diagnostic agents; Pharmaceutical Aids; Microbial Transformations
• Enzyme Immobilization
• Different techniques of pharmaceutical analysis, Preliminaries and definitions
• Fundamentals of volumetric analysis
• Acid Base Titrations
• Oxidation Reduction Titrations
• Precipitation Titrations
• Gravimetric Analysis
• Non-aqueous titrations
• Complexometric titrations
• Miscellaneous Methods of Analysis
• Extraction procedures including separation of drugs from excipients; Potentiometry
• Conductometry
• Coulometry
• Polarography
• Amperometry
• Chromatography
• The Theoretical Aspects, Basic Instrumentation, Elements of Interpretation of Spectra, and Applications (quantitative and qualitative) of the Following Analytical Techniques
• Quality assurance

Pharmacology:-

• Pathophysiology of common diseases; Basic Principles of Cell Injury and Adaptations
• Basic Mechanisms involved in the process of inflammation and repair
• Immunopathophysiology
• Pathophysiology of Common Diseases
• Fundamentals of general pharmacology
• Pharmacology of Peripheral Nervous System
• Pharmacology of Central Nervous System
• Pharmacology of Cardiovascular System
• Drugs Acting on the Hemopoietic System
• Drugs acting on urinary system
• Autacoids
• Drugs Acting on the Respiratory System
• Drugs acting on the Gastrointestinal Tract
• Pharmacology of Endocrine System
• Chemotherapy
• Principles of Toxicology
• Basic Concepts of Pharmacotherapy
• Important Disorders of Organs, Systems and their Management
• CNS Disorders
• Depression Respiratory disease - Asthma.
• Gastrointestinal Disorders - Peptic ulcer, Ulcerative colitis, Hepatitis, Cirrhosis.
• Endocrine Disorders - Diabetes mellitus and Thyroid disorders.
• Infectious Diseases - Tuberculosis, Urinary tract infections, Enteric infections, Upper respiratory infections. Hematopoietic Disorders- Anemias,
• Joint and Connective tissue disorders - Rheumatic diseases, Gout and Hyperuricemia.
• Neoplastic Diseases - Acute Leukaemias, Hodgkin’s disease. Therapeutic Drug Monitoring, Concept of Essential Drugs and Rational Drug use.

Pharmcognosy:-

• Sources of Drugs
• Biological, marine, mineral and plant tissue cultures as sources of drugs;
• Classification of Drugs
• Cultivation, Collection, Processing and Storage of Crude Drugs
• Quality Control of Crude Drugs
• Introduction to Active Constituents of Drugs
• Systematic pharmacognostic study of the followings:- CARBOHYDRATES and derived products, Lipids, RESINS, TANNINS, VOLATILE OILS, Phytochemical Screening, FIBERS
• GLYCOSIDE CONTAINING DRUGS:
• Saponins
• Cardioactive glycosides
• Anthraquinone cathartics
• ALKALOID CONTAINING DRUGS:- Pyridine-piperidine, Tropane,
• Quinoline and Isoquinoline, Indole, Imidazole, Steroidal, Alkaloidal Amine, Glycoalkaloid, Purines, Studies of Traditional Drugs
• General Techniques of Biosynthetic Studies and Basic Metabolic Pathways/Biogenesis
• Terpenes
• Carotenoids
• Glycosides
• Alkaloids
• Plant Tissue Culture
• Marine pharmacognosy

Eligibility Criteria

Those candidates who aspire to attend the GPAT and earn admission for the M.Pharma are considered eligible for the same, if they are Bachelor’s degree (4 years course after Higher Secondary classes) graduates in the Pharmacy discipline. Lateral entry candidates for the same can also apply. Those people who are presently in the final year of their Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy may also apply and attend the exam.

How to Apply?

The only mode of application is via internet, apparently. For online registration, the candidates are to download and print the application forms. The printed forms are to be completed accordingly and sent to the authorities with the application fee of Rs 1000/- and Rs 500/- (For General/OBC category and SC/ST category respectively). This fee includes bank charges as well and will not be refunded.

How to fill the Form?

The printed form should be filled up only after reading all the instructions to fill it first which is available in the web and then following them while filling. The form should be handled with care. After completely filling it and rectifying any and all errors if present, send the form before the last date of submission.

Important Dates (Tentative)

Online Application website opens: - 3rd week of January , 2012

Online Application website closes: - 4th week of February , 2012

Last date for receipt of photo, signature, original copy of bank challan as a proof of payment for examination fees along with the printout of application (upto 17.00 hrs) at GPAT Office, The M.S. University of Baroda, Vadodara - End of February , 2012

Date of Examination (GPAT - 2011):- 2nd week of May , 2012

Declaration of GPAT - 2011 Result: - End of May, 2012

List of GPAT centers

• Amritsar
• Chandigarh
• Hisar
• Kurukshetra
• Moga
• Simla
• Agra
• Bareilly
• Dehradun
• Delhi
• Faridabad
• Gurgaon
• Jaipur
• Meerut
• Noida
• Rohtak
• Roorkee
• Allahabad
• Gorakhpur
• Kanpur
• Lucknow
• Patna
• Varanasi
• Bhubaneshwar
• Dibrugarh
• Durgapur
• Guwahati
• Kharagpur
• Kolkata
• Ranchi
• Bhopal
• Gwalior
• Indore
• Jabalpur
• Jhansi
• Ahmedabad
• Rajkot
• Surat
• Udaipur
• Vadodara
• Aurangabad
• Jalgaon
• Kolhapur
• Mumbai
• Nagpur
• Nanded
• Nashik
• Pune
• Bangalore
• Chennai
• Chidambaram
• Coimbatore
• Ernakulum
• Mangalore
• Thiruchirapalli
• Thiruvananthpuram
• Guntur
• Hyderabad
• Khammam
• Tirupati
• Vijayawada
• Vishakhapattanam
• Warangal

Contact Address for the GPAT

For details, please contact:

• GPAT Examination Cell, The M.S University of Baroda, Vadodhara.
• Email: [email protected], [email protected]
• Web: www.gpat.in, www.msubaroda.ac.in
• Phone: 0265 – 2750821
• Fax: 0265 – 2750819
• Cell: 09408151958 (Coordinator)

Colleges Accepting the GPAT score

The candidates who were successful in the GPAT are likely to be considered for admission by Pharmaceutical colleges providing Master’s degree in the discipline and affiliated to the MSU Baroda.

Reference Books for GPAT

• Chemical Engineering by J.F.Richardson  and  J.M. Coulron
• Chemical Engineering Techniques by Lauer & Heckmann
• Current dispensing practices by Nanda, Popli and Sharma
• Differnetial Calculus by Prasad
• Dispensing for pharmaceutical students by Cooper and Gunn
• Dispensing Pharmacy by Cooper and Gunn’s
• Dispensing Pharmacy by R.K.Khar and Pratibha Nand
• Handbook of Chemical Engineering by Perry
• Indian Pharmacopoeia by N.K.Jain and S.N.Sharma
• Inorganic Medicinal and Pharmaceutical chemistry by J.H. Block, E. Roche, T.O. Soine and C. O. Wilson
• Integral Calculus by Prasad
• Introduction to Chemical Engineering by Walter L. Badger and J.T. Banchero
• Introduction to Pharmaceutics-II by A.K. Gupta and S.S. Bajaj
• Microbiology by Pelczar and Reid
• Modern Pharmaceutics by Gilbert S.Banker and Christopher T. Rhodes
• Organic Chemis try, Vol.1 by I.L. Finar
• Organic Chemistry by J.B. Hendrickson by D.J. Cram and C.S. Hammond
• Organic Chemistry by R.T. Morison and R.N. Boyd
• Pharmaceutical Microbiology by Malcolm Harris, Balliere Tindall and Cox
• Pharmaceutical Sciences by Remington
• Pharmacopoeia of India
• Physical Pharmaceutics by Shotton and Ridgeway
• Physical Pharmacy by Martin
• Physiochemical principles of Pharmacy by A.T. Florence and D. Attwood W
• Statistics by Yule and Kendell
• Textbook of pharmaceutical chemistry by L.M. Atherdon, Bently and Drivers
• Textbook of Pharmaceutical Formulation by B.M. Mittal
• The Extra Pharmacopoeia-Martindale by S.J Carter
• The theory and practice of Professional Pharmacy by N.K.Jain and S.N.Sharma

Coaching Centers for GPAT

• Rathiram Academy of Higher Education (RAHE), Noida
• GATEIIT
• Apex
• Race

Study Plan

GPAT exam has a big syllabus. So there is a lot of topics to cover. So make a plan in which a time schedule is allotted so as to cover each topics. Start studying as early as possible and seek help from coaching centres if necessary.

How and Where To Get the Results?

http://www.gpat.in/ - Check results here

Score Validity

After announcement of results, the results will stay valid for a year till the next exam.