The Pharmacology Learning Objectives (PLOs) are a contemporary guide for teaching and learning pharmacology across health professions programs. Updated by pharmacology educators and subject-matter experts from diverse health professions programs, the 2026 edition of the PLOs emphasizes learning outcomes that extend beyond knowledge acquisition to the application and integration of pharmacological concepts. Each section was reviewed by a team of faculty who currently teach that content area, providing built-in peer review.

The PLOs are intended to support faculty in developing, delivering, and assessing pharmacology content, with the flexibility to adapt them to the goals, structure, and instructional time of individual curricula.

Formerly known as the Pharmacology Knowledge Objectives, the PLOs were originally developed by the Association of Medical School Pharmacology Chairs (AMSPC) in the 1980s and are now overseen by ASPET's Division for Pharmacology Education (DPE).

The 2026 edition was led by Chair and Editor Sandeep Bansal, MBBS, MD, MBA, FAAPE, working with DPE Pharmacology Learning Objectives Subcommittee members Scott Ochs, PhD; Khalil Eldeeb, MBBCh, MSc, PhD, FAAPE; and Katerina Venderova, PharmD, PhD, FAAPE, to plan the revision, guide the section teams, and edit and finalize the documents. All contributors are listed in the PLO document.

Faculty are encouraged to share comments on the PLOs, including proposed additions, corrections, and examples of how they are being used in curricula, to inform future revisions. Please send feedback to Sandeep Bansal at Sandeep.Bansal@tcu.edu.