BACKGROUND: Hospital training courses for pharmacy students were required to prepare students to meet the challenges of real-world hospital work. AIM: Because there have been few studies on the efficacy of such courses, we aimed to recognize recent graduates’ perceptions, benefits, and factors influencing the quality of hospital training courses for pharmacy students. METHODS: A qualitative study using a phenomenology approach was conducted in 2022 and included several hospitals in Baghdad, Iraq, using in-depth face-to-face individual-based semi-structured interviews. Until saturation, a convenient sample of recently graduated pharmacists was included. The obtained data were analyzed using a thematic content analysis approach. RESULTS: A total of 40 recently graduated pharmacists participated in this study. Twenty-two participants took the hospital training course by direct attendance, while eighteen received the course online. A higher proportion of pharmacists stated that the hospital training course was beneficial and effective. The information obtained in the course is adequate in the direct attendance group, while those in the online group are inadequate. The teaching staff was the most influential factor influencing educational quality. The stress of studying during the training course hampered approximately 40% of the participants. CONCLUSION: The hospital training course effectively prepared the graduate pharmacist for future work in hospitals. On the other hand, the online training course was insufficient and only provided students with theoretical, repetitive information with no practical engagement. Still, there is a need to improve the course in terms of lengthening the course, reducing crowding, and expanding the role of the teaching staff.
