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American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists

EIN 52-1444968 · Arlington, VA

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthWeak31 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

AAPS ADVANCES THE CAPACITY OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENTISTS TO DEVELOP PRODUCTS AND THERAPIES THAT IMPROVE GLOBAL HEALTH.

Income
$7.5 million
Spending
$9.8 million
Spent on programs
83%
Reserves
0.2 months of spending
Largest source of income
fees for its services, 73%
Employees
34
Volunteers
1,700
Highest pay
$555,386, executive director

Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Weak: 31 out of 100. Higher than 7% of charities in its peer group (health care, $1m to $10m).

  • Reserves

    4 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 0.2 months of spending.

  • Debt

    2 of 20

    It owes 86% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    0 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 31% of income.

  • Income trend

    10 of 15

    Income fell 3% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    83% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 67% of charities in its peer group (health care, $1m to $10m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    9 of 10 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (3)
  1. $5.6 million spent. EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS: AAPS PROVIDES ITS MEMBERS WITH A BROAD AND EVOLVING ARRAY OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS. FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025, APPROXIMATELY 3,400 REGISTRANTS ATTENDED OUR 2024 PHARMSCI 360 EVENT IN SALT LAKE CITY, UT. AAPS ALSO OFFERS E-LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES THROUGH ITS ONLINE EDUCATION PROGRAM.
  2. $2.2 million spent. MEMBERSHIP PROGRAMS: AAPS KEEPS MEMBERS UPDATED ON THE LATEST INFORMATION RELATED TO THE PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES; PROVIDES OPPORTUNITIES FOR PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENTISTS TO SHARE THEIR SCIENCE; AND BUILDS THE COMMUNITY OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENTISTS IN ORDER TO ADVANCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF DRUGS AND THERAPIES THAT IMPROVE GLOBAL HEALTH. IN FISCAL YEAR 2025, THE FOLLOWING PRODUCTS AND SERVICES WERE AVAILABLE TO MEMBERS: THE OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME PART OF A NUMBER OF SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITIES TO COLLABORATE AND SHARE THEIR SCIENCE; THE PHARMSCI 360 CONFERENCE; THE NATIONAL BIOTECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE; AND WORKSHOPS, BOTH IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL, FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC SCIENTIFIC CONTENT.
  3. $353,745 spent. PUBLICATIONS: AAPS AND ITS PUBLISHER PRODUCE 4 PEER-REVIEWED RESEARCH JOURNALS, PROVIDED TO ALL AAPS MEMBERS AND TO OVER 8,000 ORGANIZATIONS WORLDWIDE. IN FISCAL YEAR 2025, THERE WERE MORE THAN 2.5 MILLION DOWNLOADS OF JOURNAL CONTENT. IN FISCAL YEAR 2025, AAPS AND ITS PUBLISHER ALSO PUBLISHED 10 SCIENTIFIC BOOKS TOTAL IN 2 BOOK SERIES, AVAILABLE ONLINE BY CHAPTER OR FULL BOOK AND IN PRINT.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending September 2025.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since February 1991.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.

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