Pharmacy School Life

Now that you are accepted to pharmacy, you may be wondering how you can best prepare for the curriculum offered in pharmacy school.

While I personally decided to completely relax before school started, many people have asked me what kind of material they should review prior to embarking on their pharmacy careers. I would suggest that you brush up on your physiology, by reviewing old notes/books/or videos on youtube. Another area to look over would be pharmacology (how drugs react in the body) because many schools have this class during the first year. Depending on your school’s curriculum, I would also suggest looking over the basic concepts of genetics.

Most importantly, if you are going to do any studying before you start school, I would highly suggest becoming familiar with the top 200 prescribed drugs. If you were like me and never worked in a pharmacy, you will be a disadvantage when you take your drug exams throughout pharmacy school. It was very easy for my classmates who have seen and worked with many of these drugs to memorize the brand name, generic name, therapeutic class, and action. Here’s online flashcards that I used to study the top 100 drugs for my first semester’s drug exam: http://www.studystack.com/menu-300321 .

I wouldn’t stress too much on reviewing everything prior to matriculation, but it may be a good idea review some material if you are rusty in that subject.

The Pharm.D. / MBA joint dual degree programs are designed for students interested in running their own business or working for a pharmaceutical company. Although programs will vary from school to school, most of these dual degree programs cuts out an extra year when compared to getting the degrees separately. I have heard many pros and cons for the degree from those who have completed the program. The pros being that you will be set apart from the thousands of graduating Pharm.D.’s every year as well as opening doors later down the line (the benefits do not necessarily come immediately upon graduation). Some of the cons include more tuition being spent (when you could be working) and most students having little or no work experience to relate to the curriculum (most MBA students have years of experience, so they are better able to relate core concepts to their previous work experience). Also, remember that you will need to take your GMAT to be accepted to these programs. At USC, by partaking this Pharm.D./MBA program, you will have no summer break and will ‘fall behind’ during your entire second year to complete the MBA (you will rejoin the class below you to complete your second year).

To get more information on the programs, you should definitely get in contact with current students in the program as well as the degree coordinator at the pharmacy school. Other dual degree programs are available with the Pharm.D. which include Pharm.D./J.D., Pharm.D./MS Regulatory Science, Pharm.D./MPH, Pharm.D./MS Gerontology, and Pharm.D./PHD.

USC’s PharmD/MBA page lists potential careers as well as requirements to be admitted into their program. Research each school’s program page to get a better idea of how the dual degree works in that institution.

Here are the list of pharmacy schools that offer the PharmD and MBA joint program:

• Arizona
• Pacific
• Southern California
• Connecticut
• Howard
• Nova Southeastern
• Palm Beach Atlantic
• Florida
• Mercer
• Idaho State
• Connecticut
• Howard
• Nova Southeastern
• Palm Beach Atlantic
• Florida
• Mercer
• Idaho State
• Butler
• Drake
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Sullivan
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Ferris State
• Missouri–Kansas City
• Montana
• Creighton
• Southern Nevada
• Buffalo
• Albany
• Campbell
• Wingate
• North Dakota State
• Ohio State
• Duquesne
• Philadelphia
• Pittsburgh
• Wilkes
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• Shenandoah
• Virginia Commonwealth

The end of my first semester at USC is finally here!

When comparing USC Pharmacy School to undergrad, it is tougher not because of the content of the material but the number of things you have going on all at once along with 18 units of courses. We just ended our finals yesterday which spanned a week and consisted of 5 finals!

In our first semester, we are all required to complete an Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) which is a part-time rotation for 40 hours sometime during semester either in the hospital setting or community setting. Our locations are picked for us, and we were split either Hospital or Community and into 3 groups that completed our rotation at different times (September or October or November). I completed my first rotation at LAC+USC in the third group (November); I was introduced to all aspects of pharmacy practice within the hospital setting. At the new hospital, clinical pharmacists were stationed at ‘satellite’ locations in each section of the hospital such as pediatrics or burn ICU. These satellite locations are mini storage sites for drugs needed most in that section of the hospital, and usually one or two pharmacists are stationed there. The majority of the pharmacists working at LAC+USC were either staff pharmacists who worked behind the scenes or Outpatient Pharmacists who provided drugs and counseling to patients at two different locations. We were also introduced to pharmacists who worked separately from the hospital itself in other areas of pharmacy practice such as the pharmacy warehouse, drug contracting (formularies), and drug information services! I enjoyed my rotation site as it opened my eyes to all hospital careers in pharmacy that go beyond the traditional roles.

In addition to the rotation requirement, we had to also complete  a discussion type class on leadership, a brown bag review (counseling on a patients drug list to find interactions and inappropriate medications), and health fairs (screenings: at least 4 immunizations, 8 finger sticks, and 4 blood pressure readings).

At USC Pharmacy school, during your first semester, you can start getting involved in different organizations and leadership positions. The majority of our class rushed for a fraternity along with joining the 10 different pharmacy organizations.

The courses at USC Pharmacy School are on a grade system (not pass/no pass). The averages tend to be pretty high for all classes, so you really have to stay on top of your work. I haven’t changed much on my studying habits from undergrad, and it can take a toll on you for certain classes which require more memorization such as Anatomy. My favorite classes were Health Care Delivery (a class on the healthcare system) and Pharmaceutics (studying drug degradation, solubility, bioavailability, etc. most similar to Chemistry in undergrad). In our Health Care Delivery class, we went over many important topics of healthcare which included Medication Management Therapy, Medicare, Insurable Hazards, Managed Care, Pharmacy Benefit Managers, Current Healthcare Debate, and Pharmacoeconomics. I really believe that this class puts puts us at an advantage over other health professional schools that do not teach similar material; these topics are going to be important not only in our careers but also in shaping the future of pharmacy and our healthcare system.

Overall, I enjoyed my first semester, and I feel accustomed to pharmacy school. Although stressful at times, most us of us had time to have a good time to balance it all out! Now, I need to go find a pharmacy intern job…

The first week of pharmacy school involves a lot of administrative tasks such as filling out paperwork, but you also get many opportunities to meet a lot of faculty and your classmates. At USC, we are offered free food (during the 1 hour lunch break) while we listen in on the presentations from the many student organizations that exist here. I highly suggest all of you beginning pharmacy school students take advantage of these information sessions to get a feel for what clubs you will join (instead of cutting a check for every single org!). Club fees range anywhere from $30-$200 range at USC. Since pharmacy school is a lot smaller compared to undergrad institutions, you can easily meet and get to know your professors as well as the deans/associate deans.

During our fall semester of our first year, we take 18 units. Compared to undergrad, I wouldn’t say the material is that much harder (yet), but we are bombarded with more information per lecture. We are given note packets for each class; in Biosystems and Biochemical & Molecular Sites of Drug Action, our packets are 15-30 pages per 2 hour lecture.

For those who are curious, our fall semester tuition was $21,208.51 (not including books, rent, food, gas, etc.). Tuition seems to go up ~$1000 per year. Also, there are rumors that the entering class for 2010 will receive free netbooks as part of the curriculum.

Here is what my schedule looks like:

Pharmacy Practice I – 4 units

Biochemical & Molecular Sites of Drug Actions – 4 units

Pharmaceutics I – 4 units

Biological Systems I – 4 units

Health Care Delivery – 4 units

Class Schedule:

MONDAY: 8am-10am, 1pm-3pm

TUESDAY: 8am-10am, 1pm-3pm

WEDNESDAY: 8am-10am

THURSDAY: 8am-10am

FRIDAY: 8am-noon, 1pm-3pm

Each student also receives a 1 month pharmacy practice experience in hospital or community per semester. This would occur WED-THURS 1PM-6PM

If you have any specific questions, feel free to email me or leave it on the comment section.