LECOM - no scholarship for you.

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pharmsohard16

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I'm a current pharmacy student at the Erie, PA campus of LECOM. For any student that attends LECOM, you'll find that nearly everyone hates it. Classmates, community members, professors, everyone hates LECOM. There's even a website dedicated to the hatred of the school that gets shut down every other week so who knows if it is still active when this is posted.

I'm a very happy and positive person and could overlook the many rules and regulations that LECOM strictly enforces (no water or food in the entire school except for the cafeteria, professional dress, wearing an ID badge whenever near the school, mandatory attendance with absences that result in grade deductions, etc.). I understood these as possible rules that an employer would have, so I viewed these as preparing us to be future professionals.

My annoyance began with the double standard held by the administration. The school prides itself on its professionalism, which I am completely on board with! However, many faculty, staff, and administration will treat you like children, which is absolutely unprofessional. When this offense is brought up to a faculty member that could do something about it, they will simply say that everyone has different methods of professionalism and different means of communication so we as students need to adjust accordingly. When a student steps slightly out of line and is sitting on a table or has a foot rested on a chair somewhere, you will automatically receive an email reminding you of the unprofessional behavior and possibly some disciplinary action.

The school also deemed it appropriate to have an active shooter drill - fine, I understand the purpose of being prepared for the worst. However, it was absolutely unnecessary to have the drill during class (remember mandatory attendance), screaming actors in the hallways, fake gunshots fired, a SWAT team gun down the intruder (no real ammo, luckily, but the sounds are terrifying nonetheless), and escort the students out of the building with our hands above our heads and the SWAT team pointing automatic rifles at us like we were the intruders. Many professors took the day off or made a point to stay at their practice site that day because they realized how ridiculous the drill was.

The final straw happened during a recent announcement regarding LECOM scholarships. To be eligible for any scholarship at all from the school, you must have volunteered at an event that directly benefits the LECOM scholarship fund. So incoming first-years - sorry, no scholarship because you didn't volunteer during the year before you started. And for anyone else that has a long list of involvement directly related to LECOM, if you did not volunteer at an event specifically for the scholarship fund - you are not eligible to apply for a scholarship for the next year, no questions asked.

There are 3 main events that qualify you for a scholarship at the Erie campus (not sure of the other campuses) - a 5k, a golf outing, and the big one is the scholarship auction. The 5k and golf outing are in the summer, and we were informed of this new rule in early October, so the 5k and golf outing had already passed. The only event left is the scholarship auction which happens in early November, so we only had about 4 weeks notice to volunteer at an event that is mandatory if we are interested in getting a scholarship. As frustrating as this short notice is, the auction occurs right in the middle of the pharmacy school break. A large majority of the pharmacy students have already made travel arrangements and bought plane tickets (excuse us for wanting to see our families and planning ahead). I have personally logged over 100 hours directly related to clubs/organizations at LECOM in the past year, but already have travel arrangements to see my 2 month old nephew that I have yet to see since his birth, so I will not be able to attend the scholarship auction and therefore not eligible for a scholarship next year.

The tipping point for me was when a brave soul brought up this scheduling conflict to the administration. The student politely stated "I understand the importance of volunteerism; however, this scholarship auction which is the largest volunteer event for students typically falls during the middle of the pharmacy school break. In years going forward, if this policy is kept in place, it may be beneficial to look at another date for the auction where more students will be available to volunteer so they can be eligible for a scholarship." The provost rudely and unprofessionally replied, "Excuse me for using the word excuse, but you'll always have an excuse not to volunteer. It's not my fault you can't make the auction. We cannot accommodate everyone's schedules {too bad this actually impacts about half of the school}. We aren't changing the date of our auction, maybe you can talk to your dean about changing your break."

I saw this as a major slap in the face to all students, especially those in the pharmacy program. To me, that reply communicated the administration's unwillingness to accommodate to students and treat us professionally. Last time I checked, we are the customers so I am very disappointed in the customer service of the institution where I am spending hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Don't get me wrong, some of the professors at LECOM are wonderful and I have learned so much from them. There are also some great mentors in the faculty and my classmates are the best friends that I've ever had. However, I cannot justify many of the actions from the administration at LECOM. The scariest and worst part about this, is that when I'm finished I honestly don't think I can say "I graduated from LECOM" with an ounce of pride.

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I have heard this from people I know in FL. Interesting. Thanks for the post.
 
First, I agree that there are lots of rules at LECOM - at least in Erie, but I am a 1st year student and I got a scholarship from LECOM before school even started, so it is possible. Also, the dean, Dr. Bell, and Dr. Ferretti (the provost?) worked with me and helped me a lot with scheduling, money, etc. The auction was actually the very last day of break before we had to come back to school anyway, so it wasn't a big deal for me to come back one day early. I felt it was my duty to support that event since it had gotten me some money to pay for school. They were very good to me, so I think you might just be easily offended or something.

I do agree that the active shooter thing was weird, but it wasn't just for LECOM - it was for the SWAT team too. The way I understood it, LECOM allowed the team to train in our space - which I thought was good for community safety. I wasn't at school when it happened but I guess everyone just stayed in the lecture hall and it happened in the hallways. It was really no big deal - at least that's what 2 other students told me. They had to warn us about it, but in the end it was over quick and no one even really noticed anything.

Finally, I've been absent a couple of times - even when attendance was taken - and have never had a grade deduction. I did get an email - but it was asking if everything was ok, and if I was healthy. I actually thought that was really nice. Is a grade deduction only for specific professors or classes? I don't think that's a school policy. If it is for certain classes, can you tell me which ones?? I don't want my grades to suffer.

So I think you are a little bit off base in your statements. I have found everyone to be helpful when the requests are reasonable. I am very proud to be at LECOM and will graduate with tons of pride in my alma mater. I feel bad that you think differently.
 
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