Pharmacy Experience Questions!

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
The main thing is that you want to have some type of exposure to the pharmacy profession. Adcom's will see that you have community service and volunteer work, but they will ask about pharmacy experience specifically. I know that it's tough to get volunteer positions in a pharmacy without a tech license and stuff. So I got a tech license in order to get some exposure to the field. During my interviews at the pharmacy schools, they asked about my experience at the pharmacy specifically. Like you said, if you cannot find volunteer experience at a pharmacy without some licensure, make that opportunity for yourself. There are lots of ways to get licensed. Show these pharmacy schools that you really want to get into the profession and you know for sure you want to get in because you put out your own TIME and MONEY to get licensed just to be a volunteer. I'm not saying that you have to get a license in order to volunteer in a pharmacy, but I felt that was personally my most efficient way to getting some experience in a pharmacy prior to acceptance. Hope this helps. Best wishes! :luck:
 
ForeverPharm said:
Hi pharm 47,

Does Pacific university require PCAT? and how can you get their application since they are not part of ParmCas?
what else do you know about them...do they accept out of state applicants?
thank you for the feed back
Click to expand...

I think xnm answered all of your questions! They are building a brand new health campus in Hillsboro, a close suburb of Portland (my hometown), which is why I want to go there! They are at pre-accredidation status, which basically means that AACP looked at their program, and thinks that it will be accredited with no problems. No pharm school can gain accredidation until they pass their first graduating class, so this is nothing to worry about. The program at Pacific is modeled after U. Southern Nevada - so its a three year program. The application isn't out yet, but if you are interested, you can fill out the prerequisite worksheet and mail it to their adcom (http://www.pacificu.edu/pharmd/admission/prerequisite-worksheet.cfm) to be sure you have all the courses covered!

Hope this helps.
 
if you're having trouble finding experience without being certified, just get certified! you don't have to take a course to pass the test (at least not in colorado, maybe different states are different?). there are a lot of books on amazon that can help you study. i got certified to find a job. i still couldn't find a job, but i think it helped my app that i had taken the initiative to get certified. as for some schools requiring experience, none of the schools i applied to did, and some other schools "recommended" it but pretty much made it impossible to apply if you didnt. any requirements they have should be either on their pharmCAS page or their website.
 
Hello everyone!
I know that a lot of the discussions on here have to do with how to get pharmacy experience. If anyone is looking in the Phoenix, Arizona area, the Walgreen's that I work at is actively looking for 1 full time position and 1 part-time position. The pharmacy is located at Scottsdale and Osborn and is 24 hours. I have worked there for 2 years and love it. Sadly, or happily, I am moving to Virginia for pharmacy school. If you would like to apply, stop in anytime between 8-5 on weekdays or apply on Walgreen's website. I guarantee you will learn so much about pharmacy!
PM me with any questions.
Kynsi
 
Hi guys =)
I applied to a couple of pharmacy schools last admissions cycle, but since I ended up with a bunch of incomplete applications (unfulfilled prerequisites, LORs, etc) and a relatively low PCAT (61% =/) I only ended up waitlisted at one school.
So now I have a year to pretty much do whatever, so I figured I'd start in by getting some pharmacy experience. I have volunteered at a pharmacy before. My questions are...is it possible to work at a pharmacy (not as a pharmacist or tech, obviously) without being in pharm school? And if I work in a hospital or a medical clinic...would that be looked upon favorably by pharm schools?
Any help would be appreciated, and thanks in advance!

Oh...forgot to add...I'm also a recent graduate (May 2006) with a BS in Biology.
 
First off - have you fixed what you were missing during the first cycle?

You don't seem tremendously motivated to do the minimum - get the prereqs done & LORs, but yeah - any experience is good.

There are a number of threads on how to become a technician in whatever state you live in - try to search for them or better yet - go online to the state board of pharmacy in your state & find out for yourself. Some states allow non-pharmacists & technicians to work in pharmacys. If you are close to a VA, they follow federal rules so there are no restrictions there.

good luck!
 
Oh, I forgot to add that...

I finished my prerequisites over the summer (except Anatomy, which I'm taking in the Spring), and I have my LORs ready this time =)
 
darkangel77 said:
Hi guys =)
I have volunteered at a pharmacy before. My questions are...is it possible to work at a pharmacy (not as a pharmacist or tech, obviously) without being in pharm school?
Click to expand...

Whats wrong with being a pharm tech? 😕 You could earn money for school too.
 
I'm likely going to start working as a hospital linen porter very shortly.. and I don't really need the money. The hours are bad (i.e. early morning), and it will kill any available drinking hours during the weekend since I'll have to get up eaaarly on Saturday and Sunday.

Am I wasting my time, or will working as a hospital linen porter count as hospital experience (for example, if I want to work in a hospital pharmacy in the future) and be at least slightly valuable to a pharmacy hopeful?
 
Seveneighty said:
I'm likely going to start working as a hospital linen porter very shortly.. and I don't really need the money. The hours are bad (i.e. early morning), and it will kill any available drinking hours during the weekend since I'll have to get up eaaarly on Saturday and Sunday.

Am I wasting my time, or will working as a hospital linen porter count as hospital experience (for example, if I want to work in a hospital pharmacy in the future) and be at least slightly valuable to a pharmacy hopeful?
Click to expand...

Maybe as an in to a pharmacy job at that hospital, but that's about it, I would say.
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Get out of there..I dont see how thats gonna look appealing to adcoms. Save urself the stress and anxiety.

Just my opinion
 
Well, its not really for application purposes, considering that I believe I might be accepted this year.. I'm talking about further down the road. Hospitals usually look at prior hospital experience as an asset.
 
Seveneighty said:
Well, its not really for application purposes, considering that I believe I might be accepted this year.. I'm talking about further down the road. Hospitals usually look at prior hospital experience as an asset.
Click to expand...

Every job looks at prior experience as an asset, it's less training they have to do. It's a way "in" and shows that you don't have a chip on your shoulder to do remedial work. I think you probably would be alright getting crunked up on the weekends if the work you'll be doing doesn't require thought, so there's that too.
 
True... but that experience will only look good if you are looking for a career in hospital housekeeping. Experience has to be relavent - ie clinical or technical. I would say dump that job - volunteering in a hospital pharmacy is a much better 'In' (thats what I did).
 
Seriously..once you start school there be plenty of time to find interships at hosptitals that can be considered as relevant experience....stop folding bedsheets and hit the bar..pharmacy school is a long four years
 
hey everyone! well im going to be a junior in college as a biochemistry major. im doing a volunteer intern at a hospital for about a year and it has helped me realize that medicine is not for me and pharmacy very well might be best for me. well with that said, does that year of volunteering go to waste since it's not pharm related?

also... I know pharm schools love experience and stuff so I was thinking that I should volunteer, shadow or even work at a pharmacy? Does it make a difference if you do any of the 3 or are they all equally favored by admissions for pharmacy?

lastly, does research experience matter a lot too? because im thinking of doing research this year...but I just want to know if it will be worth the time and if it will help me in getting into pharm school??
 
it's not all about pharmacy experience. Other experiences count too. Make sure you do notify them of your hospital experience. It will look great. Your research work will also make your application stand apart from other applicants. The volunteer work doens't have to be related to pharmacy.
 
hey guys! im having trouble finding extra curriculars related to health field because i know pharm schools want to know that you have experience in pharmacy whether it be pharmacy or hospital volunteer to tell them that you really know this profession is for you

well right now i have a volunteer 1 year intern at a hospital but non pharmacy related. i want to shadow a pharmacist or work as a cash register at a pharmacy but i havent had any success in getting a position? any suggestions on how to increase my chances or where is a good place to find a position for experience in the setting?? or what other types of volunteer or work experience would be favored by the admissions? thank you guys so much! i really appreciate all the help =))))
 
I used to live in a small town and finding pharmacy experience was extremely difficult. I went to all the major stores (walgreens, walmart etc) and was turned down at every single one of them. At one store the pharmacist refused to even come and speak to me. My advice to you is to see if there are any locally owned pharmacies in your area. These people are usually very nice. Get to them as early as possible. The one pharmacy that was willing to let someone volunteer in my area already had accepted another person as a volunteer and could only handle one at a time...so I lost out.
 
whatupron said:
hey guys! im having trouble finding extra curriculars related to health field because i know pharm schools want to know that you have experience in pharmacy whether it be pharmacy or hospital volunteer to tell them that you really know this profession is for you

well right now i have a volunteer 1 year intern at a hospital but non pharmacy related. i want to shadow a pharmacist or work as a cash register at a pharmacy but i havent had any success in getting a position? any suggestions on how to increase my chances or where is a good place to find a position for experience in the setting?? or what other types of volunteer or work experience would be favored by the admissions? thank you guys so much! i really appreciate all the help =))))
Click to expand...

Call all local hospital and tell them your ambitions and that you would lke to volunteer in the pharmacy dept. I was denied seveal times but kept trying. I finally found a hospital that had volunteers in the pharmacy dept. I then used that experience to land a job as a pharm tech in a chain store pharmacy. I had tried the chain stores before the volunteer work and never received a callback. Hope this helps
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
I'm trying to see which one will benefit me more wether i should volunteer at a hospital or work in a pharmacy which one do you guys think is a better idea?
 
Is this a stupid question or what? Why would you pass up an opportunity to make $$$? I am not knocking volunteering, but IMO, working allows to take more pride in your duties. I have heard that volunteers at clinics or hospitals often do stupid stuff like shred materials or box patient forms. How boring!

By working, you will also learn a lot more about pharmacy. You can still volunteer, but dont pass up having the chance to work because you will probably do more pharmacy-related work if you work for $$$.
 
I'm currently in the process of applying to pharmacy school and I just want to ask how important extra-curricular activities are because I'm not in any clubs and I didn't volunteer anywhere. But I have been working at a retail pharmacy for about 7 months now. Should I start volunteering at a hospital pharmacy now? Or is it too late since I'm about to submit my PharmCAS. Or is it even worth it at all since I probably won't have time because I'm in the middle of my PS and studying for the PCAT to be taken in Oct. I did tutor at a middle school when I was a senior in highschool...so should I include that in my PharmCAS?

And another question...for the work history section in the PharmCAS application, should I only include pharmacy work or include all work experiences even the ones when I was in highschool?
 
I'm applying this year like you so have that in mind (meaning i'm not really sure how important it is to adcoms since I havent gone through the process). But in my opinion, I think that maybe you should try volunteering in other fields of pharmacy? Like in a hospital... shadow a clinical pharmacist... even though you can't write it on your pharmcas you can always explain those experiences during the interview.

As for the work experiences I would include those that are important - that emphasize health related work as well as customer service - really, just any work that you think will improve your application.
 
Which one pays less?

Oh, what? Volunteering doesn't pay at all and requires less involvement and responsibility? DO THAT ONE!
 
Anyone else have any suggestions or opinions??
 
some schools see it as an involvment in community service and not just doing things for the money.
 
i think u should do both. at least u'll be more familiar with different pharmacists and maybe if ure there long enough, they can write u a letter of recommendation. btw, volunteering at a hospital doesnt only include doing "stupid stuff like shred materials or box patient forms", depending at which ones u volunteer at, u can actually deliver medicines (helping out the pharm. technician) to hospital rooms which makes the time fly by.
 
I certainly wouldn't knock volunteering, especially in a hospital or through the Red Cross. As PharmMnM pointed out it shows that you aren't 100% interested in the profession just for the money. Pharmacy is a health care profession after all, and health care is about helping people. Personally, if I were on an admissions committee I would see someone who did a lot of volunteering (or better yet, Peace Corps work) in a much better light. Obviously, though, if we're doing comparisons then it depends on what kind of work we're comparing it to. i.e., someone who was an EMT for a year is going to look just as good.
 
I'm 22 years old and have been working for the past four years in group homes with individuals with autism and other mental disabilities. I knew early on that I didn't want human services to be my final carreer destination, but at the same time I enjoy the work. I just feel that I can reach my full potential in another field. I've never tried to be a house manager or anything, but I'm sure if needed I could get a stellar recomendation from one of my supervisors.

In the past year I started a pharmacy technology program at Holyoke Community College (one of the best tech programs in the country I have heard). Early this summer I decided to switch over to a pre-pharmacy curriculum at the same CC, transferring a bunch of pre-req credits from a liberal arts associates degree I earned while working.

So my two questions are:

Will my work experience be worth anything in terms of getting into pharmacy school? Could this experience replace the need for extensive volunteering?

Will a 4.0 in my pharmacy tech classes be worth anything?
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Should I take the lack of responses to mean that the answer to both my questions is "No"?
 
Of course, No.
 
Any human service experience will help... however it won't be any significant help compared to pharmacy experience. All that matters is that you have enough experience to know what you're getting yourself into. Your experience up till this point involves helping others that greatly need it... add a little pharmacy shadowing and you'll be set.

If your pharmacy tech courses included any pharmacy prereqs, then they'll certainly help.
 
So, I've found a pharmacy to do some volunteer work out. Now the question is, how many hours should I aim for? Yes, I know as much as possible would be great, but what looks really good on an application?
 
Hi everyone,

What would everyone consider as the sufficient amount of time of pharmacy experience? I am planning to get a job as a pharmacy clerk, but my schedule is packed. I am currently a sophmore at a university. In additions to my classes, I have research and volunteering on the weekends. However, I heard that having pharmacy experience is really important when applying, but I don't know if it's worth it to start now. If I could get some inputs that would be great. Thanks!
 
Why not start as soon as possible? Just put in like 3hrs a day every week... it'll add up. If they ask how do u know that u want to go into pharmacy if you've never been in that environment, how would u answer it u know?
 
I've been wondering the same thing. I'm going to do 100 hours because *I* think that sounds good. I haven't gotten a good answer out of anyone yet, so I'm just doing what I think.
 
In my opinion...it is not how much time you devote per week...it is the length of committment you are willing to devote.

Those of us in pharmacy know, you can't learn anything if you work 3 days a week for 1 month. You've barely touched the surface. But...if you work when your schedule allows & more during your breaks for 1-2 years....you'll learn a lot.

It also shows committment to a site and a learning process in which time and exposure mean everything.

In my opinion, it is far better to have fewer extracurricular activities, but show committment to them than to have many & varied, but never continue with any.
 
Hello, I am currently in the process of applying to pharmacy school and I was wondering if working in a pharmacy as a pharmacy clerk would be considered actualy " pharmacy experience" by a pharmacy school?
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
thanks, anyone else with more insights?
 
I always thought pharmacy experience = any pharmacy exposure. It doesn't necessarily have to be paid or even permanent. Some people have paid 'experience' such as being a pharm tech, pharm clerk. Or it can be unpaid, like volunteering or even shadowing pharmacists for a day or two. Adcoms just want to see that you have some sort of idea what being a pharmacist entails and that you know what you're getting yourself into. They're gonna want to know what YOU got out of it and they're going to find that out during your interview. Hope that helps.
 
Since they are gonna want to find out what we got out of the pharmacy experience or exposure...

What are the exact questions that were asked?
 
It's pretty easy to predict the types of questions asked. Think what you would ask someone who claimed to be interested in something you have experience/expertise in.

Why are you interested?
What aspect of pharmacy or career paths interest you and why?
What role will you play in the profession in 10 years?
Why not something else?
What about this school attracted your interest?
What attributes are important in pharmacists?
etc.

Basically, the questions are used to assess your knowledge of what you're getting into and to assess how interested you are. Check the sticky on the interview process to a link of common interview questions for more info.
 
SobeGekko said:
It's pretty easy to predict the types of questions asked. Think what you would ask someone who claimed to be interested in something you have experience/expertise in.

Why are you interested?
What aspect of pharmacy or career paths interest you and why?
What role will you play in the profession in 10 years?
Why not something else?
What about this school attracted your interest?
What attributes are important in pharmacists?
etc.

Basically, the questions are used to assess your knowledge of what you're getting into and to assess how interested you are. Check the sticky on the interview process to a link of common interview questions for more info.
Click to expand...

This is really true, plus I think pharmacy schools want you to know what you're getting into. They want to make sure this is something you want to do and you're not going to quit pharm school halfway through. I think any volunteer, clerk, or even shadowing counts as pharmacy experience though each one has varying levels of exposure. Personally, I get more experience as a clerk than I ever did as a volunteer in a hospital outpatient pharmacy.
 
Hello all. Does anyone know how I can gain experience in pharmacy without being certified as a pharmacy technition? I graduated from ASU with a major in Russian studies and a minor in speech science. I wanted to be a speech pathologist but changed my carrer path to pharmacy. I am currently a post-bacc pre-pharm student in NYC working on my first year of prereqs. It seems like pharmacies are only hiring pharmacy technitions and pharmasists and there is very little opportunity for people like me. Am i wrong? How am I supposed to gain experience without having any prior experience in pharmacy? Thanks!
 
SundevilNY said:
Hello all. Does anyone know how I can gain experience in pharmacy without being certified as a pharmacy technition? I graduated from ASU with a major in Russian studies and a minor in speech science. I wanted to be a speech pathologist but changed my carrer path to pharmacy. I am currently a post-bacc pre-pharm student in NYC working on my first year of prereqs. It seems like pharmacies are only hiring pharmacy technitions and pharmasists and there is very little opportunity for people like me. Am i wrong? How am I supposed to gain experience without having any prior experience in pharmacy? Thanks!
Click to expand...

try volunteering in a hospital. i'm not sure of ny laws, but in oregon i was able to get "licensed" (send $$ to the state board of pharmacy and pass a background check) which made me eligible to volunteer. no pay, but a decent way to get experience and spend time in a pharmacy.
 
Hi guys,

I recently emailed my local hospital about an intern as a pharmacist there and they called me back informing me about the pharmacy license. Unfortunately, I cannot intern as a pharmacist because I am still an undergraduate working on my prerequisites at a state university and I cannot apply for a pharmacy license unless I am enrolled at a pharmacy college.

Does anyone know how I can get some pharmacy experience before I apply to a pharmacy college?

Thanks alot!

Kind regards,


BascerPharm4
 
LOL. You thought u could work as a pharmacist already w/ out taking a single pharmacy course....LOL


Try applying as a clerk at local CVS, riteaid, walgreens...
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Salem Dany
I need help deciding between pharmacy schools
Replies
2
Views
1K
projektreverb
P
Mr.Smile12
Webinar: Funding your Pharmacy Education (AACP)
Replies
0
Views
2K
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
[AACP] Pharmacy School Interest Rises as Applications Jump 6%
Replies
1
Views
597
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
[AJPE] Pre-Pharmacy Institution (also) Matters
Replies
0
Views
4K
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Spring 2025 Applicant Experience Survey
Replies
0
Views
1K
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Top Bottom