Pharmacy school=High school again?

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lvp0021

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Now that I've been in pharmacy school for a while, it appears to me that the mentality of professionalism and cooperation just exist on the official side. On the unofficial side, it's highschool all over. People break up into cliques. All the frat people like PDX, KE, rho psi-whatever would hangout and sit in the same place together during class. People with same races like Asian or Caucasian also form groups. And not to forget all the poor innocents that are left out as orphans because they are either overachievers or just not "click" with the others. It reminds me of high school where you have cheerleaders changing dates monthly and hunky football players eager to experience what is called "manhood". Also all these pressure of "you need to be well-grounded and join organizations" just float around everywhere. But then residency, most of it, focuses solely on grades. It appears to me that people with "party experiences" use those as excuses to be "well-grounded" and to make up for their low grades. Meanwhile, people toiling their backs for A's are reticent when talking about these "extra-club activities" due to their lack of time joining them. It's just like in highschool where a high SAT score would rule over football/basketball captains (who get free scholarship to college to play pro) and vice versa.
Maybe it's just me feeling this way and sorry if I'm wrong or in conflict with your interests:confused:. I just want to know if it's the same at other schools and with everyone else:luck:.
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Lol. Sounds like my school.
 
there are definitely a lot of different cliques in my class also. The difference I think is that it is much easier to drift between them and be friends with everyone. In high school- it was the clique or you don't even speak to anyone. I have found it quite easy to float between groups of people and have gotten to know a good number of people in my class really well.
 
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My class has a lot of cliques. However, after talking to several class ahead and below me, we have more cliques than any other class. So it all depends I think on the school and the particular class.
 
I've felt this way some, especially since my pharmacy school class is half the size of my high school class, so it really stands out with the cliques even more. My tactic for dealing with it is that I've found my little group of close friends, but I try to be friendly to everybody in the class unless they give me some reason not to be. I'm sure that you have or will end up in some group projects or something that splits the class up from their chosen friends - I've used those opportunities to try to get to know some other people a bit, and then I'll at least speak to those people some after the project or whatever is over.
 
I said 1st year that pharmacy school was like high school magnified x10 (went from class of 850 to class of 85) with more sex, drugs & rock n'roll.

it really has settled down though. there's always a little drama, and people do mostly hang out with the friends they made early on. but it isn't that bad.
 
It is like that in my class as well. I am in a frat, but I still failed to really click with anyone, save one person (and we don't have much in common either, but we banter well). I just kinda keep to myself for the most part, even though I do show up to or participate in my share of activities. I suppose the biggest factors for my failure to click would be that I am somewhat quiet or reserved and a little older than the average... I guess my main interests are not the standard fare either. :rolleyes:
 
10 years from now, nobody is going to care if you got an A or a C in your therapeutics course. What will matter, though, is the friendships and networking opportunities that you set up during the activities that make you "well-grounded" (did you mean well-rounded?). While I do think that it's sad that there are so many cliques at your school (my class can be a little clique-y too, but not to the degree that you're describing), it really is important to have other experiences in pharmacy school than just studying. Sure I could be getting better grades right now if I was less involved in other activities, but so far I've gotten better scholarships and have many more opportunities than the straight A students b/c that's what my school cares about.

I'd rather work with a pharmacist that had varied experiences, can communicate well, and is pleasant to be around than someone that can recite dosing schedules, molecular mechanisms of action, etc. off the top of their head but doesn't speak articulately or doesn't feel like they should help create a good work atmosphere.
 
lvp0021 said:
Now that I've been in pharmacy school for a while, it appears to me that the mentality of professionalism and cooperation just exist on the official side. On the unofficial side, it's highschool all over. People break up into cliques. All the frat people like PDX, KE, rho psi-whatever would hangout and sit in the same place together during class. People with same races like Asian or Caucasian also form groups. And not to forget all the poor innocents that are left out as orphans because they are either overachievers or just not "click" with the others. It reminds me of high school where you have cheerleaders changing dates monthly and hunky football players eager to experience what is called "manhood". Also all these pressure of "you need to be well-grounded and join organizations" just float around everywhere. But then residency, most of it, focuses solely on grades. It appears to me that people with "party experiences" use those as excuses to be "well-grounded" and to make up for their low grades. Meanwhile, people toiling their backs for A's are reticent when talking about these "extra-club activities" due to their lack of time joining them. It's just like in highschool where a high SAT score would rule over football/basketball captains (who get free scholarship to college to play pro) and vice versa.
Maybe it's just me feeling this way and sorry if I'm wrong or in conflict with your interests:confused:. I just want to know if it's the same at other schools and with everyone else:luck:.
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Jeez dude. I read this and I can't believe we are in the same class. I'm trying to figure out which "clique" I belong to. I don't belong to a frat. I'm not a club or class officer. I'm white, but the races of those that I socialize with run the gamut. Within a ten seat diameter of where I sit everyday every frat, race, club and academic performance range is well represented.
I'm one of the older students in your class. 99% of my free time is spent with my family, but Iam still invited to attend social gatherings on a weekly basis. I have never experienced any type of exclusion. I have in fact experienced quite the opposite. Sure there are some jerks. There always will be anytime you gather ~130 people. You will also see groups of friends form among these ~130 people. I have met some truly fasinating, kind, fun, and genuine people in our class. Never, have I felt left out.
 
Heh-heh. Try being one of the oldest people in a class full of people who are young enough to be your children. There is a huge difference in maturity and emotional makeup between a 23 year old and a 42 year old. What's even funnier is that the awareness of the difference is completely one-sided. I'm never bored with my young friends - entertainment on so many levels. It's been fun - seriously. I love my classmates.
 
not really, except that herpes outbreak kinda reminded me of my high school days.
 
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It'll get better. You'll get to know people outside of your clique when you do each time you do a group project. I'm definitely not a fan of group work, but it gets people out of their comfort zone and their shell.

I've been tired all week, because of this group project that involved a presentation. Now that it's over, I'm drinking a little bubbly. :hardy:
 
In high school, they're "cliques" In professional school, they're "social circles."

Seriously- middle schoolers have drama and pre-teen angst. High schoolers have drama, teen angst, and driver's licenses. College students have drama, angst, driver's licenses, and are old enough to drink. Professional school students have drama, angst, driver's licenses, are old enough to drink, and have huge loan debt and possibly middle school or high school age children of their own.
 
Moxxie said:
10 years from now, nobody is going to care if you got an A or a C in your therapeutics course. What will matter, though, is the friendships and networking opportunities that you set up during the activities that make you "well-grounded" (did you mean well-rounded?). While I do think that it's sad that there are so many cliques at your school (my class can be a little clique-y too, but not to the degree that you're describing), it really is important to have other experiences in pharmacy school than just studying. Sure I could be getting better grades right now if I was less involved in other activities, but so far I've gotten better scholarships and have many more opportunities than the straight A students b/c that's what my school cares about.

I'd rather work with a pharmacist that had varied experiences, can communicate well, and is pleasant to be around than someone that can recite dosing schedules, molecular mechanisms of action, etc. off the top of their head but doesn't speak articulately or doesn't feel like they should help create a good work atmosphere.
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Hi... thanks for the comments.
 
dienophile said:
Jeez dude. I read this and I can't believe we are in the same class. I'm trying to figure out which "clique" I belong to. I don't belong to a frat. I'm not a club or class officer. I'm white, but the races of those that I socialize with run the gamut. Within a ten seat diameter of where I sit everyday every frat, race, club and academic performance range is well represented.
I'm one of the older students in your class. 99% of my free time is spent with my family, but Iam still invited to attend social gatherings on a weekly basis. I have never experienced any type of exclusion. I have in fact experienced quite the opposite. Sure there are some jerks. There always will be anytime you gather ~130 people. You will also see groups of friends form among these ~130 people. But to paint a picture of our class with such a broad brush is silly. I have met some truly fasinating, kind, fun, and genuine people in our class. Never, have I felt left out. If you are feeling ostracized perhaps you should begin your critique with the man in the mirror. Truthfully examine your own behavior before you so eagerly cast stones an a public forum. Your post reeks of pity seeking insecurity.
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Helloo... I'm glad that you've had colorful experiences so far. I sincerely apologize if my post upsets you in anyway. Like I said above, it was just some of my transient feelings and I was wondering if anyone at other schools feel the same :rolleyes:
I truly respect your mature views and evaluations of life, as you've been through it more than I do. Having said that, I might look at things differently than you do just because I'm younger. I'm glad that you never feel left out, which is very good. I'm also happy that the class as a whole is diverse and cooperative to certain extent. However, there are things I've experienced that annoyed me and you haven't. You may not have found them annoyed had you had them like I did. That's understandable as we all lead our lives differently. ANd I hope in the near future, I'll be able to feel the way you feel now :laugh:
The man in the mirror is hot, at least to my perception :D, probably hotter next week when I get a haircut LOL. And yes I might be insecure, so would you mind finding me a date :p?
 
I'm sorry to hear that you feel that way. However you generalizing the entire class is ridiculous. I find it humorous that you say that people who join a frat or go out every once in a while use the excuse, "at least I have a life" while covering up their C's. You make it sound like people party all the time and never study! What about all the people who go out and have fun, but study their ASSES off but can barely pass. Not everyone was blessed with the ability to learn test material, and to be honest test grades don't really mean much. I'm sure that your future patients aren't going to give a damn if you got all A's in pharm school, but WILL care about how you act as a professional. Another thing that I find funny about your post is how you say that it is all about grades when it comes to applying for a residency, however every single guest speaker that has ever spoken to pharmacy organizations (SNPhA, APhA, etc.) says that you need SOME form of extracurricular activity. But hey, they probably joined a frat and made all C's, right? Give me a break.
 
Sorry to upset so many people on here:( I didn't make all A's (failed organs final in fact) and obviously didn't mean to generalize everyone. As far as residency go, to my limited connection, it appears that grades are weighed heavily. But maybe you are right, those extra-activities will count. Again, I just wonder if people at other school feel some sort of similar way as I did. If I was to upset anyone, I sincerely apologize. :oops:
 
eelo said:
In high school, they're "cliques" In professional school, they're "social circles."

Seriously- middle schoolers have drama and pre-teen angst. High schoolers have drama, teen angst, and driver's licenses. College students have drama, angst, driver's licenses, and are old enough to drink. Professional school students have drama, angst, driver's licenses, are old enough to drink, and have huge loan debt and possibly middle school or high school age children of their own.
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:laugh: very true!
 
I noticed the cliquishness, too. That's why I didn't do anything at all with my class unless forced to. I had my own, preexisting friends.
 
pharmacistUH said:
I find it humorous that you say that people who join a frat or go out every once in a while use the excuse, "at least I have a life" while covering up their C's. You make it sound like people party all the time and never study! What about all the people who go out and have fun, but study their ASSES off but can barely pass. Not everyone was blessed with the ability to learn test material, and to be honest test grades don't really mean much.
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I find it humorous you would even make such a statement. Do you not realize how ridiculous it sounds?
 
Wait until you get in the real world. Do you think people change when they get jobs? Since people seem to mature much later then they used to, it's pretty nasty out there. Get used to it. It's life. Since the beginning of time, people have been running off at the mouth, forming cliques acting childishly.

Let's face it, we're human.....
 
As cliquey as our class is, I think we're all very friendly to each other. Cliques overlap into several that intermingle at events. It's nice because I know about 80% of the people in my class at least by a first name basis. The few that choose not to participate probably have friends to go back to anyways at the end of the day. So many of us are out of state that we have no choice but to bond. That's a good thing.

I'm sure we'll turn into a dysfunctional family sooner or later with drama (it's inevitable), but at least we all know it's coming.
 
My class (not my school) can win an award if there is any for forming cliques. It is so annoying that even when we have group projects, every body wants to pair with their friends. We have a group of students that will not have a separate lab from their friends. They always go where their friends are. My class is worst than high school. Alot of pettiness, back-talk, gossip and married people cheating on their spouses left and right. We are notorious among the instructors and the set above and behind us are always disgusted at the level of childishness in our class.
It is more acceptable for highschool kids to be childish and petty but when 30 something yrs old women with kids are behaving like teenagers, then something is definetly wrong somewhere. What I have learned this semester is to ignore stupid behaviors. You might want to try that!!!!lol
 
taken2 said:
when 30 something yrs old women with kids are behaving like teenagers, then something is definetly wrong somewhere.
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Ha ha ha. I love when the old women try to act young again. It's one thing to want to feel young again, but its another to dress like a 18 year old girl begging for attention.

My class does not have a maturity problem. There are only 3-4 people in the class who act like they are 12 by making inappropriate comments or disrupting the class. My class does have an idiot problem. The faculty must think we are a bunch of *****s. People constantly ask the instructor the same questions 3-4 times in a row, excessively dispute the answer to the question, and waste class time with irrelevant questions.

At first I couldn't stand my class because it seemed everyone was a *****. Eventually the normal people started coming out of the woodwork.
 
I like most of my classmates, but after almost three years I look forward to not seeing them every weekday.
 
It is nice seeing anyone every single day as you get to see them age through the years!
 
futureRXdealer said:
There are only 3-4 people in the class who act like they are 12 by making inappropriate comments or disrupting the class. My class does have an idiot problem. The faculty must think we are a bunch of *****s.
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I have no idea what/who who you could be talking about. ;)

Our class really shot themselves in the foot with the whole Drug Info debacle. At least on the bright side we can't manage to tank our reputation any further with the faculty.
 
I thought I was the only one feeling this way. This is worse than high school because the class is so much smaller and everybody is dating everybody. Lots of drama that I try not get myself involved in. Now I'm one of the "anti-social" ones because I don't really hang out with the people in my class. I'm just counting down the days that I don't have to see them again. It's going fast, but just not fast enough. I don't know what happened because my college experience wasn't like that at all.
 
Lurkerkat said:
I have no idea what/who who you could be talking about. ;)

Our class really shot themselves in the foot with the whole Drug Info debacle. At least on the bright side we can't manage to tank our reputation any further with the faculty.
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Ha ha ha. I am glad I am not the only one who recognizes these people (although its hard not to). The drug info situation really shows that some people in our class have an inability to think. The faculty are not the only ones who think bad of us, the P2 and P3 students don't think too highly of our class either. Go figure.
 
futureRXdealer said:
Ha ha ha. I am glad I am not the only one who recognizes these people (although its hard not to). The drug info situation really shows that some people in our class have an inability to think. The faculty are not the only ones who think bad of us, the P2 and P3 students don't think too highly of our class either. Go figure.
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You would be right about that. Your classes doesn't exactly have a stellar reputation. Getting caught cheating in DI was just dumb. If your going to cheat (Im not saying that you should), at least do it on something worth while. Although there are rumors that there are still people who cheat on other things on a regular basis.
 
skeksis said:
It is like that in my class as well. I am in a frat, but I still failed to really click with anyone, save one person (and we don't have much in common either, but we banter well). I just kinda keep to myself for the most part, even though I do show up to or participate in my share of activities. I suppose the biggest factors for my failure to click would be that I am somewhat quiet or reserved and a little older than the average... I guess my main interests are not the standard fare either. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Hey, I'm older, too. :p
 
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