PharmD/PhD joint programs

[DHG]

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Can some current pharmacy students tell me this:

Is there much real difference between the practicallity of doing a PharmD + 2 years of residency (for a specialty) and doing a PharmD + PhD? The joint PhD program has some pros and some cons...1 pro is that you get a tuition waver and a stipend, one con is that it will take 1 or 2 years more than just doing residency.

I suppose what I'm asking is what are the differences in the types of jobs you can get with a PhD vs 2 years of residency... I know that in a lot of schools it's no longer a requirement to have a PhD for teaching now... So that option is no longer for PhD's only...

If after all this you decide to go work in retail for a couple of years anyways, will you be looked over or not hired because you have a PhD? or 2 years residency?(overqualified?)

I'm surely not going to do either as prep for retail, but I just wanted to make sure that doing it wouldn't shut off any of my options. I'd like to have the security of being able to work retail if I want to.

 

[DHG]

No one has anything to comment about this?! Okay, so I guess I'm not the only one that doesn't have a clue

 

[shoppe]

From what I've heard, the joint program is supposed to make it easier on students who want to have job flexibility. Eg. They can teach, do research AND work at a retail. Although i'm confused also because my pharmacist (pharmD) said that if you have pHD, you can still do retail but pharmD can't teach or do research. There's this relief pharmacist who i worked with for a couple of days. He just finished his pharmD and now starts his phD program. Still, he does retail on the weekend to get some extra money. He said the same thing about the flexibility becuase he wants to teach, do research, and work at a retail on the weekend at the same time. heheh

 

[Sosumi]

You need a Ph.D. to apply for NIH research grants, which are the backbone of most research institutional funding.

It's much easier to get a job in academia and in the pharmaceutical industry doing research with a Ph.D. vs just a Pharm.D. With both a PharmD/PhD, The pharmacy schools like that you are a pharmacist and can relate to what the students need to know, while also being able to perform research and get funding for the school. With just a Pharm.D. + residency, you're more qualified to be a clinical pharmacist and teach in pharmacy schools as a clinicians rather than teaching the basic sciences. With a PharmD + PhD, you can teach both and thus much more desirable.

Some of the PhD students here who already have their PharmDs also work part time in retail pharmacies while doing their graduate coursework and research, thus earning more money in addition to their PhD stipend. You wouldn't have much time to do that if you were in a residency.

 

[bananaface]

You can teach with a PharmD. It's very common.

If you want to perform research in academia or industry, the PhD route may be for you. Residency is geared more towards those who want specialty clinical training. Those are two totally different career paths.

 

[DHG]

Thanks