random questions about starting out in Pharm school

[PbintoAu]

I decided on the school, now Im wondering about all the silly little things that come along with going back to school.

1) For those with programs that rely heavily on laptops...do you often take books to class? Im looking for another laptop bag (mine doesn't have a lot of room) and Im wondering how much extra space I'll need (i.e. do I just get a backpack...)

2) Approx, how much do you spend on books your first year?

3) What types of fees are going to come up the first year (i.e. professional organization fees, getting lisenced, etc)

I think that is it. Thanks for any info.

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[genesis09]

1) For those with programs that rely heavily on laptops...do you often take books to class? Im looking for another laptop bag (mine doesn't have a lot of room) and Im wondering how much extra space I'll need (i.e. do I just get a backpack...)
At my school, hardly anyone brings a computer or books to class. We are given handouts from each professor. The handouts can be powerpoint slides, outlines, or something written out from the professor.

2) Approx, how much do you spend on books your first year?
The professors tend to place all of their desired information in the handouts. I only had two books which I really had to buy: Pharmaceutical Calculations, and Buzzed: The Straight Facts about the most used and Abused Drugs. Together, they cost about $60. I was also required to buy the USP-DI Volume 1 for next year, and through the school, I was able to purchase it for only $105. If I had purchased every required book for this year, the total would probably be between $700 and $800. I also had to buy a weight set, $45, bottles, $10, and cleaning supplies, $5, for lab. We were given a lab coat by the school.

3) What types of fees are going to come up the first year (i.e. professional organization fees, getting lisenced, etc)
You will have to licensed as a Pharmacy Technician or Intern, depending on the state. In Illinois, a new license costs $40, and the renewal, $25.
APhA-ASP membership at my school cost $53. ISHP, the Illinois branch of ASHP, membership cost $10.

 

[Requiem]

I decided on the school, now Im wondering about all the silly little things that come along with going back to school.

1) For those with programs that rely heavily on laptops...do you often take books to class? Im looking for another laptop bag (mine doesn't have a lot of room) and Im wondering how much extra space I'll need (i.e. do I just get a backpack...)

Don't bring a laptop to class. However the only textbook I bring is anatomy, since taking notes is useless I just highlight in the book.


2) Approx, how much do you spend on books your first year?
A few hundred, 3-400$ i'd guess.

3) What types of fees are going to come up the first year (i.e. professional organization fees, getting lisenced, etc)

A lot of random fees for like $35, $50 would pop up to join this national organization, this school organization, this provincial organization, etc.
Got quite annoying after a while.
I think that is it. Thanks for any info.

s

 

[dgroulx]

I decided on the school, now Im wondering about all the silly little things that come along with going back to school.

1) For those with programs that rely heavily on laptops...do you often take books to class? Im looking for another laptop bag (mine doesn't have a lot of room) and Im wondering how much extra space I'll need (i.e. do I just get a backpack...)

2) Approx, how much do you spend on books your first year?

3) What types of fees are going to come up the first year (i.e. professional organization fees, getting lisenced, etc)

I think that is it. Thanks for any info.

1. UF requires that you own a laptop, but you will never use it. Once, during my 2nd year they made us bring them to school. Then they counted to see how many people actually owned laptops. Our school is also heavy on the power point slides. I print a copy before the lecture, then take notes on them.

2. I think it was about $300. Check with a student one year ahead of you at school to see if you really need them. Information in books is really ancient when you consider the drug industry. That's why they use power points, to give you current info. Some books, like compounding manuals, biochem, kinetics should be okay.

3. We had to buy UF polo shirts, UF lab coats, and pay for CPR certification. Joining clubs was optional, but if you did there is dues for each individual organization.

 

[usi]

1. UF requires that you own a laptop, but you will never use it. Once, during my 2nd year they made us bring them to school. Then they counted to see how many people actually owned laptops. Our school is also heavy on the power point slides. I print a copy before the lecture, then take notes on them.

2. I think it was about $300. Check with a student one year ahead of you at school to see if you really need them. Information in books is really ancient when you consider the drug industry. That's why they use power points, to give you current info. Some books, like compounding manuals, biochem, kinetics should be okay.

3. We had to buy UF polo shirts, UF lab coats, and pay for CPR certification. Joining clubs was optional, but if you did there is dues for each individual organization.

I am glad I read your post. I was going to spend some $$ on a nice laptop, but I really think I am going to spend less on it now!

 

[n0estoy]

heh, yeah, im gonna try to pick up a used one from inventory change over later this year before i graduate from undergrad. not about to willingly drop 1k+ on a laptop i aint gonna use.

 

[Shmy2008]

I use my laptop in class every day... could NOT function without it. My school does everything online (paperless), so all lecture outlines, clinical data, and lecture information (powerpoint slides) are posted online for us and we take notes (if needed) directly into the electronic files. I don't take any books to class...

Spent ~ $200 on books the first year. If you haven't traditionally been a big "read the suggested readings" kind of student, you might want to hold off, see if you absolutely cannot function without the books, and then buy them. You may also want to see if the school's library has the current editions on hand for quick reference. I spent ~$150 on the Pharmacotherapy book my second year (DiPiro), which includes an access code to download an electronic version of the entire book in PDF format. I'd much rather schlep my 5 pound laptop around than my 20 pound copy of DiPiro!

State pharmacy organization dues - usually pretty cheap, especially for students. In my state, 5 bucks. National organization dues - depends on the organization and the amount of local dues that your school's chapter tacks on. Usually $50-$75. Some states don't require that students be licensed - I would check your state's Board of Pharmacy website for details.

 

[SomeGuy]

Highly recommended: A laser printer. For all those power point slides, reports, practice tests, resumes and review sheets. I'm nearing the end of the first year of my program, and I'm nearing 2500 pages so far since September. Resumes also look way better printed on laser. Also, save your money and buy one of those banker's boxes of paper, rather than a ream at a time.

My laser printer cost around CAD$200, and didn't need new toner (US$35) until I already printed off 3500 pages. It also does around 20 pages per minute. I remember one morning where this powerpoint presentation kept printing with white text on a dark background, but having a laser printer, I didn't care about the wasted ink.

I could only wonder what those people with inkjets are spending on cartridges.

I'd find it really difficult to study off sheets that I wrote onto electronically with a tablet PC or some such.

And for regulatory body licensing, I paid over CAD$300 for opening the file and registering at the student level.

 

[Caverject]

does your school not have a laser printer?

 

[SomeGuy]

We do, and its free on a BYOP basis, but why would I want to:
a) lug around blank paper;
b) hog or wait for the printer when everyone else is using it (to print off the day's notes that a prof decided to finish up that morning or to print off a report that's due);
c) worry about it breaking (which tends to happen with ~700 students using it/them); and
d) walk all the way there, as none of our classes are in the same building as the pharmacy library (though this will be changing come September when that new building is _finally_ done) ?

A laser printer is also something that's useful over the summers and after graduation. I couldn't really imagine them dropping in price any more than they have.

And a correction: I actually paid CAD$81+tax for the printer. A bargain at double the price.

 

[dgroulx]

I could only wonder what those people with inkjets are spending on cartridges.

I went through one black ink cartridge every couple of weeks. Office Depot did give me a free ream of paper with every cartridge I recycled, so I never had to buy paper.

 

[pinkyrx]

Highly recommended: A laser printer.

I finally wised up my second year and purchased a laser printer. We have tons of computers (with paper provided), but the computer lab is a real madhouse and unless you go on the weekend its just not worth the hassle. Everyone is usually trying to print out the same stuff the morning of the lecture and it never fails that I print a lecture and before I get to the printer someone else has already claimed it. Plus, we are constantly having technical difficulties with printers down etc.

I found my laser printer (black/white only) for $70 after rebate and it's great! You can find great deals at fatwallet.com or places like that. The toner cartridges are expensive, but you can buy refills for pretty cheap in comparison and they last forever! One cartridge on mine is expect to last for 5000+ pages.

As far as books go, I've only needed to buy a few books and most of those I never used. Like others have said, we also rely heavily on power point printouts. Our professors even provide supplemental readings in PDF format sometimes.

Our school doesnt require laptops and I've never really had a use for one. I did by a PDA but I mainly use it for email etc and occasionally use it to look up a drug that I'm not sure of via the free Epocrates software.

 

[Ms. Hand]

I'm skipping question #1 because my school is not technology-heavy.

2) A lot. I spent probably $300 each semester. If you're short on cash, befriend an upperclassman and ask him/her which books are actually necessary. Some books I read every day; others I never touched.

3) Mainly, there will be fees for professional organizations. I spent about $130 on dues last fall, but I joined a bunch of stuff. You'll probably also have a lot of opportunities to buy T-shirts and bumperstickers that say "_______ School of Pharmacy" and if you're like most people, you'll snap them up.

About the printer issue: at some schools, the class president will print off the notes and make copies for everybody in the class. If this is the case at your school, you probably won't need to buy a new printer.

 

[RoyalBean]

3) What types of fees are going to come up the first year (i.e. professional organization fees, getting lisenced, etc)

I just found out I have to pay a company $35 to conduct a background check on myself. That seems a little weird, paying to conduct a background check on myself... I know my own background

 

[pinkyrx]

I just found out I have to pay a company $35 to conduct a background check on myself. That seems a little weird, paying to conduct a background check on myself... I know my own background

We had to do this too and they charged us way more. I think the background check is more to comply with hospital policy for rotations etc.

 

[dgroulx]

We had to pay $60 right before we went out on rotations. They wanted to make sure we weren't child molesters or something.