So. . . Are you glad you picked Pharm?

[Lori3]

I'm looking into it, for a number of reasons. Matches my interests and strengths, and is much more. . . practical. . . than my other interests.

But, I'm looking for some btdt feedback. Are you glad you've picked pharm? Why? What would you do differently?

Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

I really don't have much direction in life...never really did. Pharmacy was the safe bet. Guaranteed job with great pay. My calling is probably something else...but I have no idea what...so pharmacy is as good as anything else, I guess. Am I glad I picked pharmacy? Yeah...it's better than most crap people have to do for less money. Would I do it again? As of right now, probably. Unless I can figure out a way to get paid for playing video games, being a technology nerd, watching football, or doing nothing....I've probably chosen the right career (as in something I have to do to pay the bills) path for me. This way I can retire in 20 years and do what I really want to do....absolutely nothing. A lot of people tell me I should have been a Johnny Cochran-esque defense attorney. Maybe I should go to law school.

 

[pharmacogenomic]

Yep - I'd do it all over again!

I just had the opportunity to go to my reunion - UCSF. I caught up with many folks in my class & in others from 1940 until 2002 (I don't have a clue what the last 5 years folks are doing - working our shifts apparently).

In my class alone - we have a HUGE representation in industry, quite a few dops, lots of clinical managers, about 4 that have owned their own pharmacies, some - like me who have done lots of things in many aspects of pharmacy.

I had the very, very rare opportunity to see quite a few of the research labs at UCSF on the new campus. The research is exciting & really cutting edge.
My name is reflective of how far we've come in understanding drugs - from their development to their ultimate use & our involvement in that process.

I had lots of conversations with faculty about how & why they chose the students they choose. We carry lots of responsibilities as alumni. I don't know that is the case with all schools, but during one phase of the reunion, we were polled & asked if our education prepared us for our careers. Remember - some of these people were celebrating their 50th reunion. Uniformly all of us agreed we had a great education which prepared us for all the changes we have experienced.

Yep - I'd do it again. If I were to do it differently, I'd probably have tried to do a fellowship - no....not a residency - a fellowship. But, there were not many in the late 70's.

 

[piyi]

I really don't have much direction in life...never really did. Pharmacy was the safe bet. Guaranteed job with great pay. My calling is probably something else...but I have no idea what...so pharmacy is as good as anything else, I guess. Am I glad I picked pharmacy? Yeah...it's better than most crap people have to do for less money. Would I do it again? As of right now, probably. Unless I can figure out a way to get paid for playing video games, or doing nothing....I've probably chosen the right career (as in something I have to do to pay the bills) path for me. This way I can retire in 20 years and do what I really want to do.

Wow. You've stolen the words right out of my mouth. I couldn't have said it better myself (that's why I deleted the part about being paid for watching football and being a technology nerd because I would fail miserably at that). I definitely do not hate pharmacy. I've worked in retail for three years and found it quite satisfying. I proabably wouldn't have mind staying as a technician, but then there's the problem of eventually wanting to work part time (I probably wouldn't have been able to do that as a technician).

Instead of retiring in twenty years though and doing nothing, I will probably go to part time in about 10-15 years and then do stuff that I really enjoy ilke writing, gardening, bird-watching, reading, putting puzzles together, traveling, cooking, I can go on and on.

I've heard of so many people say, "What would I do if I didn't work?" So the implication is to find something you like so that it won't feel like you're really working... but I just don't like working in general! I could find tons and tons of things to do on my own if I didn't work, but of course, I would need some money for that. It would be nice to find some rich guy to marry, but I've already found the person I want to marry and he's not wealthy. Also-- those things are never guaranteed: the marriage could fall apart, he could lose his job, who knows? I'd say: make sure you can be financially stable on your own-- don't depend on anyone else for your financial stability; that's another thing that drew me into pharmacy.

 

[crossurfingers]

Wow, I'm not the only one! Piyi and WVUPharm2007 have taken the words right out of my mouth. I also never found myself drawn to any profession, but I did have an interest in the healthcare field. Pharmacy to me, is tolerable and sometimes can be momentarily enjoyable. I don't LOVE working, it's just something to do to pay the bills. I picked pharmacy because it was practical and tolerable for me. I would do it again, mostly because I don't know what else I'd be doing right now that would make as much money. I'm relying on this as a stepping-stone to owning my own business, which will be non-pharmacy related. Hopefully I can get to the point where it will do well enough that it will become almost passive income and I can spend my time enjoying life instead of working all the time.

 

[PharmDstudent]

I wouldn't say that I had picked pharmacy. Things just fell into place.

 

[KARM12]

I picked pharmacy because I wasn't ready to grow up and get a job after my BS degree. It was a good way to stay in school for 4 more yrs! But...I really enjoy pharmacy so it has all worked out for me.

 

[chibipinkbunny]

Well I'm only a first year at UCSF, but so far I find it fascinating! I've wanted to be involved in health care for a long time, mainly for personal reasons, and I've found where I belong. It's kind of funny cause all of the students have a certain personality, me included ^_^' Perhaps I'm naive in thinking I can really help people as a pharmacist, but that's what I believe at the moment. UCSF does have a lot of cutting edge research going on at the moment. I'm surprised at the fact that pharmacists can be so involved in research. After graduation your path isn't set in stone so perhaps I might consider research later. I think for now though I want to be a clinical pharmacist. Yeah, pharmacy school is awesome ^_^

 

[Sinjohyub]

Pharmacy chose me, not the other way around. Even after being a pharmacist, it's still one-sided love from pharmacy. Hopefully, I'll realize how wonderful pharmacy is and love her back soon.

 

[Quiksilver]

i enjoy it as well. So far so good. School can be a pain, we have 3 tests a week, so your tired alot. But it is an interesting profession with lots to offer, there are so many avenues that you can go in, and basically have a job waiting for you when school is over. That to me is amazing! and to be able to pick your job is even more incredible. Pharmacy to me is also pretty interesting, its the first time in my lifetime that i am enjoying what i am learning. So its some pretty cool stuff. But its going to get tougher before it gets easier, so you gotta prepare for that too. Just hang in there i suppose

 

[Epic]

Biggest mistake of my life... I should've gone into stand up comedy..

 

[PharmDstudent]

Biggest mistake of my life... I should've gone into stand up comedy..

Don't quit your day job, because that wasn't funny... .

 

[saga1231]

I am a 3rd yr prof. student who is excited for rotations next year. However, I have not been enthused about classes and am evaluating my options. I work part time at retail and had a nuclear pharmacy internship past summer. I cannot seem to find the job satisfaction I am looking for, but rotations might change that perspective.

I am going through pharmacy school b/c I want to finish what I started and also due to hefty financial and time investment. I am contemplating about med school, but cannot reason why!

I think, if you enjoy classes (especially therapeutics in 2nd and 3rd prof. yrs) and love retail / hospital experience, you made the right choice! Money sounds great, but without job satisfaction, it is hard to make a career out of it day-in and day-out.

 

[saga1231]

Pharmacy chose me, not the other way around. Even after being a pharmacist, it's still one-sided love from pharmacy. Hopefully, I'll realize how wonderful pharmacy is and love her back soon.

Funny how I can say the same - "It just fell in my lap" Joined Purdue thinking I wanted to do engineering, did not like it - applied and got in to PharmD. Not sure why, but thats the way it worked out.

 

[jawnly211]

you will rarely find anyone who loves their job........to the people who do, more power to you

i originally grad with a BS in electrical and computer engineering back in the 90s.........up and coming field.........technology was king back then.........but obviously, things did not stay that way

healthcare is will ALWAYS be a need in america..........my whole family is involved (doctors, surgeons, pharmacists).........so it was easy for me to pick pharmacy at my "second go-around" at a career

if you are in it for the pay........then its great..........if you are in for the QOL.........then its still good..........if you are in it for the variety (institutional, community, managed care, industrial, nuclear, etc.)..........then its great

ultimately, u need to choose the path of pharmacy that motivates you and is most important to you and run with it.........for me, it was $$$$$$$$$

 

[futuredruggist]

I thought pharmacy was a good enough fit for me compared to other advanced degrees. I plan to work in a research-oriented position as a pharmacist, most likely in industry. Training length for PharmDs is relatively short, job prospects are good, and you can work in a wide variety of areas.

PhD training in basic science is unpredictable. In biology, median for a PhD was 6 years last time I checked. That means some finish in 4 and some take 6 or more years. And then many proceed to a postdoc that lasts 3+ years. At US schools you compete for spots (and then jobs) with the entire world since we import a lot of scientists here. It is extremely competitive to get funding (usually NIH) as an independent researcher nowadays. Job prospects overall are not good because we produce too many scientists.

Unlike in pharmacy, you cannot leave a scientific field as a PhD and expect to return to it if you take a few years and do something else. This field in a utopia would look the best to me because you can potentially have the autonomy to study what you want. You don't have to go through the non-science stuff involved in a healthcare field (communication skills, cultural competency, etc). But in reality it is the worst right now because of too many scientists competing for funding and jobs. The lifestyle of those lucky enough to be an independent researcher (typically in academia) is nuts.

Becoming a physician takes way too long (minimum 4 years for MD and 3 year residency) if you don't intend to work in clinical practice, which is the case for me. MD training is very hands on, which I didn't want. The good things here are the greater respect and pay. And I don't know if this is true of medicine in general for students, but at UCSF it is clear the med school has better overall funding and more programs available to its students compared to pharmacy (ie structured programs in research, international health, etc).

What's wrong with pharmacy? A poor image and little knowledge of our capabilities in the eyes of the public and many providers. Poor working conditions in traditional settings. Poor investment in technology in health care compared to other industries. Most pharmacists work in community or hospital settings. I would like to see improvement in this areas for us and for patients even though I will most likely be in industry.

 

[pharmboy30]

I really don't have much direction in life...never really did. Pharmacy was the safe bet. Guaranteed job with great pay. My calling is probably something else...but I have no idea what...so pharmacy is as good as anything else, I guess. Am I glad I picked pharmacy? Yeah...it's better than most crap people have to do for less money. Would I do it again? As of right now, probably. Unless I can figure out a way to get paid for playing video games, being a technology nerd, watching football, or doing nothing....I've probably chosen the right career (as in something I have to do to pay the bills) path for me. This way I can retire in 20 years and do what I really want to do....absolutely nothing.

you read my mind....haha