texas students- can't earn "intern" title until completion of P1

[BaylorBear06]

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I will be starting Pharmacy school this fall, and I've been debating whether or not I should work my first year. Last night I did some research and found out that unlike other states, Texas doesn't allow students to work as interns until they have completed 30 hours of pharmacy school (or basically, the p1 year).

So with that being said, I guess I should just wait until the summer of my p1, or p2 to start working since even if I do get a job this fall, I won't get the intern title or pay! I'm currently working as a certified Tech for CVS, and I wanted to look into a hospital job since I want to venture out of retail and get some more experience. However, I might apply for the job anyway just to see what happens. I just hope the salary difference wont be that horrible.

any pharmacy students in texas have any opinions?! is it worth it to work 1st year? or should i just focus on my studies? thanks! 😉

 

[Priapism321]

I will be starting Pharmacy school this fall, and I've been debating whether or not I should work my first year. Last night I did some research and found out that unlike other states, Texas doesn't allow students to work as interns until they have completed 30 hours of pharmacy school (or basically, the p1 year).

So with that being said, I guess I should just wait until the summer of my p1, or p2 to start working since even if I do get a job this fall, I won't get the intern title or pay! I'm currently working as a certified Tech for CVS, and I wanted to look into a hospital job since I want to venture out of retail and get some more experience. However, I might apply for the job anyway just to see what happens. I just hope the salary difference wont be that horrible.

any pharmacy students in texas have any opinions?! is it worth it to work 1st year? or should i just focus on my studies? thanks! 😉

I was not a Texas student, but thought I would offer a couple of thoughts on this matter. First, how much do interns in Texas make after the P1 year? How significant of a difference would this be compared to what you earn now? When I was a student intern (not too long ago), I made something like 14-15 dollars per hour. There were a couple of senior technicians that were paid at about the same rate (this was in Nevada).

I think intern pay is somewhat uniform across the nation, maybe I am incorrect. However, you have to make some decisions; is it feasible for you to work during school? Is it absolutely necessary? If you have to work to support yourself, then it would be advisable to remain a technician and make what you make. If you would like to obtain a position in a hospital setting, you're looking at the same thing, if you need to work, then work. If you would just like the experience, then only work part time where it will not cut into your studies.

 

[mike36]

In the info packet I received from UT Austin, it says that 50 hours of the student internship may be waived if the student has achieved over 500 hours of pharmacy employment prior to the summer following the first professional year. This includes pre-pharmacy and first-year employment, but any hours earned in "Introduction to Pharmacy" and "Experiential Pharmacy Practice and Patient Counseling" courses can't be counted.

All 200 hours of the student internship may be waived if the student has worked as a PCTB-certified pharmacy technician for at least 200 hours prior to the summer following the P1 year.

So it is possible to complete all of the student internship hours before the summer of the P1 year if you work enough hours. It sounds like if you worked only 100 hours as a pharm tech before the summer, it wouldn't count at all. I'm not sure if it's the same at all Texas schools.

 

[ZpackSux]

Work as much as you can.