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So now you're whining about my whining about your whining... oh man, this is going to get ugly.
What don't you like about pharmacy school?
Started by Sparda29
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So now you're whining about my whining about your whining... oh man, this is going to get ugly.
You are being too meta about it. The question is what don't you like about pharmacy school and his answer is entitled students.
BTW, that is not irony: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/irony
You are being too meta about it. The question is what don't you like about pharmacy school and his answer is entitled students.
BTW, that is not irony: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/irony
first of all it should be clear that the bolded was simply a typo, I forgot to type in 'school'. Secondly, if his beef is entitled students then his real beef is with the school that lets them in the first place. He is actually doing the same thing he is accusing others of - whining about pharmacy school.
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Quit it guys, there's only one person allowed to be immature on SDN and that is me. 
I wasn't correcting your typo (I didn't even notice
), I was pointing out that his complaint is on topic. Some student have entitlement issues and he doesn't like that about pharmacy school. If students who whine is what you hate about pharmacy school, this is the thread to whine about it.Entitlement is totally a generational thing, btw. You notice a sharp drop-off in whining and entitlement with students who graduated high school before 2002. I'm not sure why that is.I wasn't correcting your typo (I didn't even notice
Quit it guys, there's only one person allowed to be immature on SDN and that is me.
I would add WVU and Z
interesting observation, i've noticed this too, to quite a degree! not sure if i'd put a specific year on it but it does seem to have happened somewhere there in the early 2000s.. maybe it was when all those mtv shows came on that celebrated the rich yuppie teenagers
My mentor (and by extension, me) studies SUMO (Small Ubiquitin-like MOdifier, a post-translational modifier of proteins) and how protein SUMOylation influences sensitivity of cells to DNA-damaging agents, such as those used in chemo drugs.
Actually, my major officially became "cancer biology" only in, like, May. I haven't learned much in class about cancer yet. The closest I've come is the "neoplasms" section in my pathology class. But I have come across it in the numerous papers I've had to read. And speaking of what I don't like, why in the world can scientists not write a paper that people WANT to read?
*Other note* The discovery of imatinib, a.k.a. Gleevec, was used twice -- once by an endocrinologist teaching us about thyroid hormone synthesis and tyrosine kinases, once by my mentor -- to illustrate the importance of basic research which may not have any apparent disease relevance.
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How about those who graduated in 2003?
We '03ers are a special lot. The class of 2002 were stuck ups and judgmental, but not us. 🙂I started to hate everyone when we had a major college football game at home on a Thursday evening and a quiz on Friday, and the professor asked us if we wanted to reschedule it for Thursday so people could go, get trashed, and not have to worry about studying for the quiz the next day. More than half the class wanted to leave it at Friday so they could have one extra day to study. For a damn quiz. Almost everyone who went to the game on Thursday in our class got a C or below on the quiz. The game was an upset for us, we rushed the field, but because of the a-holes in our class we couldn't celebrate later on.
The tools wanted 1 extra day to study... for a QUIZ?
Something similar happened to me for a March Madness basketball game.. I think it was final four. I doubt it stopped anyone from watching.
As the OP alluded to...I hate that people are so stuck on study mode. I mean...this is the first friday night I haven't gone out.
Why does it still feel competitive in Pharmacy School? I feel like now that I'm in the school it should be more laid back and we should all be on the same playing field...but some just feel the need to always be #1.
This damn elective I took, Clinical Oncology for Pharmacists, really is breaking my back with the work load. haha.
There is one test every week with three tests per week every month (at least). That is killing me too. haha
Football game tomorrow though. Can't wait.
Why does it still feel competitive in Pharmacy School? I feel like now that I'm in the school it should be more laid back and we should all be on the same playing field...but some just feel the need to always be #1.
This damn elective I took, Clinical Oncology for Pharmacists, really is breaking my back with the work load. haha.
There is one test every week with three tests per week every month (at least). That is killing me too. haha
Football game tomorrow though. Can't wait.
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Not exactly a news flash, but I agree. They definitely seem to attract a certain kind of person (in general).
It's odd also because I know people who I consider to be otherwise alright that become unbearable when they discuss there residency aspirations. It's like they think that arrogance is a requirement when discussing residencies.
We just talked about this is Immunology. Closest thing to a cure. Pretty fascinating stuff.
I am going to add another thing to our "what do you hate about pharmacy school" list:
Students who run for positions in every single organization so they can pad their CV (then it ends up being the same students running everything). Aren't you supposed to pick something you're really interested in/passionate about and just stick with that instead of joining every single thing/doing every single thing? I hate the popularity contest of it all. But what I hate most of all is when people will say, "Well, that's politics!" 🙄
Students who run for positions in every single organization so they can pad their CV (then it ends up being the same students running everything). Aren't you supposed to pick something you're really interested in/passionate about and just stick with that instead of joining every single thing/doing every single thing? I hate the popularity contest of it all. But what I hate most of all is when people will say, "Well, that's politics!" 🙄
When I think about a residency I think "job security". With today's highly competitive market you are naive if you think you can just graduate and get millions of job offers. That would be nice though!
Even if you graduate and get a retail position do you think it is a secure job??? I do not have much pharmacy experience but I have worked at Walgreens for 5 months and Target for 2 months. While I was working at Walgreens a met a woman that worked for the Walgreen's company for over 20 years. She has been a tech for 2 years and two months after they hired me they FIRED her. I wonder why? hmm...maybe it was b/c they only had to pay me $10 dollars a hour and most likely had to pay her much more since she was with Walgreens for so long! Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. 🙄 And I worked at a very slow store for Target for about 2 months (then quit b/c school started). The store was very slow but I love the pharmacy manager there. I went back a few months after I quit to say hi and guess what? The tech that was there told me they FIRED HER! I ask why and she told me it was most likely b/c the store was very slow and can't afford her. 🙄 Again, it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that she was most likely fired b/c they found cheaper new graduate to replace her.
The point is a residency equals job security and it also makes you competitve in the job market. Just graduating with a PharmD and getting a retail job might be good for the first year or two, but once these diploma mill schools starts pumping out new graduates these retail chains WILL EASILY FIRE YOU and get someone much cheaper to replace you. I don't see how anyone can feel secure working at a big chain retail store. There is no job security at all...once they find someone cheaper they will replace you in a hot second! We all know it is getting easier to find new people with all these new graduates too...so yeah...no residency=no job security.
When I think about a residency I think "job security". With today's highly competitive market you are naive if you think you can just graduate and get millions of job offers. That would be nice though!
If you're willing to relocate, you can find plenty of offers. Just because job offers don't come at your feet when you just sit there, it doesn't mean that it's hard to get offers.
You're talking about a tech position and not a pharmacist position. How can you compare this to the job security of pharmacists?
If what you say about the cheaper new graduate is going on at places you mention, shouldn't it be easy for you to find a position where they replace a pharmacist with you when you graduate?
So from what you're saying, pharmacy has only two areas: retail chains and clinical pharmacy after doing a residency.
You can still find an independent that you could try to take over, work at a nuclear pharmacy, work in inpatient, work for long term care, work as a consultant, etc.
Well, those people are most likely padding their CV for a residency which is a good idea since it is getting to a point in which you need a residency to even get consider for a job.
I personally do not like getting in front of the class and talk so I didn't run for any positions, but I am keeping my grades high, doing research and hopfully getting publications etc to help my CV. with this job market you will be foolish to sit back and relax and think a job will just fall on your lap.
A Target pharmacist was also fired at the slow Target store that I worked at. It has to be b/c they found someone cheaper to replace her. Why else would they fire her? she was such a nice woman.
People could find retail positions if they look hard enough, but I just do not feel secure with them b/c they seem to fire people easily. If they had a pharmacist that they were paying 140K a year for and a bunch of new graduates come out looking for jobs (and welling to work for 100K a year) these chains would fire the older pharmacist in a heart beat.
Yeah, I am looking into Nuclear pharmacy myself. I am not saying residency folks are superior, I am just saying that without a residency I do not feel very secure in getting a job and holding on to it!
Oh I forgot to add what I hate about pharmacy...I hate the subjective theraputic exams we have!!! Your opinion of the best thing to do in a certain case might not be the same as mine!!!! If I make another 88 on the next exam I swear I am going to kill someone! 😡
A Target pharmacist was also fired at the slow Target store that I worked at. It has to be b/c they found someone cheaper to replace her. Why else would they fire her? she was such a nice woman.
People could find retail positions if they look hard enough, but I just do not feel secure with them b/c they seem to fire people easily. If they had a pharmacist that they were paying 140K a year for and a bunch of new graduates come out looking for jobs (and welling to work for 100K a year) these chains would fire the older pharmacist in a heart beat.
Yeah, I am looking into Nuclear pharmacy myself. I am not saying residency folks are superior, I am just saying that without a residency I do not feel very secure in getting a job and holding on to it!
Do you have any idea how high the turnover costs are with what you are suggesting? It's maddness. You simply do not know what you are talking about. Long time staffers get fired for all kinds of reasons: theft, bad habits/attitudes, sometimes a new boss wants to shake things up, etc.
Companies pride themselves on having LOW turnover rates. What you are describing is....fear based, not fact based.
I agree about making yourself competetive. Simply standing around waiting for that great job to fall in your lap is silly.
What do you mean? It's not all multiple choice?
What do you mean by turnover costs? the cost to train a new pharmacist? If someone's willing to do the job for less money, I don't see why it would be a bad idea for the chain to take up on that offer.
I just don't feel like there is much job security working with these retail chains. I know they don't treat their employees very nicely for sure. I am still not very happy that Walgreens let go of someone that has been with them for 20 years! I don't like being at the mercy of someone for a job either...they can fire you anytime they want to...it is scary.
It is all multiple choice. I am taking a class now in which we are given case studies and then given 4 or 5 choices and we have to pick the best one.
I missed a question on a study in which a patient is depressed, has insomina, etc. (can't remember the entire question) and then given choices of drugs. The choices were a TCA, Zoloft, Paroxtine, etc. I choose Zoloft and it was WRONG. The answer was Paroxtine b/c the patient has insomina and paroxtine is more sedative. 🙄 But in real life Zoloft would be just as good, not to mentin Zoloft has less of a withdraw symptom so its even better! the point is they are all antidepressants and the question is subjective.
The other question I miss was on fluxotine. It has a LONG half life so it can be stop right away without any withdraw symptoms. I got that. The professor also mention several times in class that we need to wait at least 4 weeks before we give the patient a new drug b/c fluxotine has a long half life. So on the exam the question was what should be done if a patient wants to switch from fluxotine to amtripyline. I choose stop fluxotine right away and then wait 4-6 weeks before starting the new drug. I was WRONG b/c the answer is stop fluxotine right away and wait ONE week before starting amtripyline. The professors says you only have to wait 4-6 weeks for MAOI, amtriplyine you can start within one week b/c it's a SERT and NET inhibitor and not a MAOI. He didn't tell me this before the exam! 🙄
Okay I am done ranting. The exam questions are all too subjective and I don't have much pharmacy experience so it is even harder for me!
There are valid reasons to choose one antidepressant over another. If the patient had been elderly or on chronic opioid therapy, Zoloft would probably have been a better choice than Paroxetine. I think they ask us these types of questions to make sure we actually understand the drugs, how they work, and the distinctions between them and aren't just blindly memorizing classes, etc. You WILL definitely need to know this kind of stuff for rotations (my psych rotation was ALL about picking one drug over another and why) so might as well learn it now.
Ah I see. When you said subjective, I thought it would be like a written out exam (no choices, just a case that you have to FARM out) that they would grade on your answers as well as your thought process in reaching those answers.
yes, because there are different types of unipolar depression... in this case it seems to be atypical unipolar vs. melancholic unipolar, in which case a sedative anti-depressant should be prescribed since these patients often have trouble sleeping.
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Not to be rude here, but you are a pharmacy student? You seem to have vast knowledge of the pharmacy job market. There are millions of jobs for pharmacists out there. Nobody will get fired to be replaced with less expensive pharmacist in order to save money. Companies would never do that just to save money. Never. Maybe they try to save money with every other thing, even prescription bags so thin I often think they are really rice paper, but NEVER a pharmacist and not a PharmD. Thousands of independents left out there who would almost give you the stores for nothing, consulting jobs by the hundreds in every town. The hundreds of new grads will never, never be able to fill all the new positions created every year. Pharmacists generally work for 5 or 6 years and then retire which results in many more openings. The future is very bright indeed. Thanks for sharing your experience with the employment situation with all of us. I feel much better now.
10% of people do 90% of the work, or something like that.
I was involved in multiple organizations and held multiple positions. I didn't do it for CV padding (although that is a nice perk); I actually enjoyed everything I was involved in doing. I don't think many of the "overachiever" types do it for the sole purpose of making themselves look better on paper, it's just their personality type.
You can't knock a person for trying.
Not to be rude here, but you are a pharmacy student? You seem to have vast knowledge of the pharmacy job market. There are millions of jobs for pharmacists out there. Nobody will get fired to be replaced with less expensive pharmacist in order to save money. Companies would never do that just to save money. Never. Maybe they try to save money with every other thing, even prescription bags so thin I often think they are really rice paper, but NEVER a pharmacist and not a PharmD. Thousands of independents left out there who would almost give you the stores for nothing, consulting jobs by the hundreds in every town. The hundreds of new grads will never, never be able to fill all the new positions created every year. Pharmacists generally work for 5 or 6 years and then retire which results in many more openings. The future is very bright indeed. Thanks for sharing your experience with the employment situation with all of us. I feel much better now.
I was asking questions based on what SHC said. I didn't say I agree with her.
Yeah, I see what you are saying...I think I am just ranting b/c I study very hard for the exam and got an 88. I am just use to classes that are much more clear like Biochemistry or Immunology...the answers are very clear and can only be one thing.
I also missed a question in which a patient was taking a drug and then was told that she had adverse reactions to the drug. (I can't remember the exact wording to the question) but the patient had adverse reactions and there were choices of whats the best thing to do. I choose to taper the patient off the drug to avoid withdraw symptoms, but the answer was just to stop the drug immediately! The drug was an Antidepressant can't remember the exact one. Again, very subjective and different people would choose different things to do.
Man, I miss the easy P1 year exams.
Well I get to study for an exam now during my thanksgiving break b/c we have an exam on Monday morning first thing. 🙄
I think Old is agreeing with me and that there are very few jobs left in the market and many pharmacists are being replaced with cheaper labor. Retail chains are all about saving money. If you make 140K a year and a new grad is willing to work for 100K a year you WILL BE FIRED. Old is making fun of the fact that you think there are still jobs available.
Thank god it was multiple choice...if it was a written out exam I would have gotten an F. 🙄
You are like a parrot. 😛
That will not happen. I am sorry that I cannot make you understand that. Experience is good. Companies want long-term, well-trained employees. Where long termers sometimes mess up is being unwilling to change, or they burn out/stop caring. A well trained employee is worth every penny of their salary.
I'm the opposite. I got a C, if the exam was to do a FARM scenario, I would have gotten a B or an A.
This was in the most recent issue of Pharmacist's Letter!
If being nice was her only qualification, maybe she should have been fired. You don't know the whole situation, only that she treated you well. Maybe she made a lot of mistakes. Maybe she demanded extra money or a special schedule. Maybe she wasn't nice to everybody. Maybe she was diverting controls. There are a million reasons you might have to fire a nice person.
It costs a lot of money to fire somebody and hire a replacement, in any field. Otherwise, companies would never give you a raise. Why would they, when someone else would gladly do it for what they're already paying you?
I hope you get a C in the class. It'll be the best thing that ever happened to you. Therapeutics is NOT about memorizing information - you have to know how to apply it.
I'm always the first one done on exams (I just test quickly) and I inevitably have to listen to everyone dissect the exam for the next hour as they trickle out of the room. "What was this question, what was that question, what did you put for such-and-such?" WHO CARES! You already turned in the exam, and in about a week you'll be able to see which questions you got right and which questions you got wrong. Stop asking me. Just because I finished before you doesn't mean I know anything about that exam. It takes almost no time to guess. The last thing I want to do is re-hash that thing with you. It's over. Let's start studying for the next one instead of trying to figure out which questions we missed.
Oh, and then they start figuring out which ones they're going to argue IF they get them wrong. That's right, my class not only argues for wrong answers, they argue for conditional wrong answers.
Yep, same thing for me. It baffled my professors on how I show up like 20 minutes late for an exam but I'm still the first one out of there, and then get a C.
They seem to care more about getting a point rather than figuring out why they missed certain questions. When I talked to a classmate about a question last year for biochem, I had the wrong answer and she had the correct one, and she was like "I understand why you chose that answer, but the question was asking ..."
I know some classmates who would be like "Well, you're wrong" and just leave it at that.
Some people will challenge questions they thought were correct, and ignore the rest of the exam. Even on questions where they got it right by a pure guess.
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Fair enough. I don't know the entire story...but it just makes me think of my own job security when someone that's been with a company for 20+ years is fired so quickly. It doesn't make me feel secure at all.
Do most pharmacists eventually get fired from their retail job? I guess no one has done a study on that, so no one knows!
C?????????????????????? 😱 I have never made a C in my entire life. I do not know how I will feel about that happening...I really would hope not b/c 1) I lose my merit scholarship and 2) I can kiss my chances of getting into a residency good bye for sure. So I really hope that doesn't happen.
I just took a exam today and it was even more diffcult then the first one...but I really studied hard for this one to make up for the 88 on the first exam. I feel like I have either an A or a high B again...I really hope its an A this time. Therapetics is much more diffcult than Biochem or any of the classes so far in pharmacy school. 🙄 Especially for someone with very little pharmacy experience like me.
Same here. I have never argue with a professor over a grade (but I rarely make anything below an A so...LOL...). I have asked them questions about a problem before, but I have never flat out told a professor," look, my answer is right and yours is wrong! change my grade now!"
I would never argue with a professor b/c that is plan rude and disrespectful. I don't like students that are rude to their professors. I don't like curves either...I don't like any kind of grade inflation. Either you EARN the A or you don't get it.
I hear about many of positions around here just for students that are like 10 hours per week. Maybe you could look for one of those positions, and then stay on it during the summer.
I know a girl who works at WAGS and she said she works only a couple of days per month.
Those 10 hours at work might mean you can't get on FB or SDN, but at least you'll get some experience and money, so you can go buy those shoes you talk about
I think most chains make you fill out times of availability on your application, so they consider that if and when they put you on the schedule. When you can't work a certain day, you can usually talk to your manager about switching with another day. (this is all IMO, btw)
Those 10 hours at work might mean you can't get on FB or SDN, but at least you'll get some experience and money, so you can go buy those shoes you talk about
Choosing between work and SDN...Tough call.
Fair enough. I don't know the entire story...but it just makes me think of my own job security when someone that's been with a company for 20+ years is fired so quickly. It doesn't make me feel secure at all.
Do most pharmacists eventually get fired from their retail job? I guess no one has done a study on that, so no one knows!
C?????????????????????? 😱 I have never made a C in my entire life. I do not know how I will feel about that happening...I really would hope not b/c 1) I lose my merit scholarship and 2) I can kiss my chances of getting into a residency good bye for sure. So I really hope that doesn't happen.
I just took a exam today and it was even more diffcult then the first one...but I really studied hard for this one to make up for the 88 on the first exam. I feel like I have either an A or a high B again...I really hope its an A this time. Therapetics is much more diffcult than Biochem or any of the classes so far in pharmacy school. 🙄 Especially for someone with very little pharmacy experience like me.
You can still get a residency with one C. Relax. Your scholarship is more serious. But a good scare would do you a lot of good. Let us know how you did on the exam, and don't expect it to get any easier.
