When is it the best time to start gaining pharmacy experience as a student?

[ericbchoe]

Hey guys,

Ideally, most pharmacy schools would like to see a student who has had some to a lot of pharmacy experience. Whether that is volunteering at a pharmacy, or working as a pharmacy technician, everything has its perks. That being said, I am going to be a freshmen this coming fall semester and I was wondering, when is it the best time to start gaining experience?

I will be in a different state for school, so obviously, it'd be hard finding my way around to get some experience. I am also considering taking organic chemsitry in the summer of my freshmen and sophomore year, so it'd be pretty hard to free up anything during that time.

Thank you.

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[dancingallday]

ASAP. The more experience you have, the better. Not only from a standpoint of pharmacy admissions, but even just so you know what you're signing yourself up for by going to pharmacy school (I cannot believe that anyone would seriously study pharmacy, or any career, without at least a little bit of experience under their belt!)

Since you're not going to be around long in your current area, I'd doubt that anyone would want to take you on as a pharm tech right now. Try to see how much shadowing/volunteering you can sneak in before your freshmen year, and do some research as to PTCB certification and the state registration requirements for pharmacy technicians in the state you'll be in for school. Then once you're there, try your hardest to get a paid job; there's a whole world of experience you cannnot get by shadowing/volunteering that you'll be responsible for as a paid employee.

And don't freak yourself out about O-chem. Everyone will tell you how awful it is, but you'll be fine.

 

[Twentytwelve2]

The best time to start volunteer work is between your third and fourth year in college. At this point, you will have made up your mind about your future career goals. It is true that pharmacy experience is great but during my interview I was told that it would be nice if I had other EC's. I spent all my volunteer time at my pharmacy because it was fun to be in there and all those unique, interesting people that come by to pick up their rx's.

Oh and o-chem is awfulllllll! But I did fine, like dancingallday said lol.

Lastly, my advice to you is to stay FOCUSED in school! You will not believe how many seniors I met who's GPA is low because they did horrible their freshman year! Meet friends but the right kinds. The ones who are intellectual and studious will rub on you and help you remain motivated to do well.

 

[ericbchoe]

The best time to start volunteer work is between your third and fourth year in college. At this point, you will have made up your mind about your future career goals. It is true that pharmacy experience is great but during my interview I was told that it would be nice if I had other EC's. I spent all my volunteer time at my pharmacy because it was fun to be in there and all those unique, interesting people that come by to pick up their rx's.

I am only staying two years in undergraduate, but thanks for your response.

 

[PharmD for Me]

Hey guys,

Ideally, most pharmacy schools would like to see a student who has had some to a lot of pharmacy experience. Whether that is volunteering at a pharmacy, or working as a pharmacy technician, everything has its perks. That being said, I am going to be a freshmen this coming fall semester and I was wondering, when is it the best time to start gaining experience?

I will be in a different state for school, so obviously, it'd be hard finding my way around to get some experience. I am also considering taking organic chemsitry in the summer of my freshmen and sophomore year, so it'd be pretty hard to free up anything during that time.

Thank you.

The first-hand experience will not only help you with admission to a pharmD program, but it (more importantly) will help you determine if pharmacy is something that you can see yourself doing day in and day out. It's never too soon to get experience, whether it's volunteering, shadowing or working. Don't commit a ton of time right away so that you are able to adjust and succeed in school, but still get your foot in the door. Try shadowing/volunteering a few places to get an idea of what different pharmacy settings are like and one may even offer you a paid position eventually.

As another poster said, make sure that you have time for getting involved in non-pharmacy related things and for your studies. Adcoms look for people that have an understanding of the field from first-hand experience, but they also look for well-rounded applicants.