Jeff Ruder and Lindsey Watts are academic advisors and admissions committee members at the Oregon State University College of Pharmacy, which has educated pharmacists for Oregon and beyond for more than 100 years.
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Interested in the variety of career paths available in pharmacy? Check out the pharmacy career profiles at www.pharmacyforme.org. For more in-depth reading, read up on different practice areas on the AACP website.
Many pharmacy professional organizations have useful websites for students. Pre-pharmacy students can use these to conduct research while applying to pharmacy schools. Here are some good ones:
ASHP (American Society of Health-System Pharmacists) Student Website
AACP (American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy) Student Center
If you’re not following PharmCAS on Twitter and Facebook, you really should. Great way to get frequently asked questions answered.
Prospective students often ask us about ways to gain healthcare or pharmacy experience. Here are a few resources that might be helpful:
The Oregon Board of Pharmacy website has information about becoming licensed as a pharmacy technician. Working as a technician is perhaps the best way to gain pharmacy-related experience. If you live outside Oregon, get information from the Board of Pharmacy in your state.
Volunteering in a health care setting is another great way to gain experience. Oregon State’s Center for Civic Engagement has information about volunteer opportunities. They can also consult with you about getting involved in the community and help you track your hours. Many other universities have similar centers or offices. Websites like HandsOn Willamette and VolunteerMatch let you search for particular types of volunteer opportunities. Check the website of your local hospital for information about volunteering there. Also, look into volunteering at city or county public health departments, which often run low-cost clinics. Consider “outside the box” healthcare opportunities like working in elder care or in a hospice facility. Finally, consult with your academic advisors and faculty members about opportunities they may know of.
Data from the newest Gallup poll on honesty/ethics in professions. Trust in pharmacists is at its highest since the Gallup poll began in 1981.
More information at http://www.gallup.com/poll/1654/honesty-ethics-professions.aspx.
Beginning with students applying to enter the Pharm.D. program in Fall 2014 (i.e. students applying next year), completion of an upper-division biochemistry sequence will be a required prerequisite for entry into the Pharm.D. program.
There are two main reasons for this change:
Thus, this change should result in better career preparation for our graduates.
If you have questions about the best way to meet this prerequisite at your school, contact an advisor at pharmacy@oregonstate.edu.
The U.S. population is aging. 75% of health care costs go to managing chronic diseases, a key role of pharmacists. It all adds up to a need for more pharmacists over the next decade.
See this editorial for one pharmacist’s perspective.
PharmCAS just announced that they are extending all November 1 application deadlines to November 15 due to the severe weather on the East Coast. This applies to OSU applications. OSU supplemental applications will also be due November 15 rather than November 1. Please contact the College of Pharmacy if you have any questions.
Just a few more days until our November 1 deadline! Make sure to e-submit your application, get all your transcripts and references to PharmCAS, and get your supplemental applications to us by the deadline.
I’ve been getting a lot of questions about whether it is okay if PharmCAS is still “processing” your materials on the November 1 deadline.
That is okay. However, you should make sure that you e-submit your PharmCAS application by November 1. You should also make sure that PharmCAS receives all your transcripts and letters of reference by that date. Finally, your supplemental application materials must arrive at the OSU College of Pharmacy by that date.
