IPhO News

Fellowship Sponsor Company: Johnson & Johnson Consumer (USciences)

Function/Discipline: Regulatory Affairs and Medical Information

Fellowship Years: 2016-2017

Alma Mater: University of the Sciences, Class of 2016

I recently graduated from a six-year Doctor of Pharmacy program at the University of the Sciences with a minor in Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Business. Classically, I worked at a community pharmacy throughout school and was not initially aware of the career options available to me outside of the traditional retail realm. Progressing through my years as a student, I gradually began exploring these options by working at both the University of Pennsylvania, in a pharmacy laboratory to conduct research, and also Acro Pharmaceutical Services, a specialty pharmacy. I was also actively involved with several organizations on campus, including: American Pharmacists Association (APhA), Drug Information Association (DIA), and Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA).

Fellowship Sponsor Company: Bristol-Myers Squibb (Rutgers)

Function/Discipline: Oncology Medical Science Liaison, Medical Information, Clinical Trial Operations

Fellowship Years: 2015-2017

Alma Mater: University of the Sciences, Class of 2015

Having grown up in a low-middle income family out of Jersey City, NJ, I didn’t know much about what existed in the professional world. This simple upbringing presented me with a few challenges when I started working with professionals during my P4 year. Thinking that was tough, imagine then how I felt at the ASHP midyear meeting with hundreds of suited candidates just like myself, all prepared with their binders and their interview game faces. However, what I quickly realized was that I was just as qualified as any other candidate. Moreover, if I was going to stand out, I would have to be someone that nobody else could be. Myself. Only then did I find the program that fit my personality and one whose objectives were in line with my own.

Fellowship Sponsor Company: Celgene (Rutgers)

Function/Discipline: Health Economics Outcomes Research

Fellowship Years: 2016-2018

Alma Mater: University of Maryland-Baltimore, Class of 2016

Similar to many students starting pharmacy school, I had experience in the community pharmacy setting, some knowledge of the role of pharmacists within a hospital, but knew little else about the range of career opportunities available to pharmacists. The summer after my first year of pharmacy school, I had the opportunity to participate a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded research program which opened my eyes to research that occurred outside of traditional lab settings and exposed me to ways my pharmacy training could be utilized to understand and influence patient care at a population level. I continued to learn about ways pharmacists could affect the health of populations by participating in the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) Pharmacy & Therapeutics (P&T) competition and completing an AMCP/Pfizer managed care summer internship. The internship introduced me to some of the roles a pharmacist could hold within the pharmaceutical industry and solidified my decision to pursue a nontraditional pharmacy role.

Fellowship Sponsor Company: Myers and Stauffer, LC

Function/Discipline: Pharmaceutical Pricing

Fellowship Years: 2016-2017

Alma Mater: Butler University, Class of 2016