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January 2003

From : University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center College of Pharmacy

Why Pharmacy practice is of greatest interest to me.

Each year of elementary school, my mom would ask my sister and me to write down what we wanted to be when we grew up. My choices varied from an airline pilot to a professional ice cream taster, but when I reached the fifth grade, I began choosing to become a pharmacist as my profession. Ever since then, it has always been my goal to become a pharmacist, and I knew the only way to achieve that would be to go to pharmacy school.

I received my first chemistry set in the fifth grade, and I can vividly remember testing the acidity and basicity of everything in the house. I am sure my parents got tired of picking up litmus paper that was left over after my amazement. In high school, I excelled in science classes and took Honors Chemistry I and then Honors AP Chemistry II. I knew pharmacy was something I wanted to look into so I started my first job as a pharmacy cashier at the age of seventeen. I remember falling in love with the profession from the first day. I continued to work as a cashier before becoming a pharmacy technician, and now I am in my second year as a pharmacy intern. I am slowly climbing the ladder towards my dream.

When I look at my college experiences up to this point, I am sometimes amazed at what I have been able to accomplish. While the challenging coursework has made me at times wish I had chosen an easier field, I have never questioned that pharmacy was where I would make my impact on the world. I hope to one day purchase a pharmacy in my hometown and incorporate compounding and diabetic education into it. I feel there is nothing as wonderful as being able to help people achieve good health. I know that pharmacy is a profession that allows great trust to be built between people, and I look forward to building bonds with the people that I am able to serve in the community.

William Jennings Bryan once said, "Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. It is not something to be waited for; but rather something to be achieved." His words could not be truer regarding my own experiences. Pharmacy school is a choice, and it is a choice I made a long time ago before I knew hardly anything about the profession. As I learn more and more about pharmacy, I am confident that it could become one of the best choices of my life.

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Student Essay by:

K. N.                                       University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM)

02/18/2004

Many factors come to mind as to why I chose Pharmacy School. As a second year Pharm. D. student, my mentor, my family, and especially one of my roommates has led me to this.

During my junior high, my science teacher and mentor, Mrs Wanda Ray, recruited me to join the Science Olympiad team. She placed me into the category of Human Anatomy. It was her motivating and inspiring spirits that led me to placing at regional and win an Olympic sized silver medal at state. Since then, I was hooked on science and the functions of the human body.

As I began college, I knew I wanted to continue studying science, but I had the slightest idea of which career to choose. So, at a local university, Louisiana State University, I chose Microbiology as my major and graduated with a chemistry minor. I figured that with a Bachelor's degree, I could go to medical school or work for a pharmaceutical company. By the time I was a senior, I realized that dissecting a cadaver was not for me. My roommate suggested pharmacy school to me and explained the shortage of pharmacists and all of its benefits.

As I did further research on pharmacy jobs, I discovered nuclear pharmacy which really interested me. I also looked into the pharmacy school curriculum and discovered that I did not have to dissect a cadaver. All the courses were up my alley of math, chemistry, and of course the human body. Thus, I chose pharmacy school.

Now that I am in pharmacy school, I feel 100% that I made the right decision. I know that I can make an impact on patient lives by counseling and screening their medication regimen. I can help the community live a better quality of life. With a Pharm.D. degree, I could not only do research at a pharmaceutical company, but I also could become a great inspirer like Mrs. Ray did for me.

One more factor that led me to choose pharmacy school is my family. I am the third child out of eight and a first generation college graduate. My parents are refugees from Vietnam. Their choice of leaving family behind to come to a foreign place with no knowledge of the language to give their children a better future has inspired me.

I appreciate all the opportunities available to me especially an education and the ability to continuously learn. I am proud to know that by becoming a pharmacist I can make a positive impact to those around me, especially the chance to be a role model for my siblings.

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