7 Tips to survive BS Pharmacy

Just like any other course, Pharmacy requires patience and a love of learning. When you are not so passionate about the educational path you are enrolled in, you might want to reconsider. Four to five years of studying is not a breeze and takes a long time. By now you should have decided to pursue what you want, not because you are force to.

To those who are planning to pursue this career opportunity or for those who are already enrolled in the program, this section of the blog will try to uncover 7 tips on how to survive the grueling path of Pharma. This is based on experience as a student before and of course feedback from my colleagues and former students.

7. Listen to your Professor/ Instructor. Focusing on lectures and complying with all the requirements are key to academic success. That is why Instructors are hired to teach you the basic concepts you need for future practice. Listening to lectures will also provide you a basic understanding of pharmaceutical principles important as foundation for your higher subjects. Every subject is equally integral to build your scientific knowledge.

6. Attend to your Classes Daily. As much as you can afford to, do not incur absences. While quality is more important than quantity, studies show that frequent absenteeism leads to lower performance. When you get absent for a day, you will miss a chapter or a key concept to the discussion. While it is true that being absent for sometime is unavoidable, never attempt to do it in purpose without valid reasons. If you do get absent, try to cope with the lost time by borrowing your classmates ‘notes, complying to miss activities and asking help from your instructor regarding previous lessons.

5. Be Healthy. Your body is your best friend in studying. By keeping good nutrition, balanced exercise and healthy habits in mind you will maximize learning. It is easier to memorize things, grasp complicated equations, problem-solved and digest materials when you are in perfectly good shape. Avoid excessive alcohol consumption, limit your smoking cigarette, eat nutritionally and have a health study-life balance. Spiritual health and Divine intervention prayer may also be necessary during times of need.

4. Participate in Laboratory Activities. In pharmacy, we do have a lot of Chemistry courses. We also have tons of Physical, Biological and Pharmaceutical Laboratory courses. Never forget to bring your calculator, periodic table of elements and proper personnel equipment such as laboratory gown every meeting. Chances are you’ll need them every single day. I always carried them in my bag or placed them in our laboratory lockers. Participating in experiments will help you understand the theoretical principles and translate it to actual hands-on experience. Aside from being obligated to help in doing reports, lab activities are opportunities for maximal learning. Do not dread doing reports, it will surely help if you do the activity as retention of concepts are long-lasting that you’ll be grateful until board examinations.

3. Review and take down notes. Participate in group study sessions or follow a strict schedule of review. While at home, read your books ahead of time. It is difficult to go to class without prior knowledge of the subject matter. Have you entered a class where you know nothing and just listened without understanding anything. That is the prize of not pre-reading. We were given syllabus and topic guides ahead of time, so doing advanced reading is so much helpful. The benefit or reviewing small bits of information at least nightly is that consolidation of memory is more permanent. By reviewing small chunks of concepts daily we are able to establish better neuronal circuit that is stored in long term memory. So while you can, review!

2. Enjoy. Studying for 4 to 5 years is not an easy job. There are times when you feel demotivated, breaking down, crying, failing, broken hearted, stucked and so on. You feel the weight of the world upon your shoulders, the tightness of your chest and entertain the possibility of quitting. Realize that we’ve gone through the same. Personally, there were so many challenges in my life in my undergraduate studies. Until now, actually struggles and hardship are continuously battled. But all these builds character, resilience, mental fortitude and strength. Do not give up. Just as when you are about to surrender, re-collect yourself. Find friends, build strong support system, share your worries and problems, face your fears and enjoy.

1. This section of will be left blank. Try to think of a personal tip that will work for you. We are all different; we have our personal ways of studying. We are unique as individual. This section will challenge your imaginative mind and see whether you can think of an idea on how to best survive BS in Pharmacy. Just remember, to smile and go through the process. You will be a good, caring RPh soon. Someday you will also graduate with flying colors!

Graduation Photo for BS Pharmacy