Prior to applying to become a doctoral student in pharmacy, I began to do some extra reading on the subject to determine the types of careers and models of practice that are available, and how they fit with my own goals and experience. I have done volunteer work in a hospital setting and found that I very much enjoyed working as part of a team in a community or general hospital. I think I would like to be employed such a setting, following a patient-centered type of pharmaceutical practice and assisting patients with finding the most effective medications for their conditions. I have a real passion for becoming the type of pharmacist whose first priority is to help people, including any help I can give them in proving low-cost generic drugs to low-income and uninsured patients.
About my background, I immigrated to the U.S. when I was sophomore in high school, so English is not my first language. I would describe myself as optimistic, introverted, adaptable, careful, friendly, hard-working, patient, willing, and rational. I graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington in 2009, majoring in biology. I am not satisfied with my GPA and think that my academic background is somewhat weak due to a certain lack of motivation during my early college years. I was not sure about my future career plans until I graduated from college, but I always had interest in biology and the medical field in particular. A friend of mine recommended that I become a volunteer at a children’s hospital, and this gave me new ideas and experiences about how the medical field works and the importance of various hospital jobs. My volunteer work mainly involved patient care, and I found that working with many patients and going to the hospital regular basis was highly rewarding.
I found that I enjoyed helping people and this work provided me a new inspiration about what I really want to do in my career. I always knew how important medications were in our lives and that while they are very beneficial most of the time they can also be harmful if not used safely and properly. I regard the pharmacist as a highly-trained professional who has extensive knowledge of medicines, with which they can assist patients and other medical professionals as a part of a team. These were the factors attracted me most to a pharmacy career and increased my desire to learn and know more about medications and pharmaceutical practice.
In my volunteer work I also realized that working as part of a team is very important for a pharmacist who wishes to reduce any of the human errors that might occur by simply working individually. I agree with one statement that I read about how pharmacists are “lifelong learners who continually are improving their practice skills and are proud to be part of a noble profession.”1 Since the time of my volunteer experience, I have been familiarizing myself with the many aspects of pharmacy practice, including legal and safety issues, medication management and distribution, and use of electronic measures. I learned that there are over 5,800 hospitals in the U.S. and these are still the largest employers of institutional pharmacists, and am aware that there are a variety of hospitals such as community, specialized and teaching institutions in which to practice.2 I have also been reading about different models of pharmacy practices, such as drug-distribution-centered and patient-centered, and think that the latter is the type of practice that best fits with my own personality.3 I want to be a useful guide to people in providing the drugs that meet their needs, and to be in a position to suggest affordable medications like generic brands, which works just as well as the expensive name brands. Not everyone is covered by health insurance or able to afford expensive drugs, so this is another important service the pharmacist can render to low-income patients.
In conclusion, I would like to emphasize again that I arrived relatively late at the decision to pursue a career in pharmacy, and that I had no clear goals during most of my undergraduate education. It was only after my volunteer experience in the hospital at the end of my college years that I decided that I would like to pursue a career as a pharmacist. I also believe that my personality would best fit into a setting where I worked as part of a team, especially since I am very detailed, meticulous and also a good listener and observer. Finally, I believe that a good pharmacist also needs to have a sense of duty, integrity, and altruism, and I already have these qualities. Ultimately, I hope that the doctor of pharmacy degree will help me to pursue my dream of a career in public service and caring for patients.
Thank you for your kind consideration of this personal statement.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Holdford, David A. and Thomas R. Brown. Introduction to Health-System Pharmacy Practice. American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, 2010
Kelly, William N. Pharmacy: What It Is and How It Works, 3rd Edition. CRC Press, 2011.
