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Typical day for a 1st year pharmacy student?

Title says it all :P
So what is like to be a first year pharm student?
Reply 1
Just an introduction to the course, what modules you'll be studying and the layout. Sign some legal forms, doesn't consist of much to be honest. Lectures usually start on the second week.
Reply 2
What about the rest of the year? :smile:
Reply 3
At the beggining the course is quite intense. They want to throw you into the deep end to get a feel for what university is like - a lot of independent learning. Lecturers and tutors won't chase you up for coursework or tell you to revise. According to them its down to you to be responsible and organised enough to sort your own education out. First year is a step up from A levels with subjects such as Physiology, Biochemistry, (very little anatomy), Organic Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Calculations..

Second year is when things are put into context.. first year is unfortunately just learning science.
Reply 4
Original post by Ana*Haifa
its down to you to be responsible and organised enough to sort your own education out


Well said.


What is the content of pharmaceutical calculations? I imagine it has to do with conversions and dosage calculation.
And what about biochemistry?
Sorry if i am bugging you, but i am a bit anxious about the whole thing.
Reply 5
Buy/loan this book: Introduction to Pharmaceutical Calculations by Judith A. Rees - its brilliant for pharm calc! The only thing that got me through it. I think the most recent copy is published in 2010. It involved complex chemistry calculations with a mix of mental arithmetic, you aren't allow to use a calculator so if you have a mathematical brain you'll be fine. 70% is the standard pass rate for most pharmacy schools. Biochemistry, you cover Kreb's cycle, oxidative phosphorylation, liver metabolism in great detail - we used Berg in our first and second year. And no worries, if you have any more questions feel free to ask :smile:
Original post by Ana*Haifa
Buy/loan this book: Introduction to Pharmaceutical Calculations by Judith A. Rees - its brilliant for pharm calc! The only thing that got me through it. I think the most recent copy is published in 2010. It involved complex chemistry calculations with a mix of mental arithmetic, you aren't allow to use a calculator so if you have a mathematical brain you'll be fine. 70% is the standard pass rate for most pharmacy schools. Biochemistry, you cover Kreb's cycle, oxidative phosphorylation, liver metabolism in great detail - we used Berg in our first and second year. And no worries, if you have any more questions feel free to ask :smile:


Hi um, you say that your not allowed to use a calculator... Omg!! :O are you honestly serious? What are the calculations like? Very difficult I assume :frown: Btw, if your really Haifa, I love you! Lol :tongue:
Reply 7
What do you study in Pharmacy? Is there more chemistry than biology involved?
Reply 8
Original post by darkprince216
Hi um, you say that your not allowed to use a calculator... Omg!! :O are you honestly serious? What are the calculations like? Very difficult I assume :frown: Btw, if your really Haifa, I love you! Lol :tongue:


Lol some are fairly straightforward such as calculating fractions, long division others can be quite complex involving drugs, molar concentrations, dilution factors.. a step up from A level chemistry calculations. But if you read that book you'll get through it :smile:
Reply 9
Original post by Caponester
Let me see.

Monday
Wake up at about 11amish and swagger in for 3-4 hours of mindbogglingly **** lectures followed by a 3 hour coursework session focusing on the basic sciences that underpin pharmacy. Arrive home and promptly ignore directed study in favour of an unhealthy carbohydrate rich dinner and ample amounts of beer. Go out and get smashed.

Tuesday
Wake up drunk at 8.45am surrounded by the various **** you gathered on your adventures the previous night. If you're really lucky then you also get to wake up that girl in your class you thought was hot during freshers week and tell her you both have class in fifteen minutes. Get into the lecture hall with seconds to spare and nurse the imminent hangover while listening to endless crap about acid and base chemistry. Run home at 2pm and go to sleep.

Wednesday
Lectures from 9-1 and then half day for sports. Football for an hour then home for a twelve hour drinking session.

Thursday
Morning coursework session that highlights the complete ineptitude amongst your classmates with regards to knowledge of anatomy. Sit in the computer room and boast about your conquest from monday night. Cry about how hungover you are and then go home to do that directed study you ignored on monday.

Friday
Morning tutorial session to go over said directed study followed by a lecture or two in the afternoon. If you're lucky you get to waste some time with nurses, physiotherapists, medics, midwives, OT's, dieticians and pretty much every other healthcare profession under the sun talking about thoughts and feelings in one of the many laborious interprofessional education sessions that tend to be poorly done. Arrange to go out and get hammered with the medics.


Haha that made me laugh.

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