Pharmacy schools involve one of the oldest existing educational programs that has transformed humankind over the years.  Without the addition of medical supplements and aids, mankind would certainly not have made it past the Black Plague and other major epidemics.  In modern time, pharmacy schools have been able to research deeper into medical issues, and are now responsible for helping us live longer and fight off major illnesses.  The transformation of pharmacy school to online education has been a slow process, but is slowly gaining speed as educators realize how beneficial these programs are, considering the past history of pharmacy.  

Pharmaceutical programs have been around for thousands of years, although not in the same way we now consider pharmacy.  Prehistoric man used medicinal plants to fight off ailments, much like pharmacists use now, although in a more compacted form.  These were the original pharmacists, many times known as the shaman of the tribe who was able to cure ailments.  Pharmacological knowledge was first recorded during Ancient Egypt as long ago as 1550 BCE!  After this point, the knowledge spread throughout the growing modern world, although the next instance of recorded pharmacy did not occur until the 1st century CE in China, after which it was well recorded throughout the Islamic Golden Age and other Near Asian artifacts.

The advances in the Middle East in chemistry and botany led to the first instances of what we consider to be modern pharmacy – scientists discovered the medical uses of chemical compounds and how to prepare medicine through distillation.  These are very important concepts in the pharmacy world, and without these original scientists, pharmacy schools would not exist the way they do today.  Europe began to pick up on these studies after the Dark Ages and opened up apothecaries, many of which are still in existence today.  They were able to take the early studies of the Middle Eastern scientists and apply them to their benefit, much like we continue to do today.

The history of pharmacy is fascinating to think about, since it involved the mixture of many different chemical compounds, as well as the belief that these compounds will be able to fight off illness.  Many ancient scientists took risks that modern scientists would be unwilling to take in order to provide future generations with the ability to survive outbreaks of disease.  Online pharmacy schools are only the next logical step in pharmacological studies – one which will undoubtedly lead to even more great discoveries within the pharmacy world. 

It’s an all too familiar scenario: a student deciding what schools to apply to, eager to take the next step in life.  Many students are anxious to leave their home state, while others are too hesitant to make a cross-country move.  However, for future pharmacy students, California has proven to be at the top of the list even when making a cross-country move.  Whether this is due to the many pharmacy schools the state offers, its stellar pharmacy-research reputation, or just the state itself, pharmacy students flock to the state on the Pacific and rarely ever look back. 

Some of the first pharmacy schools in the nation were founded in California, such as the University of California in San Francisco’s School of Pharmacy and the University of Southern California’s School of Pharmacy (first Pharm.D. Program in the nation!).  The California Pharmaceutical Society was founded in 1868, and only four years later founded the California College of Pharmacy (later to become the School of Pharmacy at the University of California in San Francisco).  The school was the first pharmacy school in the West and only the tenth in the United States.  This was a major step in pharmacy circles and began California’s foray into the pharmacological industry.  The original Society founded the pharmacy school in order to advance pharmaceutical knowledge in the west and “elevate the professional level of apothecaries in California”. 

It only took a year for the California College of Pharmacy to affiliate with the University of California, adding much more credibility to the program.  A new curriculum was established in 1934 that replaced the previous vocational training and instead added a bachelor’s degree to the program, heightening the attention the school received from around the country.  The Doctor of Pharmacy program was established in 1955, only five years after USC’s School of Pharmacy offered it as the first school in the nation to do so.  The University of California currently remains popular with its students because of the many options its Pharmacy program presents them with – they can receive a dual PhD and PharmD at the same time or choose a specific discipline within the pharmaceutical industry to focus on during the course of their studies.  USC still considers itself the first pharmacy school in California, since it was properly established in 1905 (whereas the University of California’s school was not considered a school until 1955 – it was previously a ‘college’).  USC, however, still manages to attract 50% of the pharmacists in the region and remains a highly-ranked research institution. 

Pharmacy students have a lot to think about when comparing these two schools, but no matter which pharmacy school they decide on in California, both will lead to a promising future. 

Pharmacy school has become an integral part of our higher education system and continues to attract more students every year, despite urban legends about the “suicide rate of pharmacists” (and dentists).  While pharmacy is a demanding subject and career choice (including a thorough understanding of chemistry, biology, and more than likely working on weekends), many students of pharmacy school enjoy the process and can’t wait to begin their careers.  Pharmacy school requires more than just a diploma, but also includes an array of exams that must be passed in order to become a pharmacist.

Pharmacists are in charge of the distribution of prescription drugs to their many patients, as well as consulting with patients on the proper dosage.  Despite popular belief, pharmacists are not as involved with “compounding” the medications as many of us think we are.  I know I envision my pharmacists behind their office doors mixing together medications with beakers and other cylindrical devices.  However, with the influx of pharmaceutical companies, most medicines are now produced in standard dosages without the additional requirement of a pharmacist’s degree.  While pharmacy students typically go through years of grueling science-related courses throughout their degree programs, many pharmacists now are more well-versed in health insurance policies than chemical formulas because of the drastic changes pharmacy programs have made over the years. 

This is not to say that true pharmacy programs no longer involve actual pharmacy – many pharmacists now choose specialty careers such as oncology or nutrition, and are thus able to advise their patients on the best prescription drugs to take for each related illness.  The Board of Labor Statistics reports that pharmacists hold around 300,000 jobs throughout the nation, with 65% of them working in retail settings.  The other 35% are typically able to practice pharmacy in a setting that is more relaxed and set apart from the “tyrannical force” of pharmaceutical companies, away from the Walgreens and CVSes.  In the end, one of the main goals of pharmacy school is of course to end up as a pharmacist, a future career which is one of the best in the country at the moment.  In a country that is currently witnessing the highest unemployment rates in its existence, pharmacy school presents a more than suitable alternative career choice.  The projected job prospects have been statistically viewed to rise at an exponential rate in the next decade – a marked sign that despite the reign of pharmaceutical companies, pharmacists will continue to play a vital role within the economy. 

It has recently come to our attention how prevalent prescription drug habits have become around the nation.  This is especially frightening because most of the time they lead to further drug dependencies, the greatest of which is heroin, an addiction which claims the lives of so many young people every year.  While we remain aware of this problem, it is difficult to fight against it, since many teenagers continuously steal prescription drugs out of their parent’s medicine cabinets or make up ailments they do not have in order to receive painkillers.  How do PharmDs fit into all this? 

A PharmD is someone who can mix together this medication and hand it out to everyone with a prescription.  While this seems like a relatively easy task, it does require years of schooling and many times, a knack to know when a patient is not a true sufferer.  Most PharmDs go to school in order to work for a pharmacy company, and enjoy the day-to-day interactions with patients.  However, PharmDs are the last people an addict will see on their way home from getting a prescription.  It has therefore fallen on a PharmD graduate’s shoulders to be aware of what patients should be taken note of and which patients are simply chronic pain sufferers. 

There are many sad stories that have infiltrated many news stories and documentaries – tales of young adults who began a dependency on dangerous pain killers at a young age, only to have their parents find them after a drug overdose.  There are other stories of older adults who have become dependent on pain killers and have found doctors/pharmacists who will continue to prescribe this medication to them, despite the illegality of the situation.  Amidst all these stories, the pharmaceutical industry remains a highly profitable area, and pharmacists take credit for much of this success in putting together each specific prescription.   

However, despite the gloomy outlook many of these stories paint, there is always the optimistic hope that researchers with a pharmD will develop medication that does not have an addictive persona.  These prescription drugs will be able to be delivered without any fear of a dependency occurring and without any side effects.  We are nearing a stage in our societal development where this type of research is not unheard of, but will hopefully become routine.  There have been too many news stories about the dangers of prescription drugs for us to sit around and do nothing.  Pharmacists do not enroll in pharmD programs to help aid teenagers toward dependent drugs, but instead go to school to help cure people of their ailments.  This type of illness is only the most recent in our modern society that we need to work together to combat.