Inadequate career advice for students.
Abstract Students would benefit from advice on the wide scope of career opportunities available within the pharmaceutical industry
Diversity amongst international pharmacy students
Objective: To describe the diversity of international pharmacy students’ demographics, motivating factors in program choice and career aspirations. Method: Cross-sectional survey of pharmacy students in Finland, Kuwait, New Zealand, Sudan and Zimbabwe. Results: Totally 1516 questionnaires were completed. Demographic variables varied. Only 56% of New Zealand students were local citizens. Females predominated except in Zimbabwe (67% male). Less than 10% of students in Kuwait considered pharmacy an easy program, compared to 39% Finnish MPharm students. Philanthropy was the main reason for choosing to study pharmacy, although lifestyle issues played a big role in Finland. Financial motives were important in Sudan and Zimbabwe. A larger proportion of students in these two countries also wanted to work in the private sector. Future career aspirations varied greatly between countries. Conclusion: Pharmacy students show great diversity between countries which has important implications for academic orientation, course development and moves towards curriculum harmonisation.
Knowledge and skills needs of pharmacology graduates in first employment: how do pharmacology courses measure up?
Department of Education in the UK, now the Department for Education and Employment, announced the provi- sion of funding to support the for- mation of Higher Education Disci- pline Networks. This innovation was designed to encourage the dis- semination of information and to promote good practice in specialist teaching. This outcome was to be achieved by involving employers and professional bodies, by changing teaching methods and by emphasiz- ing core and transferable skills with the view to improving the quality and the employability of graduates from UK higher education institutions. One of the initial 24 (now 35) networks funded was the Pharmacology Higher Education Network (http://cbl.leeds.ac.uk/ raven/pha/phHE.html) which has subsequently organized two work- shop& and here reports the results of a survey into the skills and knowl- edge needs of pharmacology gradu- ates in first employment. The survey also examined how some pharma- cology courses provided in the UK fulfilled the employment needs of these graduates.