Students are under further pressure since they need to compete for preregistration and summer placements
Apart from sitting examinations, students need to apply and compete for preregistration and summer placements as well. Is there too much pressure placed on us and how do we deal with it, Sanda Maung asks
It is that time of the year again when everyone is busy sitting
examinations, planning for summer work experience and eagerly awaiting
that dreaded envelope which contains examination results. Students are
under further pressure since they need to compete for preregistration
and summer placements.
However, as a third-year pharmacy student, I think this year has been the most stressful — and the pressure seems to be escalating.
After working hard for the annual examinations, we then have to worry about how and where to apply for preregistration placements, and organising work experience so that we get an insight into the different pharmacy environments. Of course, if we do achieve an interview, we will worry about whether we will get the job.
Places are much sought after and it is important for students to make a good and lasting impression on our CVs, cover letters, and at open days and interviews. Even organising unpaid work experience in hospital pharmacies has been difficult because of the high demand of pharmacy students wanting to go into a clinical field.
In my opinion, work experience is an important aspect of our degree since there are many areas we may want to specialise in the future. Therefore, it is essential we understand the different skills that are needed for a particular pharmacy sector and what the work involves.
Fortunately, some of us already have part-time jobs in community pharmacy, but what happens when we need experience for hospital or the pharmaceutical industry? With the large number of pharmacy schools and pharmacy graduates, there are not enough places for everyone to be able to have the opportunity to gain experience.
Pharmacists are stressed, too. They worry about their job security due to the increase of pharmacy students coming into the profession. Also, there are more locums in the pharmacy workforce. Statistics have shown that even locum pharmacists are feeling workplace pressure. Many have reported that it has been difficult for them to find work in the past year.
Statistics have also shown that men and women in pharmacy have had similar stress levels. However, the way they dealt with it was different. Men have started to drink more (20 per cent) and at least 10 per cent have called in sick because they could not face work. On the other hand, only 11 per cent of women have been found to be drinking more.
There is also a lot of pressure on school-leavers who want to enter the profession because the Government has announced that there will be a decrease in funding for universities. This may mean that there are fewer pharmacy places and so they will have to make more of an effort to stand out from the crowd in order to get a place at the university of their choice.
So, taking everything into consideration, where does it leave pharmacy students? We are concerned about our future career and unsure of whether we are ready to deal with this mounting pressure. Do the statistics really change our minds about which area of pharmacy we want to specialise in? Also, are we prepared to take a deep plunge into the competitive world of pharmacy and strive to do better in the future?
Fortunately, there are ways to help deal with this pressure. For example, you could talk to your tutor about some of your worries. Also, have a good think about which sector of pharmacy you want to get in to. Look up background information about hospitals, community or industrial pharmacy placements and go to open days because this will give you an insight of whether that particular sector of pharmacy is ideal for you.
Finally, there is Pharmacist Support, a welfare charity for pharmacists and their families, preregistration trainees and pharmacy students. The charity's support services include a stress helpline, addiction support, financial assistance, information and signposting, debt, benefits and employment advice.
Sanda Maung is a third-year pharmacy student at the University of Reading and student blogger for Tomorrow’s Pharmacist
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