“Alison,” congratulations on reaching a huge milestone—graduating from pharmacy school! According to the U.S. Census, only about 2% of the adult population has a doctoral degree. You and the Class of 2018 have worked so hard to achieve this. Take a moment to celebrate this great accomplishment.

And to those of you who went through the residency match process, congratulations! For those who did not match with a program, your career was meant to go in a different direction. It’s okay. I chose not to pursue a residency and have not regretted my decision. Residency just wasn’t right for me. Here are some tips for transitioning from student pharmacist to new practitioner.

Hello, student pharmacists! A genuine thank you for continually following along during my APPE journey! Graduation is approaching and I cannot believe this year full of 40-hour work weeks and projects galore is coming to an end … finally! However, as you know, I am a glutton for punishment and opted to go through the Match process in hopes of starting a PGY1 this coming year.

In the last issue, I spoke about the residency application process in its entirety. Despite having taken a residency preparation course in school, I just never felt fully prepared for the rollercoaster ride that is called residency applications.

All APhA–ASP Chapters share a common goal: to provide care to patients and the community while advocating for the profession. Student pharmacists do this every day in some type of way, either individually or with peers at their schools. So why not take it a step further and bring the forces together? As chapter leaders at four different schools that are geographically close within Region 2, we had a unique opportunity to travel a short distance and meet in the City of Brotherly Love!

During American Pharmacists Month (APhM) this past October, the University of the Sciences Philadelphia College of Pharmacy (PCP), Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, the Temple University School of Pharmacy, and the Thomas Jefferson University Jefferson College of Pharmacy gathered in the name of patient care and held a city-wide health fair for the citizens of Philadelphia. Who knew a small idea tossed around in conversation during the 2016 Region 2 Midyear Regional Meeting would bring together four chapters and four unique individuals with one common goal?

In February, the University of Wisconsin (UW)–Madison School of Pharmacy held its first ever Community Service Challenge (CSC), a competition between teams of 2 to 4 people to log the most community service hours in 1 month. The idea was conceptualized by a group of second- and third-year student pharmacists as an event to engage all student organizations and help volunteers develop their leadership, communication, and teamwork skills through community service.

This past December, I was not entirely sure what to expect during my medical mission trip to bustling Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, but knew I was filled with the desire to help and care for the children with mental disabilities who lived there. I realized during my second year of pharmacy school that I have a strong passion for public and mental health, so I chose to embark on this exciting journey.

My practice site was a small mental health clinic inside a community hospital. Upon arrival, I was told by the program coordinator that their department is usually the most challenging experience for the volunteers, since caring for children with mental disorders can be both physically and emotionally demanding. Many children at the clinic were suffering from depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or anxiety disorders. Some of the children were descendants of Agent Orange victims, and had been born with developmental disabilities or congenital cardiac disease.