Health Services: Pharmacist
Health Services
Pharmacist:
Jennifer Seo
by Michael Yoshiura
"For me, I'm not afraid of hard work, so I worked, to me, sometimes twice as hard as everyone else. Some of my friends would say, 'you don't need to study that hard,' but I would go that extra mile to make sure I kept up," said Jennifer Seo, about maintaining a lofty 3.9 GPA in her six-year stint at the University of Washington or UW (pronounced "U-Dub"). "Working hard was the one thing that I was really good at."
Jennifer, 24, moved back to her Pearl City home this summer, with a Pharm. D. degree, and she's already hard at work in the pharmacy department at her Longs Drugs Store. Now, if only she had the time to unpack her personal belongings…
When the recent college graduate was interviewed in July 2006, she had only been back for a little over a month. All of her personal belongings from Seattle were still boxed up, yet she was already in the third week of the rest of her life.
A PHARM. D.?…
What's a Pharm. D. you might ask? A Pharm. D. degree, or Doctor of Pharmacy is a four-year program designed to provide students with a solid background in science and the necessary skills to render pharmaceutical care in the ever-changing healthcare industry. At UW pharmacy students are required to complete two years of prerequisites, along with a passing score on the Pharmacy College Admissions Test (PCAT), before entering the program. "I took six years, but the majority of my classmates took eight (years) because they do their bachelor's in four and they do the pharmacy program for another four years."
I Can See Clearly Now!
While at Pearl City High School, Seo foresaw optometry as her future career, but it wasn't until her freshman year in college that she got her true calling…and it came through, loud and clear. "I joined a pre-pharmacy club with some friends during my first year, and we started visiting some local pharmacies. I liked what I saw so I started volunteering at Children's Hospital in Seattle."
There Is No Price Tag For Experience
Jennifer volunteered at the Children's Hospital once a week on the weekends, where her duties consisted mostly of transporting children around the hospital in wheelchairs. After she racked up three months of volunteer experience, her supervisor allowed her to job shadow a pharmacist, which gave her invaluable firsthand experience. "I kind of got a much better idea of what pharmacy was like at a hospital. I wanted to see what community pharmacy was like, so I applied at Walgreen's because they had a good technician program."
Community Pharmacy
Community pharmacy is the technical term for retail pharmaceutical sales, and Walgreen's hired Jennifer; her first paid job in Seattle. Seo worked about 20 hours a week, and Walgreen's was open round the clock so she was assigned shifts that ended at odd hours. "The last shift I had ended at 11:30 p.m., and I was catching the bus home after that. Getting to and from work was a challenge, which is why my parents bought me a car in my second year of pharmacy school (fourth year in Washington). It was nice because it was so cold waiting at the bus stop, and if you missed the bus it was an hour wait for the next one."
After 12 months in Walgreen's pharmacy department, Jennifer was certain she had found her niche. "I was exposed to how much pharmacist can really help patients. You can't always get an appointment to see a doctor, but customers can come in anytime for OTC (over the counter) recommendations. I thought you could really make a difference."
SEO FOR PRESIDENT
Growing up, the Pearl City native readily admits that she was very shy, but an interest in politics brought her out of her shell. "In high school, I was very involved in student government. I was class council president for my junior and senior year, and it was a really good experience. Since elementary school I was in student government, but I was a treasurer because I was really quiet. Their student government is really strong, and it built my confidence, and taught me how to work with people."
Advice To Teens
Jennifer worked hard throughout her educational career, and these days she's reaping the rewards. She set goals for herself, dreamt big, and she never lost sight of that along her journey. "I just want people to know that you can accomplish your goals even if you don't think so when you're in high school. When I was in high school I never thought that I would someday be a pharmacist."