Learning beyond the lecture hall: How Canada’s only pharmacy co-op program works

As one of only two universities in North America offering a pharmacy co-op program (the other being in Boston), the University of Waterloo is giving pharmacy students a chance to hone their skills in a variety of non-traditional pharmacy roles.“Initially it was just community and hospital placements but in the last five years there have been placements for pharmacy students in all kinds of settings,” says Anthony Miller, experiential learning coordinator and instructor at the University of Waterloo’s School of Pharmacy. “Since 2020, I’m getting three to four job opportunities per student all across Canada.”Along with the growing popularity of placements at pharmacist-led clinics, Miller says he has helped develop job opportunities for students in the cannabis sector and in specialty pharmacy. “I’ve had students working in government, industry and technology sectors too,” he says. Read: Students across Canada tackle real-world health challengesSome pharmacy co-op students have even worked in the financial sector where they used their knowledge of medications to help banks determine future investment opportunities in biologics and other start-up ideas. In fact, two U of W pharmacy students are now working for investment banks in the U.S.—and 55% of co-op students overall end up working for one of their co-op placements. Miller says the university is also putting more emphasis on developing placements in Northern and rural settings across Ontario for patient care rotations completed in the fourth year of the program. Eight of the 14 regions are in rural areas, and three are in the North. “We have students going everywhere from Thunder Bay and Windsor to Ottawa . . . and we’re also putting students in places like Moosonee in Northern Ontario where they can have a big impact,” says Miller. “Our experiential program gives students 1.5 years of experience prior to graduation, making them job ready."Read: Nova Scotia’s Community Pharmacy Primary Care Clinics reported to be a smash successBeyond getting paid to cultivate their skills, Miller says the real value of co-op for pharmacy students is in the connections made and the ability to make a real impact in the workplace. “There are some of our students who do thousands of vaccinations in their work term,” he says. A third-year pharmacy student from Ontario, Maya Abdul Majed opted to do her co-op at a pharmacy in Airdrie, Alta., with the hopes of experiencing pharmacy practice in a province with more pharmacist scope. “This co-op placement has allowed me to strengthen my clinical confidence, take on more responsibility in patient care, and learn from preceptors who really embrace the expanded scope,” she says. “I’ve gained practical skills I can carry into any setting, and it’s given me fresh perspectives that I plan to incorporate into my future pharmacy practice in Ontario.”Like Miller, Abdul Majed says co-op is a very valuable aspect of her pharmacy education because it bridges the gap between classroom learning and real-world practice. “It gives students the chance to get hands-on experience, applying knowledge to real scenarios that aren’t always clear-cut,” she says, noting that each placement builds on the previous one, which helps to develop critical thinking, clinical judgment and professional confidence.“It really is amazing what opportunities are out there—the sky’s the limit for pharmacists these days,” adds Miller.

Learning beyond the lecture hall: How Canada’s only pharmacy co-op program works

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics