Case Study

I always had an attraction to work in the healthcare field and there is a history of pharmacy in my family. I had the chance to undertake work experience in my aunt’s pharmacy as a teenager and found this career path really appealing due to the patient facing nature of the role. I decided to come to the University of Sunderland to study Pharmacy because of its international reputation as one of the top performing Schools of Pharmacy in the GPhC National Registration Assessment. My sister also studied MPharm here and always spoke highly of it.

Prior to my time on the MPharm course, I studied on the Biopharmaceutical Sciences Foundation Programme. This was one of the best decisions I made as it really set me up to excel on the MPharm course and adjust to University life.

The course is innovative and has a hands on approach to learning. We have some of the best facilities for pharmacy education in the country and the course has a focus on the clinical side of pharmacy practice. We also get to take part in multi-disciplinary learning alongside students from Nursing, Psychology, Paramedic Science and Medicine which reflects the environment we will work in as future pharmacy professionals. Patient, Carer and Public Involvement (PCPI) participants are used in the course, which gives us the opportunity to meet patients with the conditions we are learning about, understand their patient journey and what we can do in the future. The academic staff are a diverse team of practicing pharmacists in different sectors as well as scientists. They are very supportive and engage with students to assist them in their progression and development.

My advice to prospective students would be to get in touch with the Sunderland Pharmaceutical Students’ Association (SPSA). The SPSA is the official pharmacy society for students studying on the MPharm course and offers educational and social events and resources to help support students throughout their time. The SPSA Committee are current pharmacy students and are always happy to talk to prospective students to provide advice from a student’s perspective.

My experience at Sunderland has been life changing."

Published 12 April 2021