<p>Hi,
I was recently accepted to NU for their pharmacy program. NU sounds really appealing to me, except for the fact that its on the east coast (I live in CA). I've heard about the Co-op program,but im not really clear on how it works. If i were to be in NU's pharmacy program, would I also have to be in the Co-op program? If that's so, would it get in the way of my studying for the accelerated program? My main concern is not being able to handle BOTH the Co-op program AND the 6 year pharmacy program</p>
<p>you have to do co-op as a pharm student. co-op is separate from school. you take a semester off and do co-op, and then return to your studies. you have to attend summers in order to stay on track with the 6-year pharm program.
there is no accelerated program that i know of- the 6 year program is standard.</p>
<p>Pharm students must do at least one retail and one hospital co-op. It’s a very structured program. And about not being able to handle it? Except for the few months where you stare at your phone praying it will ring with an offer (my friends call it “co-op season”, and even my profs usually understand when a student blots out of class with their phone with no explanation), most people consider co-op to be a nice break from school.</p>
<p>pharmapplicant, did you visit the website for the Pharmacy program? Here is a llink to a sample curriculum:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.northeastern.edu/bouve/pharmacy/pdf/2011-2012%20New%20Curriculum%20Grid.%20pdf[/url]”>http://www.northeastern.edu/bouve/pharmacy/pdf/2011-2012%20New%20Curriculum%20Grid.%20pdf</a></p>
<p>That really helped us to understand how the coop would work along with the curriculum requirements. There’s also other information on that page regarding coops and other general info. Good luck!</p>
<p>Neuchimie, one concern that I have and I worry when I read posts like yours above about the phone - what happens if you don’t GET a coop job? Or do they have bottom-of-the-barrel filler jobs so that everyone will at least have something? And can they end up being unpaid?</p>
<p>Um… I don’t know. That’s the kind of thing you’d have to work out with a co-op advisor in the event it happened to you. However if you’re getting solid grades and you apply to jobs on time and you prepare for interviews, most people do fine with getting a co-op.</p>
<p>Thanks for the website, wilberry228! It’s good to know everything is structured, I think I would work a lot better with a clear-cut schedule. neuchimie, I’m assuming you’re a pharm.D student at northeastern? Would you say the program is stressful in having to finish the requirements in 6 years? Co-op sounds like a great opportunity, but i’m worried that’ll get in the way of my studies? If that’s the case, i might want to consider my other options</p>
<p>@pharmaapplicant - </p>
<p>“Co-op sounds like a great opportunity, but i’m worried that’ll get in the way of my studies?”</p>
<p>You dont do co-op while you are studying. The semesters that you are doing co-op, you do not attend a SINGLE class. Look at the curriculum again</p>
<p>And yes, pharmacy will be stressful and tough. Im not a pharmd student, but thats the consensus.</p>
<p>I don’t think neuchimie is PharmD. Why do you think co-op will get in the way of your studies? You’ll never be taking classes and co-op at the same time, so you’re able to completely focus on studies during your 6 months of classes and on your job your 6 months of co-op. Do you understand how co-op works? Look at the schedule on the second page of that link and it shows how you’re schedule will work. PharmD is a bit different from other majors, but you essentially alternate between taking 6 months of classes and 6 months of co-op after freshman year.</p>
<p>I’m an economics and mathematics student, but there were a lot of pharmd kids in my writing class and I remember them talking about co-op a lot. It is a stressful program, but so will EVERY other pharmd program in the world. At least with this one, you graduate with a killer amount of job experience. </p>
<p>As for co-op, it is the exact same as with all other majors here. Right now I’m just about to start my second co-op (did one last spring/sum1) and I’m totally relaxed. I don’t have any classes, no homework, no studying… It’s great. By the end most people get a little bored and/or tired of waking up early to catch the train and want to go back to classes. But that is just sort of the adjustment to real life. I thought I’d be the type to not mind suiting up every day to go to a big fancy office, but I actually really enjoyed business (very) casual in a cube where I was allowed to use my ipod- which I figured out on co-op. </p>
<p>The only issue I think I’ll have with co-op “getting in the way” of classes (or any similar issue) is towards the end of this co-op cycle when I have to start studying for my GMAT. I rarely study while in class, so I know it’ll be a struggle to study after working 8 hours a day. But again- that’s just part of real life, and it’ll be totally worth it in the end.</p>
<p>Does anyone know about nursing co-ops?</p>