In her speech to the University of California, Irvine’s second cohort of student pharmacists, UCI School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences Founding Dean Jan Hirsch, BS Pharm, PhD, asked incoming student pharmacists if they remembered a small but important detail in their admissions offer letter.
The Latin phrase Audentes Fortuna Iuvat. Fortune Favors the Bold.
UCI’s PharmD Class of 2026 started their journey into the pharmacy profession at the White Coat Ceremony held at the Barclay Theatre on Friday, Sept. 16, 2022.
“You are making history,” said Hirsch in her opening remarks of the event. “You are the second class in the UCI Doctor of Pharmacy program.
The Class of 2026 has a diverse makeup: twenty-two percent are first-generation students, ninety-four percent are California residents, and sixty-five percent are University of California graduates.
The School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences already has a strong foundation in pharmaceutical sciences with a Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Master of Science in Pharmacology and PhD in Pharmacological Sciences. With the addition of the PharmD program, the school spans a continuum from discovery, development, and delivery of new drugs, devices, and diagnostics all the way to optimizing medication therapy in patients and patient populations.
The program’s inclusion in the Susan & Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences will provide unique collaboration for patient care. Students have the advantage of being trained in interprofessional healthcare teams with other UCI students in medicine, nursing, and population and public health.
The White Coat Ceremony featured a keynote address by Katherine Pham, PharmD, BCPPS, FPPA, who is the director of policy and professional affairs of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP).
Before wishing the student pharmacists well at the start of their academic journey, Pham reminded the UCI students to keep an open mind and balance perspectives.
“Growing up Vietnamese American gave me an appreciation and understanding for there being more than one way of doing things and different ways of talking to people, which also helped me become a more effective clinician and advocate,” she said. “Advocacy starts with you. It starts with showing up for your patients and for your team. You’ll serve as the medication expert for your patients and your other team members in the other health professions.”
In the moments most anticipated by the students’ family and friends, Founding Associate Dean of Pharmacy Student Affairs Megan Nguyen, PharmD, introduced the PharmD class in the presentation of the white coats. After each student received their white coat, they proceeded across the stage to collect a commemorative pin from the UCI School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences associate deans.
Through the Anteaters in Pharmacy alumni chapter, donors helped support the purchase of the white coats and added a special quote inside the collar of each coat. In seeing the inspirational words every day, the student pharmacists will be reminded that they are supported by an alumni network since the beginning of their journey at UCI.
The final speaker of the White Coat Ceremony was Denis Kitayama, PharmD, University of California, Irvine alumnus Class of 1976 and 2022 Lauds & Laurels Award Recipient. Kitayama discussed the wide range of practice settings available within the pharmacy field and challenged students to step outside of their comfort zone.
“Stepping out of your comfort zone might lead you to create a new field of pharmacy in the future,” he said. “No matter how many years you spend practicing pharmacy, you’ll always have vivid memories of your pharmacy school experiences and classmates. Best of luck to all of you, and have fun on your journey!”
To wrap up the White Coat Ceremony, Dean Hirsch led the students through the Oath of a Pharmacist and a spirited chant of Zot! Zot! Zot! She also asked the PharmD class to turn and applaud their families, a special moment to recognize the support systems that have helped the students enter the challenging and rewarding career of pharmacy.
“To the many family and friends who have joined us today, either in-person or through the live stream, your continued support and encouragement will be critical to these students as they pursue the PharmD degree,” Dean Hirsch said. “I am very grateful for the chance to meet many of you today, and I want to personally welcome you to the UCI School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences family.”
