Helmed by 3 student leaders from the NUSPS Pharmacy Profession Awareness Committee (PPAC), Seah Qian Hui (Class of ‘22), Soon Jia Yan Charis (Class of ‘23) and Khin Rati San (Class of ‘24), the NUS Xperience Pharmacy Camp 2021 is an annual camp that provides tertiary students with first-hand experience of what it is like to be a student at NUS Pharmacy. Featuring exciting compounding practicals and insightful dialogue sessions, the camp allows students to explore their interest in Pharmacy and network with fellow like-minded individuals.
The first day of the camp kick-started with a welcome address and lab briefing by NUSPS PPAC Director and Deputy Director, Goh Xuan Ying Alicia (Class of ‘22) and Eugene Tan Min Qing (Class of ‘22) respectively. To ensure that high standards of safety measures and social distancing guidelines were upheld, participants and facilitators were briefed on the safety protocols before heading to the laboratories.
Opening address and lab briefing at LT29
Featuring laboratory experiments that encapsulate the main highlights of Pharmacy, participants got the chance to compound sodium bicarbonate capsules and calamine in aqueous cream – two of the most common dosage forms.
Lab demonstration by facilitators before commencing practicals
Hands-on practicals by participants
Day 2 of the camp was held online, hosting over 200 students including those who could not attend the laboratory session due to the limited capacity available.
The day started off with an opening address by Eugene, followed by talks from Dr Ong Pei Shi and A/Prof Rachel Ee, as part of the Department’s outreach efforts to promote the undergraduate Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) and Bachelor of Science (Pharmaceutical Science) (Honours) programmes.
During their presentation, Dr Ong highlighted that both programmes adopt a blended learning format which encourages lifelong learning and critical thinking. Especially in this time and age, such skills are highly sought after by employers from healthcare institutions and the pharmaceutical industry, making our graduates greatly marketable. A/Prof Ee also mentioned how the pharmaceutical science curriculum will be integrated under the new College of Humanities and Sciences (CHS).
Photo-taking session after the presentations by both professors
After a short round of ice breakers, participants were joined by two student representatives from the Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science course, Xie Qi Huang (Class of ’24) and Kong Qi Herng (Class of ’22) respectively, who shared about their student life and answered the burning questions participants had.
Finally to end off the programme, three esteemed alumni, Ms Carolyn Chan (Class of ’15), Mr Jonathan Koh (Class of ’17) and Ms Chua Jia Ni (Class of ’13), provided valuable insights into their line of work, showcasing the variety of career options that NUS Pharmacy graduates can explore.
Photo-taking session after the presentations by both professors
All in all, the event was a huge success and it certainly would not have been possible without the guidance and support of our staff advisors, A/Prof Ho Han Kiat, Dr Chng Hui Ting and A/Prof Chew Eng Hui, the Pharmacy Profession Awareness Committee (PPAC) members, facilitators, and participants. We greatly appreciate the time and effort that everyone has put in and we look forward to an even better Xperience Pharmacy Camp next year!
Article by Goh Xuan Ying Alicia and Eugene Tan Min Qing (Director and Deputy Director, NUSPS Pharmacy Profession Awareness Committee 20/21)