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Pharmacy Student Resources
Get the information and resources you need to prepare for the School of Pharmacy at USJ.
As an admitted student, you are required to attend our New Student Orientation Week prior to the start of class.
Check back soon for updates about Orientation!
Students enrolled in the Pharmacy program are required to maintain health insurance coverage during your attendance at USJ.
Contact us with any questions about the following health insurance requirements:
- You will be charged each semester for a student health insurance plan selected by our school.
- Individuals who are covered by another health insurance plan may decline the school-affiliated coverage by completing an online waiver form on a yearly basis.
- The waiver form can be accessed via a link on myUSJ from June 15 through September 15.
- If you will be enrolling in the student insurance plan, you will find materials for the next academic year on the insurer’s website by approximately July 15. Interested students can review the current plan brochure here.
- Benefits and premiums are subject to annual review based on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and price increases may occur.
Health forms will be mailed to you upon your acceptance into the School of Pharmacy.
The Key Components of Our Health Requirements Are:
- Vaccination records
- Physical examination
- Tuberculosis testing
We recommend that you keep copies of all documents and forms that you send in. Having a digital copy of these records will prove valuable during your student and professional career.
Please submit all health forms to the Health Service office by July 15. You may also fax your records to 860.231.6794. We recommend that you keep copies of all documents that you send in.
If you have any questions, please call the Health Services office at 860.231.5530. During the summer months, the office is open on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays.
Immunization Requirements for Doctor of Pharmacy Students
Several vaccines and/or tests are required for University enrollment and for IPPE/APPE rotations. If you have not previously received the Hepatitis B vaccination series you should begin the series as soon as possible; the three vaccines are administered over a six month period. Please do not delay completion of your health requirements while awaiting activation of your school affiliated insurance card; you will not be able to meet the expected time table for fulfilling health requirements if you adopt this approach.
MMR
Two combined Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccines or equivalent single vaccines and/or titers are required. Certain date and vaccine sequencing parameters apply. Example: an MMR vaccine given before age 1 or sooner than 28 days following previous vaccine must be repeated. Students should be advised that non-immune (low, negative and equivocal) titers (blood tests) will require that booster vaccine (s) be given. Additional criterion apply to vaccines given before 1980.
Hepatitis B
Immunization is required for all School of Pharmacy students, faculty, and staff who have contact with patients or with human blood, tissue, and/or body fluids. This immunization requires 3 injections over a 6 month period. The second dose is administered one month after the first and the final dose is administered 6 months after the first. An antibody titer to prove immunity may be done two months following the third injection. Please note that this is now a “universal vaccine” recommended for everyone.
Tetanus-Diphtheria-Pertussis
A basic childhood series and a booster within the last ten years are required. The required booster is Tdap (tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis) vaccine, unless you had the Tdap vaccine in your early teenage years. If two or more years have elapsed since your last Td (tetanus-diphtheria) booster then Tdap vaccine can be given. The Td vaccine cannot be accepted. If your usual health care provider does not offer this or any other required vaccine, we recommend that you contact urgent care facilities or public health departments in your home area.
Tuberculosis Screening
A baseline 2-step PPD must be done. History of BCG is not a contraindication to PPD testing. An “IGRA” blood test such as the Quantiferon Gold (QFTG) or T-Spot blood test are excellent alternatives to PPD testing for BCG vaccinated individuals. If you have a documented positive TB skin test in the past, please submit your past test records along with a chest X-ray report, and details of any prescribed medication(s). For baseline and annual screening, students with positive PPD tests are also required to complete an annual risk/symptom questionnaire. Annual PPD skin testing is required for students who do not have a contraindication such as a positive result.
Poliomyelitis (Polio)
In order to meet requirements of some clinical practice sites, documentation of the primary polio vaccination series must be submitted. If these records are not available, one dose of IPV (Inactivated Polio Vaccine) should be administered and submitted. Alternatively, the results of a polio titer may be submitted. If records are not readily available, we suggest that students contact the high school(s) attended as records may be available there.
Seasonal Influenza Vaccine
An annual seasonal influenza vaccine is needed to meet rotation facility requirements. It is not required that you complete this vaccine before classes begin, however in some cases it may be possible to do so. Students are advised to obtain this vaccine at the earliest possible opportunity including at flu vaccine clinics held on the School of Pharmacy campus or most local retail pharmacies and urgent care facilities. Many hospitals have an October 1 deadline for students and employees.
Explore student housing options on campus in West Hartford or the Hartford area.
Housing for students is available around the Hartford area. This listing of off-campus housing does not represent an endorsement or recommendation as to the quality or appropriateness of the housing; rather, it contains possibilities that you may wish to consider in your search.
For a large-scale search by area, visit www.apartments.com, www.trulia.com, or apartmentList.com/ct/hartford.
Element 250
Hartford, CT 06106
Manager: Emily Colon
Assistant Mgr: Michael Brightman
Leasing Agent: Nicky Parent
Phone: 860.728.3232
Learn More
Hartford 21 Apartments
221 Trumbull Street, Hartford, CT 06103
Leasing Consultant: Benjamin Tamker
Phone: 860.525.2121
Learn More
The Hollander Building
410 Asylum St., Hartford, CT 06103
Phone: 860.548.1167
Learn More
PMC Property Group (manages four apartment buildings)
266 Pearl Street, Hartford, CT 06103
Property Manager: Donna Preston
Phone: 860.293.2799
777 Main Street Apartments
777 Main St., Hartford, CT 06103
Contact: Penny Bacchiochi
Phone: 860.856.7777
Learn More
Temple Street Townhouse
29 Temple Street, Hartford, CT 06103
Property Manager: Joseph Labowski
Phone: 860.768.3500
Learn More
Trinity Gateway Apartments
1526 Broad Street, Hartford, CT 06106
Property Manager: Steve Weinstein
Phone: 860.206.4751
Learn More
The USJ Doctor of Pharmacy Program is located in downtown Hartford, Connecticut at 229 Trumbull Street (in the XL Center).
Parking at Metro Garage:
- Please contact LAZ Parking for information on rates
- Access is 24/7
- The entrance is at 150 High Street
- See the Hartford Parking Garage Map
- Fill out both of the following forms:
- LAZ Registration form – Registration includes car and contact information.
- LAZ Credit Card form – This form authorizes monthly billing to your personal credit card. Write “USJ” on top of each form to insure proper rate.
Parking Tips:
- On the first day of parking in Metro Garage, enter the garage by taking a parking ticket. Take the completed Registration form and Credit Card form AND parking ticket to the attendant in the lobby of the parking garage. The attendant will give you a parking access card.
- NOTE: Attendant hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. See the attendant during these hours to obtain a parking access card.
- To cancel your monthly parking, you must notify the attendant in writing by the end of the prior month (to cancel in September, you must submit a written cancellation by Aug. 31 to the parking attendant.)
USJ’s Doctor of Pharmacy program includes two major experiential education components and a post-doc residency
The Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE)
- Begin in the very first semester
- Offered concurrently with didactic classes to reinforce learning experience
- Scheduled as one full day per week over a five-week period during the fall and spring semesters of the P1 and P2 years, and one four-week (40 hrs/wk) segment between the P1 and P2 years
The Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE)
- Six, six-week APPEs occur during the final year of the curriculum
- Integrate classroom knowledge, professional performance, and professionalism
- Ensure competency in the provision of patient care
- Include four required rotations (one each in institutional/hospital practice, advanced community practice, ambulatory care and adult acute care) and two elective rotations
Please note: reliable transportation is a requirement. Students are placed in rotations on a random basis at sites in CT, MA, and RI. No special exceptions can be made. The School of Pharmacy and Physician Assistant Studies reserves the right to place students in any location to ensure graduation requirements are met.
Middlesex Health/USJ School of Pharmacy and Physician Assistant Studies Postgraduate Year One (PGY-1) Residency
The residency program is in ASHP Candidate Status. This program is unique given the collaboration between Middlesex Health and the University of Saint Joseph School of Pharmacy and Physician Assistant Studies, allowing the resident to experience both structured clinical and academic learning experiences. The primary training site is at Middlesex Health, with the academic rotation completed at the University of Saint Joseph Pharmacy Program Campus. More information is available here.
Experiential Education Manuals & Forms
- Preceptors and Students Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) Manual
- Directions for IPPE Workbooks in eValue
- Instructions to entering Evaluations in eValue
- Orientation Form
- Absence Request Form
- APPE Manual
- Longitudinal Outcome Measures Assessment Form
- APPE Pharmacist Intervention Form
- Patient Assessment Form for Community Pharmacy APPE
- Interprofessional Education (IPE) Documentation Form
- APPE Sites 50 Mile Radius Map
- APPE Distance Rotation Request
- Directions for MyFolio
- Needle Sticks
When in the Pharmacy School building, whether or not attending a class, you are expected to use good judgment in selecting attire that is tasteful, enhances your appearance, and projects a professional image. In general, business casual dress is preferred for men and women.
As a student in the USJ School of Pharmacy and Physician Assistant Studies, the expectations regarding your behavior and dress require a high professional standard.
Inappropriate & Unacceptable Dress Includes:
- Scrubs
- Spandex
- Low cut/backless shirts/blouses/halters/tank tops
- Inappropriate language or symbols on clothing of any type
- Exposed midriff
- Body piercings other than earrings worn in the ear lobe
- Flip flops
Additional Dress Code Clarifications & Requirements:
- Your USJ Identification Badge provided to you during orientation must be visibly worn at all times when you are in the Pharmacy School or any other USJ building.
- White coats, when worn, must be clean and neatly pressed.
- Footwear should be clean and appropriate for the setting (no open-toed shoes in lab).
- Scents: Although non-overwhelming perfumes or light colognes may be worn in class, while on rotations keep in mind that many people are offended by, or allergic to, chemical scents or odors and that you may not be able or allowed to wear them.
- Jewelry should be conservative in style and kept to a minimum to prevent loss or injury to self or patients. Dangling earrings and bracelets/bangles should not be worn in the practice setting.
- Hair maintenance: Hair should be neat and clean, and styled off the face and out of the eyes. Beards and mustaches should be clean and well groomed.
- Nails should be clean, well groomed, manicured and of short to medium length to facilitate patient-care activities.
Activities in specific laboratories and patient areas in which instructors or institutional policy requires a specific dress or a standard above this dress code supersedes this policy.
Students are required to adhere to this dress code while on rotations unless a specific dress or a standard above this dress code specifically supersedes this policy. Please consult the Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience Handbook for further information.
The University Dress Code falls under the Code of Professional Standards and Progression in the School of Pharmacy and Physician Assistant Studies.
Any medical condition or religious belief that inhibits adherence to the school Dress Code should be discussed with the Assistant Dean for Admissions and Student Affairs.
Students inappropriately dressed or groomed may be dismissed from classes and/or asked to leave the building and requested to comply with the standards outlined in this document.
Become familiar with state regulations regarding pharmacy internship and licensure. Each state has very specific regulations concerning pharmacy interns as well as pharmacy licensure.
- It is your responsibility to become familiar with state regulations to ensure your experiential hours can be counted toward your state’s licensure requirements.
- An intern registration from the State of Connecticut is required of all students before you can begin the IPPE or the APPE, even if you have an intern registration in another state.
- Proof of Connecticut registration must be provided to the USJ Doctor of Pharmacy Office of Experiential Education before beginning any experiential education.
Complete State Laws & Regulations:
APhA – American Pharmacists Association
The American Pharmacists Association, founded in 1852, is the first-established professional society of pharmacists in the United States. The association consists of more than 62,000 practicing pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, student pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and others interested in the profession.
NCPA – National Community Pharmacists Association
Founded in 1898, the National Community Pharmacists Association is the voice for independent pharmacy, representing 21,000 pharmacies and employing more than 250,000 individuals nationwide. Independent pharmacy is a $75.8 billion marketplace. Community pharmacists are local health care problem-solvers who can customize solutions to local health challenges for groups and employers.
Kappa Psi – Pharmaceutical Fraternity
Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity, Incorporated, is the largest professional pharmaceutical fraternity in the world with more than 6000 student members and more than 87000 alumi members. It was founded in 1879 at Russell Military Academy in New Haven, Connecticut as the Society of Kappa Psi.
AMCP – Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy
AMCP is a professional organization representing the interests of pharmacists who practice in managed care settings. It publishes the Journal of Managed Care & Specialty Pharmacy.
Rho Chi – International Honor Society for Pharmaceutical Sciences
Rho Chi is an international honor society for pharmaceutical sciences. It was founded on May 19, 1922, to “encourage high scholastic achievement and fellowship among students in pharmacy and to promote the pharmaceutical sciences.”
SGA – Student Government Association
As a member of the Student Government Association, you will become an advocate for students; facilitate effective communication between faculty, staff, and students; and promote a vibrant and inclusive campus community through club and leadership development.
ASHP – American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists is a professional organization that represents pharmacists who serve as patient care providers in acute and ambulatory care settings. The organization’s 45,000 members include pharmacists, student pharmacists, and pharmacy technicians.