Pharmacy Residencies Higher Than National Average

The Cedarville University School of Pharmacy continues to exceed national norms. 

This year, 24 students or recent graduates in the school of pharmacy received residency opportunities. This gives Cedarville an 80% residency acceptance rate, while the national average is 77%. This matches trends over the past five years: during that period of time, Cedarville has had an average match rate of 80.2%, compared to a national average of 66.8%. Finally, one graduating student earned a fellowship with Johnson and Johnson.

Of those residencies, 19 were one-year postgraduate year one (PGY-1) residencies for graduating students. An additional four were one-year postgraduate year two (PGY-2) residencies for those who have already completed a PGY-1. One graduating student earned a two-year PGY-1 and PGY-2 residency. Residency locations include the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio, the Cleveland Clinic — Akron General Medical Center in Akron, Ohio, and the Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.

Dr. Zach Jenkins, associate professor of pharmacy practice at Cedarville, noted that the Cleveland Clinic and Johns Hopkins are both ranked among the top four hospitals in the United States.

According to Jenkins, residencies give new pharmacists extra opportunities to grow in their clinical, research or teaching abilities. PGY-1 residencies often take place in a clinic, hospital or community pharmacy and are focused on providing broad exposure to different aspects of pharmacy, while PGY-2 residencies are usually more specialized. Certain pharmacy roles require residency training.

“One year of residency is equivalent to about three to five years of hands-on experience,” Jenkins said.

“I’m really excited to have been chosen for the opportunity at Johns Hopkins,” said Erin Ballentine of Walkersville, Maryland, whose health-system pharmacy administration and leadership (HSPAL) residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital will involve clinical rotations and training in pharmacy administration. “Having grown up really close to Baltimore, I know it’s a very underserved population, and I’m excited to work in that setting and give back.”

Among the PGY-2 opportunities, 2021 Doctor of Pharmacy graduate Bethany Anderson of Wellington, Ohio, will serve in a residency with The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center after a PGY-1 with the Cleveland Clinic — Medina Hospital in Medina, Ohio. Anderson will focus this year on ambulatory care, helping patients with medication management and working in hospital-based clinics including the Richard M. Ross Heart Hospital

“I absolutely love talking to patients, helping them meet their health goals and working with them on lifestyle modifications and medication optimizations,” Anderson said. “I think ambulatory care is a great opportunity to work with patients to help them meet their goals and work as part of an interprofessional team.” 

Finally, graduating student Paige Anderson earned a fellowship at Johnson and Johnson. Jenkins noted that fellowships generally last two years and focus more on the research and business aspects of pharmacy. Students who work at fellowships may afterwards work for pharmaceutical companies, perform federal research or serve with regulatory bodies. “I’m always encouraged by how successful our students are when you consider the fact that we’re a small, private college,” Jenkins said. “Our students are performing so successfully at a national level that they’re able to land very big-name programs and go on after they complete postgraduate training to do great things.”

Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,715 undergraduate, graduate and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is one of the largest private universities in Ohio, recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, including the  Doctor of Pharmacy program, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visitcedarville.edu.