When Brice Laney entered the University of South Carolina as a first-year student, he was unsure what path he might take toward his future career. After shadowing his uncle at Prisma Health, he changed his major to pharmacy and received an invitation from the College of Pharmacy’s new initiative, the Gamecock Pharmacy Assurance Pathway.
“I saw that as a sign that this was what I was supposed to be doing, like all the stars were aligning,” says Laney.
Launched in 2018, the GPA Pathway targets exceptional high school students who have achieved academic distinction by issuing a provisional early acceptance into the Doctor of Pharmacy program.
Laney, along with 53 other GPA students, spent the next two years focused on their undergraduate studies as well as established pathway criteria. Upon completing the requirements, 38 students matriculated into the Pharm.D. program at the beginning of their third collegiate year without having to participate in the traditional pharmacy school admissions process.
Jacob King thought he might pursue pre-med when he applied to USC, but reconsidered after receiving an invitation to apply to the GPA Pathway.
“After interviewing for GPA and getting to know everyone at the College of Pharmacy, it was something I fell in love with, and I felt like I was in the right place,” King says. “I was still a senior in high school, and I learned what the college has to offer, the career paths, the schedule. It was as if the next six years of my life were planned in advance. It made everything easier.”
The recent graduates credit taking part in the GPA Pathway in helping them excel in their studies.
Chloe McGee, another of the first cohorts to be part of the GPA Pathway, began making connections and building long-lasting relationships with her mentors before starting the Pharm.D. program.
“I felt comfortable bringing my research ideas to one of my mentors who guided me through the development and execution of an independent study during my third and fourth years of pharmacy school,” McGee says.
We want students entering their first year of the professional Pharm.D. program as prepared as possible for academic and professional success.
Julie M. Sease, Pharm.D. Senior Associate Dean
The graduates have each progressed to the next phase of their careers. Laney is in his first year of postgraduate residency at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee; King is a PGY1 resident with the USC College of Pharmacy Community-Based Pharmacy Residency Program; and McGee is a PGY1 resident at Wellstar MCG Health in Augusta, Georgia.
Julie Sease, senior associate dean of the College of Pharmacy, and her team, Director of Pre-Professional Studies and Recruitment Kristi Kinslow and Director of Admissions Nikki Mellen, have focused on evolving the program.
“The benefits and requirements have become more intentional and structured through the GPA preparation course sequence,” Sease says. “We want students entering their first year of the professional Pharm.D. program as prepared as possible for academic and professional success.”