Griffith Master of Pharmacy graduate, Rebecca Curran has won the 2013 Professor James Dare Queensland Pharmacy Graduate of the Year award.

The award recognises achievements in Pharmacy beyond just academic success.

As well as being an exemplary student, Rebecca is an alumnus of the Griffith University Honours College, student pharmacy association (GUAPS) and Past President of Griffith ENACTUS (youth entrepreneur network) and represented Griffith University at the 22nd International Youth Leadership Conference in Prague.

Volunteering essential

Rebecca has volunteered in Cambodia and Vietnam, where her group partnered with Hanoi Medical University to conduct community health visits, which led her to complete some of her honours research in Singapore. This work saw her honoured as one of only 20 students awarded the Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Postgraduate Award.

“Doing the Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Science/Master of Pharmacy with Honours combination at Griffith has been a fantastic experience. I feel that I have been fortunate to have been in one of the best pharmacy programs in the country; small classes, personal attention from lecturers and great experiential learning,” said Ms Curran.

“For my Honours I had a great project and the opportunity to travel overseas for my research which helped me to get the internship I wanted.

From degree to profession

“The highlight of my degree has been a combination of the facilities, fellow students and teachers at Griffith. I had a great cohort going through my 5 years at Griffith and we were fortunate to learn in great facilities with some teachers who really were invested in assisting students to learn.”

Ms Curran’s next move will be a pre-registration year before becoming a fully qualified pharmacist. In January she will be starting work at the Gold Coast University Hospital as a Pre-registration Pharmacist.

Rebecca believes a rural pharmacy placement was one of the most important learning experiences she has had. “I really recommend to students to consider a regional/rural area for placement as you get to experience a wide array of clinical cases and learn from some fantastic pharmacists.

“Students should never be afraid to travel for their placements.”