Student Perspectives on Well-Being in Pharmacy Education

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Pharmacy school is a meaningful but challenging journey that shapes both professional and personal growth. Students learn how to balance the constant stream of examinations, extracurricular commitments, and résumé building while planning future careers and defining priorities. As the years go on, challenges evolve, and so do the ways students adapt. Through it all, maintaining a sense of balance and prioritizing well-being are essential parts of navigating the PharmD program.

Each stage brings unique pressures. What may feel overwhelming to a first-year student looks different to a third- or fourth-year student. Recognizing how these challenges change throughout the curriculum highlights why identifying what sustains our well-being is not only helpful but essential for long-term success and growth.

The Learning Curve and Why Balance Matters

As students navigate a brand-new chapter of their lives, pharmacy year 1 (PY1) students face the adjustment to new and rigorous expectations that come with pharmacy school. They have to build effective study habits while also dealing with the stress of change. This may include settling in a new city, moving away from home, or finding a group of friends in a new institution. Progressing into PY2 and PY3, students are now concerned with balancing a heavier workload and tougher classes. By these years, students may have already found their sense of identity and community. Joining organizations, holding leadership roles, and volunteering more are goals that have become more common and now have to be managed with their studies.

PY4 students go through a pivotal transition in their education as they traverse through clinical rotations. Years of didactic learning are now put into practice, and students begin to shape their professional identity. At each site, students learn to juggle patient care, communication and teamwork, and career planning, all while ensuring they retain what they learned from their experiences. Students start to solidify their future goals and begin considering postgraduate plans. Added responsibilities often include applying for residencies or fellowships, preparing for job interviews, and studying for the licensure board examinations.

PY4 students also face the challenge of staying connected with friends. Earlier in the program, shared classrooms and study spaces made it easy to spend time together. During rotations, students are dispersed across cities or even states, making it harder to keep those friendships strong without built-in daily connection. As we reflect as current PY4 students, it becomes clear that each stage of the program brings its own learning curves and stressors, but one thing never changes: the need to stay grounded and prioritize well-being.

Finding balance in pharmacy school isn’t always easy, but it’s essential. Well-being goes beyond physical health; it reflects the quality of life across emotional, mental, social, spiritual, and financial domains.¹ With many academic and personal responsibilities competing for attention, it’s easy for well-being to slip into the background; however, staying grounded helps prevent burnout and makes these years meaningful, not just survivable.

Findings from a 2024 study by Zeeman et al reported that pharmacy students frequently describe their schedules as relentless, with heavy coursework, competitive academic environments, and little free time
as factors contributing to stress and burnout.² It can be difficult to
protect time for rest, hobbies, or anything that promotes well-being. By the final year, many students learn that success isn’t about saying “yes” only to academic demands but also to the things that sustain them.³

Well-being can take many forms in the student experience.³ There is no one right way to reset, but what matters is knowing what fills your cup and finding ways to make space for it.

Well-Being Is a Team Effort

Throughout pharmacy school, students learn firsthand that both personal choices and institutional support play a role in their journey. Although well-being has been acknowledged by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), the ACPE Standards 2025 guideline upgrades its importance, recognizing that student success encompasses more than academic and clinical performance.⁴ The updated framework calls for a more structured and accountable approach that may better reflect students’ real needs.⁴

Findings from studies highlight why this matters. More than 80% of student pharmacists report only a fair quality of life and that their well-being fluctuates throughout the academic year as stressors shift with examinations, rotations, and personal demands.⁵ Effective initiatives—such as mindfulness programs, time management support, and regular check-ins—show measurable benefits when they’re ongoing rather than just onetime efforts.⁵

Pharmacy school is not only a test of a student’s endurance but a place to grow into a resilient and fulfilled professional.

Going Forward

It is important to remember that neglecting self-care can lead to the pitfall that is burnout. Students should reflect on what they consider integral to their identities, whether that be family, faith, friendships, personal time, hobbies, and so on.

Learning how to care for oneself during the student years is essential to build sustainable habits that carry into professional careers. Without learning these skills during training, student pharmacists may unintentionally become part of the burnout narrative they often hear about. They risk stepping into a workforce already depleted rather than equipped to sustain themselves long term. Part of cultivating healthy habits is recognizing that it’s OK to take breaks from studying. It’s a scary thought to have initially. How could one choose not to study? It stems from the reality that achieving the highest grades and accumulating awards may not be the most important task, especially if trying to achieve those goals contributes to deteriorating well-being.

Becoming a well-rounded pharmacist who understands how to integrate work and life meaningfully matters the most. Learning how to temporarily put studying on the back burner while bringing other important matters to the forefront is one way to create sustainability and perseverance that will last into the future.

REFERENCES

1. Woods ZT, Bates JA, Davis L, et al. Assessing and advancing holistic well-being in student pharmacists: report of the 2024-2025 AACP Student Affairs Committee. Am J Pharm Educ. 2025;89(8):101464. doi:10.1016/j.ajpe.2025.101464

2. Zeeman JM, Nana AA, Pickering ES, Harris SC. Assessing factors that influence pharmacy student burnout and identifying recommendations to support student well-being. Am J Pharm Educ. 2024;88(9):100741. doi:10.1016/j.ajpe.2024.100741

3. Cleary M, Le Lagadec D, Thapa DK, Kornhaber R. Exploring the impact of hobbies on mental health and well-being: a scoping review. Issues Ment Health Nurs. 2025;46(8):804-814. doi:10.1080/01612840.2025.2512006

4. Accreditation Standards and Key Elements for the Professional Program in Pharmacy Leading to the Doctor of Pharmacy Degree (Standards 2025). Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education. July 1, 2024. Updated June 12, 2025. Accessed September 26, 2025. https://www.acpe-accredit.org/wp-content/uploads/ACPEStandards2025.pdf

5. Mayberry K, Zapata LV, Byers M, Thurston MM. A scoping review of well-being assessment and interventions in student pharmacists. Am J Pharm Educ. 2022;86(6):8793. doi:10.5688/ajpe8793