Is pharmacy school location important?
Pharmacy school location matters.
What are the most important things to consider when choosing a pharmacy school? Reputation and fit are surely important. What about location? Your pharmacy school’s location is also important to consider.
What is important in a pharmacy school location?
- The environment for learning and studying: Pharmacy school is demanding, so students spend a lot of time studying. Think about your holistic needs as a student. Your pharmacy school location should give you space for you to focus on your work as well as provide places where you can have fun and relax.
- Clinical opportunities: Your pharmacy school experience should give you the best possible hands-on opportunities. After all, a lot of the training involves spending time in clinics and health systems. When choosing a pharmacy school, you should prioritize having easy access to these locations.
- Lifestyle: What lifestyle are you looking to have while you’re in pharmacy school? Do you have access to the things you like to do, and what will your daily studies, commute, parking, and clinical work involve?
Some easy-access health systems from Concordia include:
Are there recreational and fun opportunities to unwind?
When you’re pursuing a rigorous academic experience, it’s easy to forget about your own needs as a person. It might seem like a silly question, but are there enough fun and relaxing things to do close to the schools you’re considering? When you know you’re going to go through a challenging program, it’s important to know what recreational activities are close by. Leisure time is a great way to keep your mental and physical health in check.
Concordia’s School of Pharmacy offers a plethora of fun and relaxing opportunities, both in nearby small towns 5 minutes away, and in downtown Milwaukee. It’s just a 20 minute drive to downtown’s art scene, theatre, concert venues, summer festivals, the Fiserv Forum, the Third Ward, and the Milwaukee Brewers ballpark.
What does Concordia’s location offer?
Concordia University Wisconsin is nestled just above the bustling and exciting city of Milwaukee. Concordia offers the perfect balance of access to big-city attractions with a quiet and serene campus. The campus is also accessible to small-town, affordable charm and rent. Finally, Concordia offers access to urban, suburban, and rural clinic opportunities.
- Concordia’s campus sits on the banks of Lake Michigan. Students can sit on campus and overlook the waters. The quiet atmosphere is perfect for de-stressing, focusing on courses, and studying for exams.
- When it comes time to set the studies down and grab a nice dinner downtown and a professional sports game (Bucks in six, anyone?), Milwaukee and Chicago invite takers anytime. Many students live in Milwaukee if they seek the daily urban atmosphere.
Concordia School of Pharmacy professors share why they think Concordia is the perfect location:
Francesca Napolitano, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Pharmacy Practice
“Mequon is a safe and beautiful suburb close to Lake Michigan, with easy highway and country road access for only a 20-30 minute drive to downtown Milwaukee, other suburbs, or to rural areas. Not being tied to just one health system, Concordia’s partnerships with all area health systems and clinics afford students diverse pharmacy experiences in urban, suburban, and rural settings, and provide student pharmacists the opportunities to make connections at local potential residency or employment sites.”
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Michael Oldani, Director of Interprofessional Education, Professor
“Mequon is a gateway to the city of Milwaukee/downtown and to the north. To the north you have quiet and charming Cedarburg/Grafton, and the North Shore which has beaches from Port [Washington] to Sheboygan. It’s also affordable in terms of apartments and convenient. It has EVERYTHING.”
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Joseph McGraw, Professor, Dept. of Pharmaceutical & Admin. Sciences
“Having lived in Chicago my whole life before coming to CUW I can say a few things. First, traffic makes life in large urban centers miserable, especially for students. The transit systems can be inefficient, and are often not on time. Milwaukee is much better in these regards. Second, Lakefront access in Milwaukee is amazing, and at CUW even more amazing. In Chicago, it can be a trek to get lakefront access. In general, the distractions, traffic congestion, higher cost of living, and craziness of Chicago can make every day challenging as a student with school as the main priority. These things can be huge distractions from your studies.
The great thing about Concordia is, if you want the benefits of visiting Chicago, it is easy to take a relaxing Amtrak there for a reasonable price and it takes you right downtown. You can get a nice hotel, spend a few days, and come back to Milwaukee and Mequon.”
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Chris Cunningham, Associate Professor, Dept. of Pharmaceutical & Admin. Sciences
“The campus is picturesque and extremely safe.”
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Emily Bryant, PharmD, BCPS, Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice
“I would highlight our close proximity and easy drive to downtown Milwaukee, but with the advantages of readily available parking and of course our beautiful lake views and the bluff.
For older students, Mequon is attractive as a great place to raise a family with a tight-knit community, but for younger students they may be more interested in attractions such as the Mequon Public Market, Foxtown Brewing, downtown Cedarburg which are all very close, and then the attractions downtown offers, such as the Deer District which is just a 20-minute drive from campus. I personally think Mequon is a great place to work and live.
When I went to school at the School of Pharmacy, I commuted from downtown Milwaukee and enjoyed the close downtown amenities.”
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Kassandra Bartelme, Pharm.D., BCACP, Associate Professor
“This area of small suburban cities is a collection of unique stores, popular stores, and a variety of restaurants. These small cities are host to several festivals and live music options throughout the year. There are also many fun outdoor activities like hiking and biking in the area. We’re close enough to downtown Milwaukee to go for dinner, a theater show, or to visit any of the museums.”
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Want to learn more? Contact our admissions and recruitment team at pharmacy@cuw.edu to schedule a visit to campus.
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