A service-learning course for first-year pharmacy students

To describe the design of a required service-learning course offered to first- year (P1) pharmacy students, and to assess student learning and the relevance of this learning in the pharmacy curriculum.

A 14-week service-learning course was designed and community organizations were recruited to participate. All first-year students enrolled in the School completed the course. A post-course survey was administered to the students, inquiring about what they had learned from the course; supervisors at the students' service sites also completed a short survey.

The course and the student survey instrument were completed by 195 students, and of these 190 gave permission for the information they provided to be used in the study. Notable learning outcomes were identified, especially in the areas of communication and the social and behavioral aspects of pharmacy.

The survey administered at the conclusion of the course described in this article demonstrated that students in the course had achieved the desired learning outcomes. This shows that service-learning is a pedagogy that educators can employ to effect relevant learning in the pharmacy curriculum.