BPSA
Run by students for students
British Pharmaceutical Students' Association (BPSA)
This is the official student organisation of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, for students studying pharmacy
Since you are about to begin your exciting journey as a pharmacy student, we would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the BPSA. Our aim is to ensure you have the best pharmacy student experience over this coming academic year.
What is the BPSA?
The BPSA was formed in 1942 and is the official student organisation of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS). The BPSA is run by students, for students. The team consists of 19 elected Executive members and BPSA Representatives who work together to run and promote the organisation.
The purpose of the BPSA
BPSA exists to promote the interests and welfare of pharmacy students and pre-registration trainee pharmacists from day one of their degree until they qualify, giving us an opportunity to have an impact on the future of pharmacy. Now in its 78th year, the BPSA continues to educate and entertain its members.
Join the BPSA
Join us for a free student membership
This will sign you up to a joint membership with the RPS and BPSA giving you amazing benefits. The BPSA Executive and the RPS will also be coming along to talk to you during Freshers’ week so you will have the chance to sign up at the BPSA Roadshow.
Events and professional development benefits
As a pharmacist you will be required to undertake Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to ensure you are constantly improving as a professional. The BPSA is here to support you every step of the way and help prepare you from the very start of your career. This includes providing tools to help you thrive as a student and organising exciting events to help you develop as a future pharmacist such as:
Area conferences
These events are one day long and usually held on a Saturday. Lectures, workshops and debates make these days action-packed.
Topics usually explore clinical areas that you may not cover in your course and are focussed on applying clinical knowledge to practice. Guest speakers, such as pharmacists, consultants, nurses and patients give talks on their expertise and experiences.
Science into Practice (Sip) and Business into Practice (BiP)
These conferences bring together MPharm students from across the UK for one-day events similar to the Area Conferences. SiP is for anyone interested in working in the pharmaceutical industry in the future, while BiP focusses on the business side of pharmacy for those looking to have their own pharmacy or climb the corporate ladder.
Annual conference
Often considered BPSA’s highlight event, the Annual Conference is a week long event held once a year in the Easter holidays. You get to meet many amazing people including fellow pharmacy students from other universities all over the UK.
During the day, you’ll need to put your pharmacy thinking caps on and be ready to take part in lively debates- the outcomes of these debates may be incorporated into official BPSA policies which are vital in helping students put their ideas forward and shape the pharmacy profession.
There are also opportunities to grill Q&A panel guests, whilst learning weird and wonderful things about the world of pharmacy… but during the evening you’ll be able to let your hair down and enjoy all the fun, food and music at the social events including a ball.
International opportunities
The BPSA is a member organisation of European Pharmaceutical Student Association (EPSA) which is the European equivalent of the BPSA. They run many events throughout the year including the Annual Congress, Autumn Assembly and Summer University. These events allow you to develop your soft skills in trainings or polish up your pharmacy knowledge in workshops. Events are hosted in various countries, so of course there are plenty of chances to go sightseeing as well as take part in amazing social events. The Annual Reception gives you the opportunity to visit European Parliament and get involved in debates.
The BPSA is also a member organisation of International Pharmaceutical Students Federation (IPSF) which runs events, releases publications and advocates for pharmacy and pharmaceutical science students across the world. IPSF’s largest project is the Student Exchange Programme , offering international pharmacy placements more than 900 students around the world. Read more about this or email the BPSA’s Student Exchange Officer. The flagship events for IPSF each year are the World Congress and European Regional Symposium which are hosted in a different city across the world each year. If you have any interest at all within global pharmacy, do email BPSA’s IPSF Officer who will be able to answer any of your questions.
Your BPSA membership is your passport to see the world and meet many like-minded pharmacy students.
Competitions and awards
The BPSA has formed allegiances with influential companies associated with pharmacy to bring you a range of exciting and rewarding competitions and awards. For instance: Reckitt-Benckiser “Responding to Symptoms” Competition, Reckitt-Benckiser Student of the Year Award, GSK Science Research Poster Awards and many more. Whether you are shy or confident, prefer online competitions or face-to-face, are good at editing or have other skills, there will be a competition for you, and these are open to all year groups with many past winners being in their first year of pharmacy school.
Online resources
The BPSA website has plenty of resources to help support your online learning and professional development. Also, for those of you who enjoy reading more about the opportunities in pharmacy, the BPSA publications page is for you.
This is where you can send in your own articles one day to share your personal experiences and thoughts as an MPharm student.
What else does the BPSA do?
On top of all the amazing events, opportunities and resources listed above, there the BPSA Annual Drinks Reception which is a lovely social event to relax and have fun, for drinkers and non-drinkers alike. It is a great opportunity to network with sponsors, peers and a broad range of individuals working in all areas of pharmacy.
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