Introduction
Dr. Lindsey Moseley serves as the Curricular Coordinator for first-year pharmacy students at Auburn University's Harrison College of Pharmacy. A graduate of Auburn, she holds a Pharm.D. and a Ph.D., with research interests in teaching methods, professional identity formation, and student support. Dr. Moseley emphasizes student-centered and active learning in the curriculum, contributing to the development of various learning experiences. She has been a part of the college since 2014. Learn more about her work here.
Why Pharmacy
I knew I wanted to be an educator during an academia-focused rotation my 4th year in pharmacy school that changed my trajectory. It lit a fire! From that point forward, I knew I wanted to work with pharmacy students. As you can imagine, this was somewhat of an identity crisis at the time because I had been trained to work with patients. However, I knew my future was with students, and I needed to figure out a path with that as the focus. I have been a pharmacy educator for almost 11 years now. This lead me to pursue a MEd and PhD in higher education/educational leadership. It took me 9 years to earn these additional degrees (while working full time in my current role), but they gave me tools and experiences in curriculum, teaching, and learning that have propelled me forward as a pharmacy educator. I feel I am unique because these degrees are outside of the realm of pharmacy, yet synergistic to my role/expertise.
Career Journey
I am a pharmacy educator so my practice setting is focused on students, not patients. I work at a school of pharmacy as a Curricular Coordinator. I have a very unique faculty role where I support faculty in their teaching, students in their learning, and the curriculum in its implementation. I coordinate the first year of a highly integrated PharmD curriculum and am considered the "glue" that holds the year together. I have a counterpart in each didactic year as well. My role is unique because across the US, I am not aware of any other pharmacy schools with integrated curricula who employ pharmacists to oversee all aspects of implementation. My workload is 100% teaching (also unique). I engage in educational scholarship as well, and serve on national committees, although these are not required components of my job.
Current Role and Responsibilities
I am in class every day, so I see the first-year students almost 20 hours per week. While I do not teach every day, I am there to support the faculty and students. Outside of class, I am working with individual students on academic success. Or I am precepting P4s on an academic-focused rotation. Alternatively, I may be engaging in educational scholarship or attending an assortment of meetings. My days have structure yet enough diversity to keep me stimulated. I am lucky to be a pharmacist that gets nights, weekends, and holidays off!
Challenges
I find a lot of meaning working with students. However, it can be challenging when your efforts are not successful or the situation a student is navigating is very complex or concerning. I take some ownership when a student is struggling personally or professionally and I am unable to help them be successful. It can be challenging to have emotional boundaries when I am so invested in my role.
Rewards
Hands down, it is working with students. In my role, I get to know students beyond traditional classroom interactions. My role is to support students as they progress, which can include an assortment of things that affect them personally or professionally. One day, I may be working with a student who needs academic support and another day, I may be working with a student on a research project. At the end of the day, I feel that my role matters and I am making an impact. I also feel like my role is so unique which is exciting. I get a lot of autonomy to make decisions.
Advice for Students and Aspiring Professionals
Let happiness be your driving force. It is easy to be motivated by money or prestige, but that leads to empty fulfillment. I have a non-traditional role/career but I have loved every step of this unique path, even when when the path forward was unclear or I had to make sacrifices. It has not been easy (quite the opposite actually) working full time, caring for a family, and going to graduate school... but I have been happy investing my time in these areas. I have the mindset that if something is not serving me (i.e., not making me happy), I distance myself. I lean into the things that enrich me, even if it requires sacrifice or if others question it. So, letting happiness motivate my decisions has led to a lot of fulfillment as a professional.