In the holidays, I was lucky enough to be able to attend NAPSA* AGM** as the NAPSA rep for SUPA***. You must be wondering—what’s up with the acronyms? Well, at uni there’s a lot, and on the topic of shorthandedness—you’ll get very good at it, trust me. But I digress...
I was away at AGM from July 11th to July 14th, which was held in Perth. And why has it taken me so long to write about it? Because time has just slipped away—and for the Year 12s reading this, DON’T allow this to happen! Soon you’ll be at the end of a very important year and you’ll be glad you saw through with it, so persevere!
Again, I digress—you’ll find I do that quite a bit—and on the topic of AGM, it was a great chance to meet people from other pharmacy schools across Australia. There was the serious stuff—two and a half days’ worth of meetings consisting of a lot of aye’s, seconding of motions, and the raising of hands—and then there was the fun stuff. Group bonding consisted of a scavenger-type hunt round Perth city, finding answers to the questions we were given, and of course what better way to do it than in torrential rain! The annual dinner was also very interesting…it was held just outside the CBD at the Old Swan Brewery and it’s on the water as well. So, all dressed to impress, we turned up ready for some long speeches and some fine dining. I am pleased to say there was not much of the former and a lot of the latter, which, combined with the very fine red wine available, made the night so much more than just a formality…
But all things must come to an end, and so it was farewell way too soon. I came only knowing one other person—the SUPA president and therefore fellow NAPSA rep—and left with a lot of memories, information, and most of all, friendships. So what was the point of this spiel? Basically, join your faculty club or society if there’s one available—it just opens up a world of opportunity—you get to meet other people with a common interest, you will be supported, and usually the club or society has links to its corresponding faculty, which is always very useful. And if there are opportunities to attend conferences, congresses, AGMs, or other events, attend! It’s not always serious, and you do get to learn a lot! Besides, why not do all you can while you’re at it? You won’t be a student forever!
Just 5 months, 3 weeks and 2 days till NAPSA Congress starts…
*National Australian Pharmacy Students’ Association
**Annual General Meeting
***Sydney University Pharmacy Association