Early career pharmacists’ perspectives on whether/how their student research experiences influenced their essential skills: A mixed-methods study

Background: While many pharmacy school guidelines advocate enhancing student knowledge, skills, and scientific thinking in the classroom, the value of research experiences has received less attention. This study examined how research experiences influence professional pharmacy students’ essential skills from the perspective of recent graduates.

Methods: Using a convergent mixed-methods design, pharmacists who conducted research at while enrolled completed an online survey assessing their collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity and then a semi-structured interview explaining their ratings. Friedman’s rank-order test was used to analyse perceived skill development. Framework analysis was used to identify themes across interviews.

Results: Participants rated collaboration as their strongest skill, significantly higher than critical thinking and creativity. Three qualitative themes emerged. The first describes factors influencing their quantitative rankings, including standards for achievement and professional identity. The second describes how research experience supported skill development. The third describes whether these skills could be developed in the classroom setting.

Conclusion: Participants’ perceptions echo pharmacy education’s curricular emphasis on collaboration and communication. In addition to these skills, research experiences can support critical thinking and creativity skills. Explicitly linking how research opportunities enhance accreditation required outcomes could better highlight how research experiences add value to the existing pharmacy curriculum.