The exclusive program provides careers for Nesbitt School of Pharmacy graduates and pays up to $20,000 in tuition costs with continuous two-year employment.
Wilkes University and Geisinger are partnering to give future pharmacists a jump on their careers. The Geisinger Pharmacy Scholars Program reduces the cost of education while recruiting highly skilled pharmacists to work at Geisinger, one of the largest health care systems in northeast and central Pennsylvania.
The Geisinger Pharmacy Scholars Program provides qualified students with a guaranteed job offer within the Geisinger system upon graduating from Wilkes University’s Nesbitt School of Pharmacy. Geisinger also provides a $20,000 loan as students enter their fifth year of the six-year program. Geisinger will forgive the loan for scholars who remain employed by Geisinger for two years immediately following graduation or the end of a post-graduate residency.
In addition, scholars benefit from a Geisinger pharmacist mentor as well as a Wilkes advisor to help them navigate their years of study as well as their first year of employment.
“Wilkes University boasts job placement rates that ensure our students achieve both economic and professional success. The value of retaining the talents of our graduates through the Geisinger Pharmacy Scholars Program cannot be overstated, particularly in the midst of a global health crisis.”
Scott Stolte
DEAN OF THE NEsbitt School of Pharmacy
“We are so pleased to partner with Geisinger on this unique program that continues to advance Wilkes pharmacists,” said Scott Stolte, Dean of the Nesbitt School of Pharmacy. “Wilkes University boasts job placement rates that ensure our students achieve both economic and professional success. The value of retaining the talents of our graduates through the Geisinger Pharmacy Scholars Program cannot be overstated, particularly in the midst of a global health crisis.”
“More than 25 percent of the more than 400 pharmacists employed within the Geisinger are graduates of the Wilkes Nesbitt School of Pharmacy,” said Michael Evans, RPh, Chief Pharmacy Officer at Geisinger. “This is a natural partnership that will help aspiring pharmacists achieve their career goals and also help Geisinger recruit and retain much-needed pharmacists within our communities.”
High school seniors admitted into the Wilkes pre-pharmacy guaranteed seat program with a minimum grade point average of 3.5 (or rank in the 90th percentile or higher) are qualified to apply. Students must be willing to be employed anywhere in the Geisinger system with locations throughout northeast and central Pennsylvania.
Interested students can learn more about the program at wilkes.edu/geisingerscholars or about the Nesbitt School of Pharmacy at wilkes.edu/pharmacy.
Geisinger Pharmacy Services is recognized for leading innovative and evidence-based programs of care delivery, research and education. Services include health system and community pharmacies, inpatient and outpatient services, specialty pharmacy, home infusion pharmacy and pharmaceutical services for the Geisinger Health Plan.
Founded in 1996, the Nesbitt School of Pharmacy is the region’s only school of pharmacy. The school develops pharmacists who will provide high-quality health care and make meaningful contributions to the science and practice of pharmacy. The school awards the doctor of pharmacy degree, the primary, entry-level pharmacy practice degree in the United States.
About Geisinger
Geisinger is committed to making better health easier for the more than 1 million people it serves. Founded more than 100 years ago by Abigail Geisinger, the system now includes nine hospital campuses, a health plan with more than half a million members, two research centers and the Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine. With nearly 24,000 employees and more than 1,600 employed physicians, Geisinger boosts its hometown economies in Pennsylvania by billions of dollars annually. Learn more at www.geisinger.org, or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.
About Wilkes University
Wilkes University is a private, independent, non-sectarian institution of higher education dedicated to academic and intellectual excellence through mentoring in the liberal arts, sciences and professional programs. Founded in 1933, Wilkes is on a mission to create one of the nation’s finest doctoral universities, offering all of the programs, activities and opportunities of a large university in the intimate, caring and mentoring environment of a small college, open to all who show promise. The Brookings Institution ranked Wilkes 14th in the nation for middle-class mobility. In addition to 45 majors, Wilkes offers 24 master’s degree programs and five doctoral/terminal degree programs, including the doctor of philosophy in nursing, doctor of nursing practice, doctor of education, doctor of pharmacy, and master of fine arts in creative writing. Learn more at www.wilkes.edu.
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