Team's Pharmacy Business Plan Locks Them in as Finalists in National Competition

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Three students in the University at Buffalo's PharmD/MBA combined degree program and their advisor have been chosen to be among three finalist teams to compete live at the 2011 National Community Pharmacist Association's (NCPA) annual convention.

Clare Carroll, Christopher Daly, Christopher Diehl and their advisor, Karl D. Fiebelkorn, associate dean for student affairs and professional relations in pharmacy practice, are UB's Pruitt-Schutte 2011 team.

"I am immensely proud of these students," said Fiebelkorn.

This is the seventh consecutive year that a UB School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences team has placed in the top five finalists nationally since entering the competition in 2005.

The 2011 Good Neighbor Pharmacy NCPA Pruitt-Schutte Student Business Plan Competition was established to promote interest in independent community pharmacy ownership.

The live competition will take place during the Oct. 8-12 NCPA 2011 convention in Nashville. In addition to the UB team, the finalists are Idaho State University and the University of Oklahoma.

Teams from 35 schools of pharmacy throughout the country submitted paper/electronic business plans based on either creating a new pharmacy or buying an existing business. The top three plans were then chosen by judges comprised of pharmacy business owners and industry leaders from around the country.

Final presentations will be delivered in front of a panel of judges and approximately 1,000 audience members.

The first-place prize is $3,000 to the NCPA student chapter and $3,000 in the winning team's dean's name to promote independent pharmacy education at the school. In addition, the team members, team advisor and dean will receive complimentary registration, travel and lodging for the Multiple Location Conference (formerly the Independent Chain Conference) in February 2012, which will be held at the Grande Beach Resort in Naples, Fla.

Clare Carroll -- who is part of the 2014 PharmD/MBA class -- said, "This project has allowed me to showcase a combination of my management skills with my pharmacy background. I have learned how to manage a long-term project, build professional and personal relationships and how and when to apply appropriate leadership work styles.

UB's combined PharmD/MBA degree program is the most popular of the university's PharmD combined programs.

The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive public university, a flagship institution in the State University of New York system and its largest and most comprehensive campus. UB's more than 28,000 students pursue their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs. Founded in 1846, the University at Buffalo is a member of the Association of American Universities.