As the UMKC School of Pharmacy recognizes national Hispanic Heritage Month, it is celebrating the accomplishments and contributions of members of the school’s Latinx community who are making a difference in the health and welfare of their community and serve as an inspiration for others to succeed as well.
Meet Ulises Rojas, a 2021 graduate of the School of Pharmacy, who is currently a practicing pharmacist in Kansas City with Balls Food Price Chopper.
"I set out to be a community pharmacist with my priority being to work in an Hispanic community where I could use my Spanish daily. Being intentional with that goal was very much supported at UMKC."
Why did you select UMKC School of Pharmacy?
I grew up in a town in North Central Missouri. It seemed every pharmacist in town went to UMKC, so it was the first school on my radar. But I had something calling me to Kansas City. I remember getting butterflies every time I would see the skyline when I would visit during high school. I wasn't big on going to a large university and found that UMKC was great at hosting a "college town" type of community where I could meet people on campus and join plenty of organizations to keep me busy.
How have UMKC and UMKC School of Pharmacy embraced and supported you as a Hispanic student on the UMKC campus and in SOP program?
The UMKC Avanzando program was my rock when it came to support from the school. I was a member of the organization throughout undergrad and pharmacy school. They held many social and self-improvement events and seminars, where I got to meet lots of students with my same background, something that I did not have growing up in rural Missouri. The seminars included preparing resumes and cover letters to conducting mock job interviews. I even got to meet Dean Melchert at an event and that assured me that I made the right choice with UMKC.
Why would you encourage prospective students from your background to consider the UMKC School of Pharmacy?
Working as an intern during pharmacy school was very valuable to reinforce what we learned in the classroom. With UMKC being in the center of Kansas City, there are many internship options for students interested in all areas of pharmacy. And for those students with the skills of being bilingual or wanting to practice Spanish in health care, there are plenty of those opportunities as well.
What do you hope to do in pharmacy when you graduate and how do you feel the School of Pharmacy is helping prepare you for that?
I set out to be a community pharmacist with my priority being to work in an Hispanic community where I could use my Spanish daily. Being intentional with that goal was very much supported at UMKC. My councilor helped me find a class, "Spanish for health science," that I took to learn the not so common terminology that I didn't learn from conversations with family growing up.