Filed under: iPhone, iPod touch
University of Florida pharmacy students must have iPhone or iPod Touch
It's getting to be the 'in' thing for Colleges and Universities. The University of Florida at Gainesville is now requiring incoming pharmacy students for the fall semester to have either an iPhone or an iPod touch. The student Newspaper, the Alligator, quotes the College of Pharmacy Dean William Riffee saying:
"These are the instruments at the forefront that are developing applications for medical uses by the hundreds. We want our students to become adept at using these mobile devices early on because we see this as the future in pharmacy practice."
The Dean also owns an iPhone so he knows of what he speaks.
In May, the University of Missouri School of Journalism also required the popular Apple devices, saying they would be helpful for recording lectures and other academic uses.
This is obviously a good thing for Apple, and the University thinks it is a good thing for students. It's not so good, however, if you already own a Zune.
Thanks to Billy S. for the tip
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Chris Wallace said 12:03AM on 7-10-2009
Requiring students to have an iphone is just nonsense. Stepping back even further, requiring a student to own a computer shouldn't even occur. There is already a big financial requirement from higher education and to demand they spend even more on specific tech gadgets because they may be used is retarded.
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sckthsx said 4:05PM on 7-09-2009
Yes, college is quite expensive. And UF also raised tuition which Florida Bright Futures (almost everyone here at UF - including me - has this scholarship) won't match the raise.
But, let's be honest, who doesn't already have a computer when going to college? You don't need a MacBook Pro (I love mine!), but you can get a decent working HP or something for sub-$500.
About the required iPhone/iPod: requiring an iPhone and being forced to hop onto ATT (for now anyway) is a little silly, but requiring an iPod touch is really nothing to blow steam over: $230 for an iPod touch isn't terribly expensive, almost EVERYBODY already has an iPod, so dishing out the money isn't a problem.
Waiting for the bus on campus (I'm at UF too) and on the bus to class/home, you see so many people with iPhones and iPod touches.
Point is, I think it's kinda cool, and the extra expense is honestly not a big deal for most people. At Shands (the teaching-hospital associated with UF), lots of physicians already carry iPhones/iPod touches, at least according to a friend of mine who works there.
-Dhane, UF Junior
gib said 4:29PM on 7-09-2009
"Going to school should not require anything more than pen/pencils, a notepad and a curious mind. Everything else is helpful, but not necessary. "
I understand your point, but lets pretend that college is preparing you for "the real world" like we've been led to believe all our lives. Many employers will never hire a person without basic computer skills, just like they would not hire a person without the basic communication skills, grammar, reading comprehension skills, etc. Those types of extracurricular training is just as important (probably more so) than an actual degree, in "the real world".
Could you graduate without those skills? Sure. Will you be able to do anything after graduation? No.
That is why the University is requiring a iPhone or iPod touch -- to provide the skills they feel their students may need in the future. "We want our students to become adept at using these mobile devices early on because we see this as the future in pharmacy practice."
Izzy said 5:45PM on 7-09-2009
if you actually think about it, making them buy a Touch is a bargain. The Pharmacy school has mandatory "mini books" that contain formulas and DDI (drug drug interaction) info that cost over $100, plus it replaces a scientific calculator, another $100+ so it doesn't cost anything more than what you are already buying.
This will not replace note taking, but it will make class better for all Pharmacy students.
DevilGhost said 4:01PM on 7-09-2009
Apple should give student discounts for iPhones like they do for their Macs
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Macopotamus said 4:14PM on 7-09-2009
Many universities have deals with AT&T that help you save on monthly fees, so they are reduced in a way. Most campuses seem to have invested heavily in WiFi, so an iPod Touch is generally just as useful anyway.
ilo.vekdl said 5:01PM on 7-09-2009
It is NOT nonsense. They are standardizing on a handheld OS so they can start creating custom programs and references for the students to use during their clinical work. They will use this to calculate the appropriate dose of antidote for a tylenol overdose, not some silly Duke University thing like "listen to podcasts of their lectures while they jog." This is about having a hand held computer to be a pharmacist, not to be a student.
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Jordan said 6:34PM on 7-09-2009
So then use a handhelp computer designed specifically for that purpose. Though I know you will argue it forever, the iPhone/iPod is not the platform for something like this.
Lanre said 11:41PM on 7-09-2009
As a former pharmacy student (I graduated), 1st year student don't do clinicals. Clinicals occur in the 3rd year (at the earliest) and usually 4th year. also, I don't see why it has to be an ipod/itouch. Blackberry has epocrates for drug information, and I believe universities should be platform agnostic (why lock your students to apple?)
Mystic said 4:09PM on 7-09-2009
Oh NO!
Who cares! Do you know how many times I was required to purchase a certain text book for a class?
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Macopotamus said 4:11PM on 7-09-2009
And it's not unusual for a textbook to cost more than an iPod Touch, unfortunately. This is definitely a good thing.
Grant said 4:29PM on 7-09-2009
And most of those probably approached or exceeded the $230 iPod Touch level, too.
zoffdino said 4:12PM on 7-09-2009
I don't know about the details. Just hoping that they are putting these items as "required" so they are tax-deductible and you can get your student loan to cover it. Otherwise, it sucks real hard to force students to buy an iPhone or iPod Touch. Here at my university, we are forced to rent a Dell for $800 CDN per semester. C'mon guys, this is 2009, every high school kid has a laptop.
Going to school should not require anything more than pen/pencils, a notepad and a curious mind. Everything else is helpful, but not necessary. (Yes, even textbooks, if you are a cheapo and try hard enough)
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gib said 4:33PM on 7-09-2009
damn broken comment system... My reply is up above.
orlando said 4:18PM on 7-09-2009
This is kind of old news, saw this on AppleInsider over a week ago.
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/07/01/florida_universitys_pharmd_program_to_require_ipod_touch.html
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snugs said 9:27PM on 7-09-2009
orlando's right, this is old news. something else that should have been mentioned in this post is that UF is not going to be enforcing the requirement; they're only listing it as such so the cost can go towards a student's need calculations for financial aid. pretty cool move in my opinion
T. said 4:27PM on 7-09-2009
On one hand, I can't see how having an iPhone or iPod Touch will dramatically increase people's ability to learn in a classroom environment, unless they've discovered some way to implement usage of the devices regularly for a constructive purpose. It doesn't take an iPhone or iPod Touch just to record a lecture.
On the other hand, this could be a great way to upgrade and get it paid for.
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James F said 4:55PM on 7-09-2009
Makes perfect sense. I know several pharmacists with iPhones who use the Epocrates software to look up drug listings, interactions and effects.
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Izzy said 5:53PM on 7-09-2009
Its a fantastic program!
thefreshpince said 5:09PM on 7-09-2009
I don't think it is healthy for a university to obligate students to have an iPhone or iPod Touch. I understand that technology is important to ANY college student, however in this case, this should be a MASSIVE discount (or even a back to school special for students at UF) so that it wouldn't be much of an impact.
Sure we can argue that $230 isn't that big of a deal, however to some people it is. I save up to buy a uMBP and I wouldn't be able to afford an additional iPod Touch (even on a back to school offer, since it's not a straight discount or free offer). But that's just my $.02 and I wish that universities will stop acting this way...
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