In Britain, the application process is coordinated by the BPSA Student Exchange Officer (SEO) and we offer two types of exchange:

Scheme A: General Exchange

The General Exchange scheme works on a pooling system. The IPSF limit the number of official application forms that each country can have, to ensure that the number of students applying for exchange is approximately the same as the number of host sites. Therefore there is a two stage application process in Britain:

• The first stage is the draft application form. This is designed to make you think about student exchange and to start thinking about what to put in your biography. The best draft application forms, which are well thought out and show some initiative and imagination, will be allowed to complete the official application form.
• The second stage is the official application form. This is now an on-line system and consists of a CV and a motivation letter. Once an official application form has been completed, and approved by the SEO, a username and password will be given to the student. This username and password can be used to track the status of the application, and the student will also be notified by email of any progress with the application. The student’s chosen countries may ‘reserve’ the application to their country, and a placement found. If a placement cannot be found, the status will be changed to ‘unreserved’, so that the application becomes available to the other chosen countries.

Download the application form below:
   - Click here to download the general exchange application form

Scheme B: Bilateral Exchange

The Bilateral Exchange scheme was introduced to increase the chances of British students being placed abroad. What this involves is arranging to bring an overseas exchange student to Britain, and in return you get a guaranteed exchange place abroad. When considering arranging a bilateral exchange you have to take into account:

• A pharmacy placement for the overseas student: this can be in a community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, industrial placement or a university placement.
• Accommodation: i.e. where is the student going to stay, bearing in mind that accommodation to the student should be provided free of charge. Is this going to be provided by the pharmacy host site (i.e. hospital residences, a flat above the pharmacy, university halls of residence etc) or with a family for the duration of the student’s stay? Food and transport to and from the host site need to be considered as well.

Although this seems a lot of work the advantages are clear, in return for organising a host site you are guaranteed a place abroad as opposed to competing against other BPSA members for a limited number of places on the general exchange.

Download the application form below:
   - Click here to download the bilateral exchange application form

Advantages and Disadvantages of the General and Bilateral Exchanges:

 When choosing a country you should bear in mind that your chances of getting a place are increased if you choose sensibly. It is very important to investigate any country that you are thinking of applying to. Remember that countries such as Canada and the USA are extremely popular and there are only a limited number of places available in each country.

Also do not worry if you only speak English (although another language is useful). English is the international language of medicine and you will find that the vast majority of exchange placements only ask for fluency in English. Don’t let language put you off applying to European or other countries where English is not the first language, it will not count against you in your application.

The sectors of pharmacy, which are available, are: Retail (community), Hospital, Industry and University.

Please note that the list of countries that participate in Student Exchange can change at short notice. It is advisable to look at the Student Exchange section on the IPSF website (www.ipsf.org ) to look at the most up to date list. 

Hopefully, having read the above, the Student Exchange Programme is appealing to you. It is undoubtedly one of the best experiences you can hope to have. However, before you jump at the chance, please think hard about what it entails. Without wanting to put anyone off, if you are thinking of applying you may want to consider what the exchange involves i.e. where you would be travelling from, if you would be happy living away from home, language difficulties etc.

It is important to think about these different factors before applying for the scheme, instead of waiting till a place has been offered and then turning it down. This would deny other students the chance of participating in the programme.

To help you prepare, the following responsibilities and expectations were discussed at a BPSA workshop on Student Exchange. The following is by no means a definitive guide, but should hopefully raise some thoughts and questions about what you can expect from your exchange, whichever scheme you choose:

The official application is very easy to fill in. As above, you need to be sensible in your choice of country. However, the most important part of the application to get right is your biography. This is your chance to sell yourself, and is the only piece of information the host has to get a good idea about you as a person. They will be spending quite a lot of time with you over the exchange so they will want to know all about you as a person, not so much your qualifications.

The draft application form should get you thinking along the lines of what to include, but think about including:

• What do you do in your spare time? Hobbies, clubs, societies, BPSA?
• Your pharmacy experience – is it hospital or community orientated? Do you have any special interests?
• What do you want to get out of the exchange – both from a pharmacy perspective and from a travelling perspective?
• What do you think you can contribute or share with the host? 

The cost of applying to the student exchange is €36.00. This is a fee that the IPSF charges for each official application.

If you are unsuccessful in your application you will be refunded €16.00.

Please note if you are placed and then renounce your placement, there is no refund.Finally note that this fee is only payable if you’re accepted onto the exchange scheme. 

Unless you have wads of cash or rich relatives (lucky you!) then the cost of doing an exchange may be worrying you, after all plane tickets aren’t cheap! If this is the case then you may consider raising money in the following ways:

• Your School of Pharmacy – depending on your department and their financial situation the may have funds or reserves for events like these. It will usually mean you either talking or writing to the appropriate person. It is also polite to offer to write a short report in return for their financial support.
• Local RPSGB Branches – Try both your local branch at university and at home. Branches can be willing to donate amounts to students for certain causes. Again the offer of a report is a good incentive. Local branch addresses can be obtained from your school of pharmacy or the RPSGB website, or the headquarters in London (www.rpsgb.org.uk ). 
  
• Pharmaceutical Companies or Local Pharmacies – Your request for cash from them can be successful if put across in the right way as it is tax deductible for them!

General principles for success are:

• Make sure you write to a named person and not to a department as your letter can easily get lost or mislaid if not individually addressed.
• Always follow up anything you send, usually within a week of sending your original request. This will make sure that it stays on your contact’s desk and does not get filed away or set to one side. However, be careful not to pester people as that can have a negative effect.
• Again always offer something in return as a good-will gesture. A report on your exchange and how the company’s support was invaluable will always go down well.