Third year pharmacy student reflects on her co-op experiences, leadership roles and mentoring the next generation of pharmacists
Hannah Bauer (Rx2026) always knew she wanted to follow in her mother’s footsteps at the University of Waterloo, but it wasn’t until she started working at a compounding pharmacy in high school that she discovered her passion for pharmacy.
Although she didn’t gain admission to the Conditional Admission to Pharmacy (CAP) program, she remained determined and found a different route into Waterloo’s School of Pharmacy. She pursued a Bachelor of Science at Waterloo, minoring in human nutrition and medical physiology, and later earned her place at Waterloo Pharmacy.
“My mom completed the Kinesiology program at Waterloo. It was a way for me to connect with her and her memory,” Bauer says.
“There’s a real need for pharmacists in all sectors – in corporate, community and hospitals. If you put yourself out there, if you network and build a community during your time in pharmacy school, you will get recognized. With the way the field is changing and evolving, really, there’s little stress about getting a job after pharmacy school.”
From the beginning of her PharmD journey, Bauer exemplified leadership. She served as the Rx2026 class rep and later president of the Society of Pharmacy Students (SOPhS) where she helped oversee affiliated clubs, spoke at the White Coat Ceremony, attended Professional Development Week and co-planned the 2025 Ontario Pharmacy Student Integrative Summit (OPSIS) conference.
“I love being a leader. Even though public speaking can make me a little nervous, I wanted to be the voice for my fellow classmates,” Bauer says.
Bauer serves as a student ambassador at the School, where she connected with prospective students and their families at the Fall and March Open Houses, sharing Waterloo’s commitment to student well-being and experiential learning.
She also found community within the program.
“It’s almost like we’re all siblings,” she says. “We spend every second of the day together and support each other so we all succeed.”
L-R (Rx2026 students): Hannah Bauer, Ayesha Awan, Amira Bendaas, Karen Zhao, Ana Bojovic and Shelby Zlomislic
OPSIS 2024
OPSIS 2025 (L-R Rx2026 students): Hannah Bauer, Karen Hakim and Maria Hajj
2023 University of Waterloo celebrating their win against University of Toronto at the annual soccer game
RxPRN tote bag painting night (L-R Rx2026 students): Hannah Bauer,Maria Hajj and Karen Zhao
Waterloo Pharmacy has three co-op work terms that students complete as part of their PharmD education. Bauer’s first co-op work term exposed her to hospital pharmacy at the Waterloo Regional Health Network at Midtown Hospital (formerly Grand River Hospital). From the stroke clinical teaching unit and internal medicine to geriatrics and acute care for the elderly, she worked with interdisciplinary teams and counselled patients on home injections.
“I’m so grateful that co-op gives me the opportunity to try different pharmacy careers to see what I love best. Hospital pharmacy is fulfilling and unique, but co-op helped me realize that I want a different type of relationship with my patients,” Bauer says.
Bauer’s second co-op brought her back to her hometown of Amherstburg, working at the same pharmacy she worked at in high school, both at the Rexall community pharmacy out front alongside co-op supervisor, and Waterloo Pharmacy alum, Katie Powell (Rx2018), and in the IV pharmacy in the back. She counselled patients alongside the pharmacist, administered flu and COVID shots, packaged blister packs and conducted medication reviews for common minor ailments. She also performed therapeutic validation for various intravenous medications, performed dose adjustments and laboratory monitoring, created patient safety presentations from The Institute for Safe Medication Practices Canada guidelines for staff and provided educational sessions to homecare nurses regarding proper care for patients on bacterial medications.
“It was a full circle moment for me. I served the same patients I knew before pharmacy school and was able to show them what I can do as a student!” Bauer says.
She has recently completed her third co-op at Frederick Mall Pharmacy in Kitchener, an independent community pharmacy, led by Waterloo Pharmacy alum Ramzy Shaker Jr (Rx2023) and his father. She performed INR testing for Warfarin management, administers injections and built trust with patients.
“Working with recent Waterloo Pharmacy grads has been so rewarding. They understand the program because they’ve been through it themselves and are able to tailor my work term to help solidify the information we’re learning in class,” Bauer adds.
Upon completion of her last semester of Patient Care Rotations, Bauer has already secured a job with Rexall, through their tuition reimbursement program. After completing her licensing exam, she’ll be placed at a Rexall pharmacy in Ontario for three years, where Rexall has identified a real need for pharmacists.
As a student leader Bauer has heard from other students in the School and their career plans.
“There’s a real need for pharmacists in all sectors – in corporate, community and hospitals,” Bauer says. “I get messages all the time on LinkedIn from employers asking to work for them after graduation. If you put yourself out there, if you network and build a community during your time in pharmacy school, you will get recognized. With the way the field is changing and evolving, really, there’s little stress about getting a job after pharmacy school.”
Looking to the future, Bauer hopes to own her own pharmacy and plans to join a pharmacy association to continue evolving her leadership skills. She looks forward to mentoring prospective and future pharmacy students during their co-op work terms and rotations and she’s already started mentoring her family friend, Kaitlyn Pillon (Rx2029), who worked with her at the pharmacy in their hometown.
“I’m so proud of her—it feels like I’m passing on the baton for her to start her Waterloo Pharmacy journey in January,” Bauer says.