What is the role?
PDA Student Reps bridge the gap between the PDA and MPharm students. With support and training, student reps:
- Make sure students at their university know about the PDA and the value they bring
- Feedback to the PDA on the student experience
- Create events and peer support sessions for students
- Create campaigns and talk about the issues that matter to students
It’s an opportunity to gain valuable experience and help improve the student experience for future pharmacy professionals.
About the PDA
The PDA is the largest membership organisation for pharmacy in the UK, with 40,000 members, and the fifth largest healthcare union in the UK. It is the collective voice of employed and locum pharmacists working across healthcare settings, including GP practice, community, hospitals, health boards and prisons. The PDA also represents trainee pharmacists and students at universities across the UK.
The PDA and its various networks provide pharmacists and students with advice, indemnity cover, legal defence support, trade union organisation, education opportunities, events and networking.
What kind of activities do student reps do?
Here are a few examples of what PDA Student Reps have achieved in the last few years.
1. Planning and putting on sessions that support students, like the PDA Student Webinar ‘Voices of Leadership: Empowering BAME Students to Lead’. Here, PDA Student Reps at Portsmouth University hosted an online event for BAME (Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic) MPharm students on leadership. The event brought together a panel of pharmacists with experience in navigating leadership roles within the sector, who shared their journeys and offered advice and support to the next generation of pharmacists.
Temi, a PDA Student Rep said, “I came up with the idea because, like many other BAME students, I wanted to see how people who look like us have navigated their way into leadership roles. The wisdom our speakers shared is something I’ll carry with me, not just as I pursue leadership opportunities but also as I step into my future career as a pharmacist. Leadership is a core part of the profession, and hearing these stories has made that clearer than ever.”
2. Creating campaigns, like the PDA Fair Funding Campaign. In November 2023, PDA Student members launched and led the Fair Funding Campaign. The campaign saw students speak directly to Westminster, with hundreds of MPharm students writing to their MPs. The campaign highlighted the inequality and the importance, for patients and the NHS, of supporting the future pharmacy workforce. Thanks to the pressure applied by the pharmacy sector, and in large parts, the efforts of our student reps and members in England, MPharm students in England can now access the Travel and Dual Accommodation Expenses (TDAE) section of the NHS Learning Support Fund (LSF).
Elif, a PDA Student Rep said, “Pharmacy students are crucial members of the multidisciplinary team and deserve fair funding to be able to attend placements like our peers on other healthcare courses. It’s a privilege to have been able work with PDA Student Reps and fellow pharmacy students to speak up and drive change. This is an example of how student voices can make a meaningful impact.”
3. Supporting and engaging students, such as allowing them to take part in the RxChange meeting for students in Scotland. PDA Student Committee members for Scotland have hosted a virtual event, the MPharm RxChange, offering pharmacy students from Robert Gordon University (RGU) and Strathclyde University an opportunity to share and reflect on their experiences as MPharm students in Scotland. It facilitated open discussion between students, who spoke about their experiences of assessment methods, OSCE structure, support and placements.
Why become a PDA Student Rep?
- To be a part of a team dedicated to advocating for pharmacy students.
- To help make sure more students understand the role of the PDA and the support it offers.
- To gain experience in leadership, communication, and advocacy.
- To ensure the voice of pharmacy students is heard at the highest level of the PDA.
The PDA is looking for students who are passionate, proactive, and dedicated to representing their peers. PDA student members who feel that this is an opportunity for them are encouraged to contact the PDA.
To find out more or to apply to become a PDA Student Rep, click here.
Learn more
- Student Newsletter – June 2025
- MPharm students secure access to Learning Support Fund
- PDA Student Reps
Not yet a PDA member?
If you have not yet joined the PDA, we encourage you to join today and ask your colleagues to do the same.
Membership is FREE to pharmacy students, trainee pharmacists and for the first three months of being newly qualified.
Read about our key member benefits here.