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Pharmacy Summer Institute marks decade of inspiring future leaders

Student participating in the School of Pharmacy's Summer Institute pose together on the steps of the Pharmacy Building while holding a School of Pharmacy banner.

Participants in the 2025 Pharmacy Summer Institute pose as a group outside the Pharmacy Building. High school and college students from across the country and around the globe attended this year 10th annual institute. Photo: Samantha Nebelecky

By SAMANTHA NEBELECKY

Published August 4, 2025

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“During my time attending PSI in 2023, I gained many meaningful experiences that ultimately led me to commit to UB Pharmacy. ”
Daniyal Atiq, doctoral student
School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

The School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SPPS) celebrated a milestone this summer, hosting its 10th annual Pharmacy Summer Institute (PSI). The annual program, held July 14-16, welcomed high school and college students from across the globe to explore engaging topics and discover the wide range of career opportunities within pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences.

Over the past decade, PSI has introduced more than 1,000 students to the fields of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences, inspiring career ambitions and opening pathways to academic and professional success. Many PSI alumni have gone on to attend top pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences programs — including at UB — and are now recognized leaders in health care, research and patient care.

“Over the past decade, UB SPPS has been honored to host more than 1,000 students through one of the premier pharmacy summer programs in the country,” says Jennifer Rosenberg, associate dean for student success and engagement. “Each year, we incorporate student feedback to enhance the institute, ensuring that every program offers relevant workshops and meaningful experiences.

“We look forward to continuing to welcome aspiring leaders in pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences in the years ahead.”

This year’s multi-day program welcomed 68 students from nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico, and even as far away as Switzerland. Students participated in a range of immersive learning experiences at the Pharmacy Building, the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. Buffalo General Medical Center and the North Campus. These included interactive sessions, hands-on activities and engaging lectures led by UB SPPS faculty, alumni, students and local health care professionals. Topics included patient-counseling simulations, vaccine administration and the role of interprofessional collaboration in health care.

Student participating in the School of Pharmacy's Summer Institute practice giving injections.

Students use oranges to practice administering vaccinations. Photo: Samantha Nebelecky

The program also introduced students to UB’s diverse academic offerings and provided guidance to help them navigate their next steps in pursuing pharmacy or pharmaceutical sciences.

The 2025 program was organized by Tyler Bingham, assistant director for recruitment and advisement. It was co-led by the PSI Student Leadership Team, a group of current UB PharmD students, several of whom are PSI alumni. These student leaders played a key role in facilitating programming, offering a unique peer perspective and helping create a dynamic, welcoming experience for attendees.

Student participating in the School of Pharmacy's Summer Institute make lip balm using materials from the UB Bees project.

A student practices compounding lip balm. Photo: Samantha Nebelecky

“During my time attending PSI in 2023, I gained many meaningful experiences that ultimately led me to commit to UB Pharmacy,” said Daniyal Atiq, PharmD ’28, 2025 PSI co-chair and advisory committee member. “PSI has a degree of faculty and student engagement that was incomparable to some of the other schools I was considering, and that is one of the reasons I was excited to contribute my experience and insight as a student leader for PSI 2025.

“This year’s program was exciting with the multitude of hands-on activities, and even as a PSI co-chair, these activities were insightful for me,” Atiq said. “Overall, it was an awesome experience recreating some of the memories and activities that guided me to pursue my PharmD at UB and hopefully helped students get a better understanding of what UB Pharmacy has to offer.”

To learn more about the program, visit .