Applications are due by March 1, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. PT.
Walmart Scholars Information & Instructions
The deadline for the 2021 AACP Walmart Scholars program is March 1, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. PT through the online portal. Read through the following page carefully and thoroughly and feel free to download the instructions for reference. If you have questions, please contact walmartscholars@aacp.org.
Program Information
Eighty-five (85) student-faculty pairs from AACP member institutions will be selected for the 2021 AACP Walmart Scholars Program (the Program) to participate in the AACP Annual Meeting and Seminars (2021 Pharmacy Education conference). All programming and events for the 2021 Walmart Scholars program will be virtual. No decision has been made to date regarding whether other programming at the 2021 AACP Annual Meeting will be offered virtually and/or onsite.
Goal of the Program
AACP appreciates the challenges facing the colleges and schools of pharmacy in striving to ensure there are an adequate number of well-prepared individuals who aspire to join the faculties at our expanding number of institutions across the country. The goal of the scholarship program is to strengthen the recipient’s skills and commitment to a career in academic pharmacy through their participation at the AACP Annual Meeting and Seminars.
Eligibility, Requirements, and Service to AACP
Graduate students, professional (doctoral) students, residents, and fellows, along with their faculty mentors, are eligible to apply to the program. P1 & P2 students and previous Walmart Scholars are not eligible to apply. Previous Walmart Scholars are encouraged to serve as mentors for future Walmart Scholars programs.
*A faculty mentor may only apply with one mentee.*
Qualified applicants will meet the following requirements:
- be enrolled in a professional pharmacy degree program as a P3 or P4 student or a graduate program at an AACP regular or associate member institution, or be a current pharmacy resident or fellow,
- be an individual member of AACP,
- have a minimum of 3.0 GPA,
- be a United States citizen or permanent resident, and
- have a strong interest in enhancing their preparation for a career in academic pharmacy.
NOTE: Award recipients will be limited to no more than 2 per member institution.
- AACP will use the applicant’s current U.S. college or school of pharmacy, as entered on the Walmart Scholars application, to determine the individual’s member school affiliation.
- If a resident, fellow, or graduate student is not currently enrolled in a U.S. college or school of pharmacy, AACP will use the institution where s/he previously earned a Pharm.D. degree to determine the member school affiliation.
- Changes to an applicant’s member school affiliation after the application close date will not be considered as part of the awardee limit per school.
AACP leaders and staff will publicly acknowledge the pairs during the orientation and at other appropriate points during the Annual Meeting and Seminars to promote Walmart and AACP’s commitment to the recruitment and development of pharmacy faculty. Further, to assist with maximizing the experience of the scholarship pair to its fullest, logistics will be provided prior to the Annual Meeting that lists sessions that are both required and suggested to attend.
Walmart Scholars may also be invited, but not required, to participate in other AACP surveys, forums, or discussions during the Annual Meeting and/or throughout the year with the intent of advancing the profession and student engagement in the association.
Scholarship Funds
Scholarship checks in the amount of $600 will be made payable to the student after the completion of the Walmart Scholars Program Recipient Agreement.
The Scholarship is intended to cover 100% of the student's cost to register for the AACP Pharmacy Education 2021 Meeting and Teachers Seminar. The remaining funds are intended to offset the expenses associated with the individual's ongoing educational expenses.
If, for any reason, the student is unable to virtually participate in the meeting, as required, all scholarship funds (totaling $600) must be returned to AACP within 10 business days of notification. No funds will be used to cover the cancellation of the registration (administrative fee or full registration).
Application Instructions
Application Basics
Applications will be collected electronically:
https://fs16.formsite.com/AACP/Walmart2021/index.html
Each applicant/mentor pair must share a single application login, so that both users can access and save a partially completed form before final submission. If you do not create a login account, you and your mentor must complete the entire application form in a single session.
The application is in an online survey format and will require the following information to be considered complete. In the application, * indicates a required response.
Demographic Information
Name, Address, Email, Phone, AACP Member Numbers for Student and Mentor, etc.
GPA Verification
(Document to be uploaded)
To be eligible for consideration for consideration, your GPA must be 3.0 or greater on a 4.0 scale. Enter your GPA for your current degree program and upload a letter in PDF format from the Dean's or Registrar's office verifying your GPA. If you are a resident or fellow and not currently enrolled in a degree program, provide the GPA for your most recently completed degree (Pharm.D. or graduate). AACP will use this letter in lieu of transcripts to verify that your GPA meets the eligibility requirements for the Walmart Scholars Program. See examples below. (Maximum length is one page.)
NOTE: Transcripts are not accepted. You must submit a GPA Verification letter to be considered.
Examples of GPA Verification Letters
Below are examples of acceptable GPA verification letters, which must be submitted on institutional letterhead and uploaded into the Walmart Scholar application form.
Example 1 (Pharm.D. candidate)
School Letter Head
Dean X
X College of Pharmacy
Address
Date
Dear AACP:
Student X is currently enrolled in the Pharm.D. program at X College of Pharmacy. Student X’s cumulative GPA in the Pharm.D. program is X.X.
Thank you,
Dean X
X College of Pharmacy
Example 2 (Graduate student, Resident or Fellow)
School Letter Head
Dean X
X College of Pharmacy
Address
Date
Dear AACP:
Student X has graduated from the Pharm.D. program at X College of Pharmacy. Student X graduated with a cumulative GPA of X.X in the Pharm.D. program.
Thank you,
Dean X
X College of Pharmacy
Applicant Essays
You are strongly encouraged to compose your essays in a separate word processor, then copy and paste as plain text into the appropriate text box below. Use line breaks (the return key) to separate paragraphs. No other formatting will carry forward.
Statement of Experience & Future Career Goals
(Text to be uploaded in online submission platform)
Describe your reasons for wanting to participate in the Walmart Scholars Program, your career goals, and other academic and personal attributes you would like the reviewers to consider. Highlight any leadership roles or significant activities, presentations, posters, or events.
Include evidence of any teaching or tutoring experience in high school, college, and/or professional/graduate school; and/or working as a teaching assistant, preceptor, teacher, or coach.
Also include any evidence of research conducted jointly or individually. Research may include laboratory-based research, social and administrative research, health sciences research, practice-based research, clinical research, and/or scholarship of teaching and learning. Include any posters or presentations at the local, regional, or national level.
AACP does not collect resumes or CVs as part of the application process. Applicants are instructed to express those relevant experiences in their essays. Essay is limited to 750 words.
Academic Pharmacy Essay
(Text to be uploaded in online submission platform)
Demonstrate your understanding of the three pillars of higher education (teaching, research, and service) by describing their impact on academic pharmacy in your own words. Essay is limited to 350 words.
Faculty Mentor's Letter of Support
(Text or PDF to be uploaded in online submission platform)
The degree to which the faculty mentor believes the applicant will benefit from participating in the Walmart Scholars Program is considered in the review process.
- Include how long and how well you have known the applicant and in what capacity.
- Use specific examples or evidence to describe the applicant’s attributes and goals, and how they will contribute to a successful career in academia.
- Describe your specific plans (e.g., time frame, frequency) for mentoring the applicant for the next six months or beyond.
- Failure to address these outlined requirements in your letter will result in a reduction of points.
Limit of 750 words or two pages double-spaced. **
**NOTE: The mentor’s letter of support may be entered into an open text box or uploaded as a PDF in the application. Uploaded letters must comply with the following formatting requirements: PDF file, Arial font size 11, 1-inch margins, and double-spaced; maximum of two (2) pages. Only properly formatted letters will be reviewed.
Evaluation of Applications
Eligibility Review
AACP staff will determine that all eligibility requirements have been met, such as GPA standing, AACP membership, and institutional membership verification. Once requirements are verified, the application will move through the evaluation process.
Evaluation Scale
An evaluation scale from zero to five or zero to ten is used for scoring each of the evaluation criterion, respectively.
Evaluation Criteria
The evaluation team will use the following criteria by which all applications will be judged. Evaluators will look for well thought out, organized, articulate, and complete applications, with evidence that both parties have a strong interest in enhancing the student’s preparation for a career in academic pharmacy.
Credentials of the Student (weight factor = 6)
The Statement of Experience & Future Career Goals and Academic Pharmacy essays are used for this criterion. The degree to which the student is motivated to pursue an academic career is evaluated. Evaluation involves an assessment of how closely the personal and academic credentials of the student match with the goal of the Program. Note that AACP does not collect resumes or CVs as part of the application process. Applicants are instructed to express those relevant experiences in their essays.
- Statement of Experience & Future Career Goals (40 points possible)
- Research Experience (10 points)
- Teaching Experience (10 points)
- Future Career Goals (15 points)
- Spelling and grammar (5 points)
- Academic Pharmacy (20 points possible)
- Pillars of Education (15 points)
- Spelling and grammar (5 points)
Faculty Mentor's Support of Student (weight factor = 4)
The faculty mentor’s description of the student’s qualifications and capacity to succeed in this type of Program is used for this criterion. The degree to which the faculty mentor describes a plan of mentorship and believes the student will benefit from participating in the Program is evaluated.
- Mentor Engagement (20 points)
- Degree of current mentor engagement and specific plan (e.g., time frame, frequency) for mentoring the applicant for the next six months or beyond.
- Evidence of Applicant's Attributes (10 points)
- How well the mentor describes the applicant’s attributes and goals as they relate to a potential for a successful career in academic pharmacy.
- Potential for Success in Academic Pharmacy (10 points)
- The applicant’s potential for success in an academic pharmacy career based on the mentor’s letter.
Scholarship Notification
Award Announcement
Scholarship recipients will be announced by early May 2021.
Awarded Funds
Funds will be forwarded to the student by mid-June.
Publicity of Recipients
AACP will announce the scholarship recipients in press releases, publications, trade journals, and/or newsletters as appropriate.
AACP will arrange for publicity of the recipients at the AACP Annual Meeting and Seminars.
Scholarship Requirements for Awardee
AACP Walmart Scholars recipients agree to the following conditions:
Scholars agree to virtually participate in the live AACP events, as their schedules allow. If there is a scheduling conflict, the Scholar agrees to view the recorded version of the session within 5-business days. Additional details on session dates, times, and logistics will follow as soon as they are available. AACP will also provide a list of suggested sessions for Scholars to consider.
- AACP Connect Community: Scholars and mentors be automatically subscribed to the Walmart Scholars Program community in AACP Connect and are responsible for monitoring community posts and responding appropriately and thoughtfully to community discussion questions posed by AACP.
- AACP Walmart Scholars Orientation: Scholars and mentors are required to attend a virtual orientation session with AACP leaders.
- Teachers Seminar: Scholars and mentors are required to participate in the AACP Teachers Seminar and respond to a reflection question in the online community within one week of the live session.
- Poster Sessions: Scholars are expected to view at least 3 posters online.
- Educational Sessions: Scholars are expected to view at least 1 plenary session plus 3 educational sessions that are available online. While mentors are encouraged to view at least one of the same sessions as the Scholar, it is not required.
- Scholar/Mentor Meeting: Each Scholar/Mentor pair must meet for at least 30 minutes by July 31 to reflect on the Annual Meeting.
- Social Event for Walmart Scholars: Scholars agree to actively participate in one of the virtual networking events for Scholars and mentors.
Below are additional terms of the Walmart Scholars agreement:
- Submit the Walmart Scholars contract by the deadline noted in the agreement. AACP reserves the right to withdraw the award, if not received.
- Complete an online evaluation form immediately following the AACP Annual Meeting. The link to the evaluation form will be sent to Scholars by the end of the AACP Annual Meeting. Scholars must submit the completed form by August 15, 2021. Evaluation excerpts may be used in AACP-related publications and/or forwarded to AACP and Walmart leaders.
- Any publication or reference in a body of work resulting from the Walmart Scholars program or experience shall acknowledge AACP and Walmart.
- Respond to requests from AACP to assist in activities (i.e. emails, phone conference calls, awards judging, etc.) that would be in the scope of a student pharmacist, resident, or graduate student through May 2022.
Stipulations for spending the AACP Walmart Scholarship funds:
- Scholarship checks in the amount of $600 will be made payable to the student after the submission of the required agreement.
- The Scholarship is intended to cover 100% of the student's cost to register for the AACP Pharmacy Education 2021 Meeting and Teachers Seminar (fees TBA). The remaining funds are intended to offset the expenses associated with the individual's ongoing educational expenses.
- If, for any reason, the student is unable to virtually participate in the AACP Annual Meeting, all scholarship funds (totaling $600) must be returned to AACP within 10 business days of notification. No funds will be used to cover the cancellation of the registration (administrative fee or full registration).
Stipulations for Mentorship:
- If the designated mentor is unable to register and participate (virtually or in-person) in Pharmacy Education 2021 (AACP Annual Meeting) for any reason, as required, the mentor is responsible for immediately notifying AACP staff at walmartscholars@aacp.org and identifying another mentor who will agree to meet virtually with the Scholar during the meeting, as described above. Walmart Scholars are not permitted to participate in the Annual Meeting without a mentor or share a mentor with another Scholar.