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As a recent applicant for post-residency jobs, Personnel Placement Services (PPS) can be a stressful, but beneficial experience.  In this blog, I will briefly review PPS and also provide tips for PPS candidates.

What is PPS and should I participate?

PPS is basically a large job fair where candidates arrange individual interviews to further explore specific residencies, fellowships, or full-time employment opportunities.  PPS enables candidates to discover many employment opportunities in a condensed time period without requiring travel to individual sites.  Fees and specific information about PPS in Anaheim are available at: http://www.ashp.org/menu/CareerPharm/PPS-Candidates.    

PPS is not for all candidates. It’s great for PGY1s looking for PGY2s/fellowships or for fellows/PGY1/PGY2s seeking full-time employment after completion of their post-graduate training.  PPS should be highly encouraged for students seeking fellowships or two-year residencies.  Traditionally, few PGY1 pharmacy practice programs have interviewed candidates at PPS, but as residency positions become more competitive, it may be worthwhile to check the PPS website or email program directors to determine if their program is participating in PPS.

What should I do to prepare for PPS?

Once registered, you can search jobs with filters based on employment type, specialty areas, location, etc.  Next, you will have to sift through and evaluate these programs based on your career aspirations.  For those programs you are interested in further pursuing, you can message/schedule an appointment directly through PPS or email the contact information listed for the institution to set up an interview. This is the time to interact with programs from all over the country (and world).  Therefore, reach out to all programs with which you have a slight interest to determine if these positions are worthwhile to pursue.  

Most interviews are 30 minutes with some lasting up to one hour.   Make sure to leave 30 minutes between each interview so you have time to collect your thoughts between interviews and also to ensure you are not late to your next interview.  Keep a calendar (hardcopy or electronically) to help organize your interviews.

It will be important to adequately research the job and institution by reading the PPS job listing along with exploring the institutional website.  This research will help trigger questions to expand upon during the interview.  Having a list of questions which are institution specific is vital to demonstrate interest in the position.  Questions should be motivated by the career aspirations of the candidate to assess the fit for employment opportunity. 

When preparing for PPS, it is important to know what to pack in your suitcase.  Professional attire is appropriate for all, including a suit for both males and females.  Additionally, a padfolio will be beneficial to store prepared questions and for note taking during or after the session.  It may be worthwhile to have a few copies of your CV and business card.  While the interviewers probably already have this information, you want to always be prepared in case you get asked. You could also have these available electronically on a USB or stored in your email/cloud.

PPS:  During and After

Once you have arrived in Anaheim, understand how you will be getting to the convention center/PPS and also make sure you are well rested.  PPS interviews can be draining so sleep can be vital!

For PPS interviews, the format is highly variable, but treat them all with formality.  Many interviewers spend the first few minutes describing the position and institution.  Usually, they will then ask questions about you or enable you to ask questions about the position.  As time is short, prioritize the important questions to help you determine if each job is worth further inquiry. 

After completing all interviews, make sure you take time to reflect on your interaction with each institution.  Identify which employment opportunities stand out and which you would like to further pursue.  Once you get home, take time to write thank you cards to all institutions with which you interviewed, even if you are not interested in their position.

When PPS is over, the long stressful search process continues with the submission of application materials followed by interviewing.  All of your hard work should pay off allowing you to obtain a position to fulfill your career aspirations and advance the profession of pharmacy!

Best of luck at PPS!