UTPB freshman wants to use degree to help others

Eighteen-year-old Kayla Hahn’s life is full of blessings. She has a loving family she likes to spend her time with. Her big brother is also her closest friend. She is all-American, apple pie beautiful. She can sing. And she’s a brain, graduating in the top 10 percent of her class at Permian High School.

This year’s recipient of the Edwin Kurtz Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Pre-Health Professions, Kayla said she knows a wondrous thing when she sees it.

“I felt really blessed and honored to receive this scholarship,” she said. The scholarship will pay Kayla’s tuition and fees for four full years if she maintains a 3.0 grade point average.

A freshman at The University of Texas of the Permian Basin, Kayla is majoring in chemistry in conjunction with the university’s pre-health professions program. Her goal is to become a pharmacist.

“I chose UTPB because it’s a very quality school, relatively inexpensive and close to home, and because the pre-health professions program is really good,” she said.

This semester, Kayla will carry 13 hours and run for the UTPB Lady Falcons cross country team. Her most challenging classes will be calculus 2 and chemistry. But she’s looking forward to them.

“A condition of my scholarship is that I keep my grades high, so it’s an extra motivation for success,” she added.

In addition to classes and athletics, Kayla is also preparing to take the next step on her career path. She is currently taking an online pre-pharmacy preparation course so that she can earn her pharmacy technician license.

“I hope to get my license in September so that I can start working in November,” she said.

Kayla Hahn

CNN.com and MONEY Magazine declared that pharmacists have one of the top 10 jobs in the country. According to the article, demand for pharmacists is exploding as the population ages and new medications are developed. By 2010 the number of prescriptions filled is expected to rise 27 percent to 4.1 billion. Pharmacists also give advice on over-the-counter meds and help patients manage chronic conditions like diabetes. About 60 percent work in retail settings, the rest in hospitals and nursing homes and in research or sales for drug companies.

Furthermore, pharmacists are in such demand that graduates today can expect multiple job offers, signing bonuses, and $90K-plus salaries.

But it isn’t the earning potential that has Kayla interested.

“Helping people is what is most important to me,” she said.

The Edwin Kurtz Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Pre-Health Professions is invested in the Long Term Fund.