With 136 Frisco ISD students applying for 40 seats, the CTE course Pharmacology has added a step to the application process by making candidates for the class participate in group interviews starting Tuesday and finishing March 21.

“I chose to add the interviews because in the past years I was solely reliant on eight teachers recommendations. I feel it’s important to give students the opportunity to present themselves and not just on the opinion of previous teachers,” Pharmacology teacher Kelly Michelle said. ”I feel that the teacher recommendations are good and on the most part very reliable but this will give students an opportunity to shine on their own.”

Teacher recommendations will still count for 70 percent of a student’s total score but the inclusion of interviews has some students taking extra time to prepare.

“I’m pretty nervous for the interview because this is the first year they’re doing this,” junior Grace Nguyen said. “I’ve asked a few family friends that are pharmacologists to give me insight on the pros and cons of the career, so I know what to say at the interview and I feel a little bit better about the interview process, but I’m looking forward to it.”

The interview will be approximately 15-20 minutes long with students having about one minute to respond to whatever questions they might be asked. In addition, students will have to arrive 30 minutes before their scheduled interview time and take a short math quiz, a factor that will also play a part in the selection of which students get to take Pharmacology at the CTE Center.

“I am only looking for the students to take this opportunity to present themselves. I want students to have the opportunity to communicate with me their desire to pursue this course,” Michelle said. “I know I can get this information in an essay but I feel that presenting your communication skills is important in a clinical rotation course.”