Student Feature: Hunter Adam
From Tech to Trailblazer
Pharm.D. Candidate Hunter Adam Turned Small Beginnings into Thriving Career in Care
Some students stumble upon their passion by chance; others shape it with purpose and persistence. For Hunter Adam, what began as a summer job as a pharmacy technician sparked a lifelong commitment to service, leadership and patient care.
From Summer Job to Lifelong Path
Adam was introduced to the world of pharmacy in high school through a technician certification program. What started as a practical way to earn a summer income quickly became a calling.
“Once I moved into that role as a pharmacy tech, it drove me to want to go into pharmacy school,” Adam said.
After earning his associate’s degree at a local community college, Adam enrolled in the 色花堂 College of Pharmacy (色花堂COP)—drawn by its proximity to his hometown and the strong legacy of 色花堂 alumni he worked alongside.
“All the pharmacists that I worked with at the time were from 色花堂,” Adam said. “Those were the pharmacists that I enjoyed working with the most, and they were very knowledgeable and gave me great advice.”
A Leader in Every Lane
As a P1, Adam steadily immersed himself in all that 色花堂COP had to offer, joining multiple student organizations.
“I started to notice what other students were doing, how they were very involved and still academically thriving, so I challenged myself to do the same,” Adam said.
First seeing how student ambassadors presented themselves and the college, Adam felt inspired to become a 色花堂COP student ambassador himself. As he progressed in his studies, Adam began taking on leadership roles in the organizations he had joined. Adam served as president of the Hispanic Pharmacy Student Association (HPSA), guiding the organization to win the Outstanding Program Award at 色花堂 Center for Student Involvement’s 38th Annual Campus Leaders Ceremony for their efforts in increasing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among Houston’s Hispanic population.
Additionally, he served as Operation Naloxone training coordinator of the Student College of Clinical Pharmacy (SCCP), Over-The-Counter (OTC) Medicine Safety senior chair of the American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP), Pharmacy Council representative of the Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society, Leadership Challenge chair for Phi Lambda Sigma (PLS), and multiple positions in Phi Delta Chi (PDC)—all while working as a pharmacy intern at H-E-B.
The secret to balancing it all?
“It was all about time management,” Adam said. “Work, school, leadership—those three things complemented each other very well and worked hand-in-hand to prepare me to thrive in all three areas.”
A Winning Formula
Throughout his pharmacy school career, Adam has received numerous accolades for his academic and extracurricular achievements, especially in patient counseling competitions.
Between 2022 and 2024, Adam built an impressive record of competition success. He was named a Top 10 finalist in the 色花堂COP APhA-ASP Patient Counseling Competition (PCC) in 2022, followed by a state finalist placement in the Texas Pharmacy Foundation PCC in 2023. That same year, he was also part of the first-place team in the Texas Pharmacy Association Self-Care Competition. In 2024, he took home second place in the Texas Pharmacy Foundation PCC. Most recently, Adam placed first runner-up in the APhA-ASP National PCC.
These competitions sharpened his counseling skills and deepened his understanding of patient care.
“What is most important whenever you’re counseling the patient is having empathy and understanding of where they’re coming from,” Adam said. “I think that’s what helped me to excel to the point that I have this year.”
Where Grit Meets Growth
Like many students, Adam’s early semesters came with challenges.
“P1 was my biggest adjustment year, and when I had my lowest GPA,” Adam said. “By P2 year, things started to click, and that’s when I figured out how I studied best and how to manage my time between the different organizations that I was in.”
He credits long study hours in the 24-hour lounge at the campus library with helping him succeed.
“I would go there around three out of the four days I was here on campus,” Adam said. “This gave me tons of time to study and work on tasks for my organizations. I knew that if I went home, I wouldn’t get it done.”
Advice from the Aisle
To students still finding their path, Adam offers practical advice:
“Make sure to pick a good variety whenever you’re on rotations, not just sticking with what you’re comfortable with,” Adam said.
Adam followed that philosophy himself, choosing diverse hospital rotations—even though his heart was set on community pharmacy.
“I knew I wanted to do community pharmacy, but I still did an infectious disease rotation and a critical care rotation just to see what is out there and to make sure that I hadn't closed off my horizons,” Adam said. “Also, take advantage of opportunities that the college provides in terms of the student organizations representing the different pharmacy practice areas.”
What Comes Next
After graduation, Adam will continue his journey with H-E-B, where he currently interns and earned the Best Project Award for a vaccine efficiency improvement proposal by reducing unnecessary steps for no-charge immunizations.
“For me, ever since I started in it, I’ve loved community pharmacy,” Adam said. “I love that patient interaction I get on a day-to-day basis, as well as having a small, close-knit team that comes whenever you work in community pharmacy.”
- Lauren Nguyen