PQA offers a competitive Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiential (APPE) Rotation for pharmacy students, which provides experiential learning opportunities in non-profit association management, medication use quality education, communications, research and performance measurement. PQA works with individual students to align their rotation experience with desired career goals and interests. Applications for the 2027-28 year are now being accepted. Visit our Education & Training Programs page for more information.
Sasha Blackshear, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Public Health
Sasha Blackshear is a fourth-year Doctor of Pharmacy candidate at Florida A&M University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. A Jacksonville, Florida native and third-generation FAMU Rattler, she is passionate about the development, strategy, and delivery of innovative therapies. She plans to pursue an industry fellowship and an MBA in Healthcare Administration, with the goal of building a career in clinical development while mentoring young women pursuing careers in healthcare and science
What inspired you to complete an APPE rotation in association management?
My interests sit at the intersection of clinical science and the systems that shape how care is delivered. Through my pharmacy training and my industry internship, I saw that the quality of patient care depends on more than individual clinicians. It depends on shared measures, standards, and collaboration across health plans, manufacturers, and providers. Association management offers a unique opportunity to see how diverse healthcare stakeholders work together to develop solutions that improve quality and patient outcomes. I wanted to learn how a nonprofit convenes diverse stakeholders and turns evidence into measures that influence care at scale, and that perspective will strengthen me in any pharmaceutical or healthcare leadership role.
What drew you to PQA and our work to improve medication use safety, adherence and appropriate use?
PQA’s work matters because quality measures influence how care is delivered and evaluated across the healthcare system. Many of the measures I studied in school, such as adherence and appropriate use, trace back to PQA. I was drawn to the fact that PQA brings payers, pharmacies, manufacturers, and researchers to one table and develops measures through consensus. Having just completed an advanced community rotation, I saw firsthand how adherence and safe medication use affect patients at the counter, so I am excited to see the measurement side of that same work.
What are your goals for your time at PQA?
My goals are to understand how quality measures are developed, tested, and maintained, and how PQA builds consensus among its members. I want to strengthen my skills in data interpretation, project design, and professional communication, and contribute meaningfully to the projects I support. I also hope to build relationships with the pharmacists and staff here and learn how they navigate the intersection of science, policy, and strategy. Finally, I want to leave with a clearer view of how measurement and quality improvement connect to the clinical development and healthcare business work I plan to pursue.
Where would you like to see yourself in five years?
In five years, I see myself working in the pharmaceutical industry in clinical development and having completed my MBA. I hope to contribute to clinical trial strategy, patient engagement, or market access, while applying what I have learned about quality and real-world outcomes to help bring therapies to patients more effectively. I also hope to be mentoring and leading, especially young women who are considering careers in healthcare and science, as others have done for me.
Tell us something interesting about yourself that is not work related.
When I was younger, my favorite color used to be baby pink, but now my favorite color is red! I am also double-jointed in all of my fingers!
Revaa Goyal, University of Rhode Island
Revaa Goyal is a P4 PharmD/MBA student at the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy. She is currently on her 3rd APPE rotation. Goyal is interested in nontraditional areas of pharmacy where clinical knowledge can be combined with healthcare quality, strategy, and collaboration across different stakeholders.
What inspired you to complete an APPE rotation in association management?
I was interested in seeing a side of pharmacy practice that I had not been exposed to during most of my previous rotations. Association management gives me the opportunity to better understand how pharmacists can have an impact beyond direct patient care through research, education, quality improvement, collaboration, and work that can influence healthcare on a larger scale. I was also interested in learning how an organization brings together people with different backgrounds and perspectives to work toward shared goals.
What drew you to PQA and our work to improve medication use safety, adherence and appropriate use?
I was drawn to PQA because it sits at the intersection of clinical pharmacy, quality improvement, research, and population health. What especially interested me was learning how clinical evidence and guidelines can be translated into quality measures that are actually used to evaluate and improve medication use on a larger scale. I also liked that PQA’s work brings together different stakeholders across healthcare, because it gives me the chance to understand how the same medication-use issue can look very different depending on the perspective of a pharmacist, health plan, provider, patient, or other organization.
I also had the opportunity to learn more about PQA prior through the Diversity in Quality Scholarship where I was able to attend their 2025 Annual Meeting, which inspired me to attend in 2026, apply for this APPE rotation, and their post-graduate fellowship opportunities as well! I was really drawn to how close-knit, supportive, inclusive, and impactful the organization and the people are. My nothing but positive experience made me even more excited about having the opportunity to learn from this team!
What are your goals for your time at PQA?
One of my main goals is to develop a more holistic perspective of healthcare and a deeper understanding of medication-use quality and performance measurement, including how measures are developed, used, and how they can be interpreted by different healthcare stakeholders. I also want to learn more about some of PQA’s current measures and better understand how research, clinical evidence, data, and stakeholder input come together throughout the process. I also want to strengthen my professional communication skills by contributing to discussions, learning from people across different areas of PQA, and completing a professional deliverable that reflects the type of work done within the organization.
Where would you like to see yourself in five years?
In five years, I hope to have completed postgraduate fellowship training and be working in a role where I can combine my clinical pharmacy background with broader healthcare strategy and decision-making. I am currently especially interested in medical affairs and regulatory affairs, but I am also interested in managed care, medication and patient safety, and other roles that allow me to work across teams and contribute to projects that can have a larger impact on healthcare. Overall, I would like to be in a position where I am continuing to learn and contributing to work that improves how medications are used and how healthcare decisions are made.
Tell us something interesting about yourself that is not work related.
I am slightly obsessed with finding these giant wooden trolls created by Danish artist Thomas Dambo. They are hidden all over the world and made with help from local volunteers!