Biaco ’21 takes a look back as she steps forward

Four years ago, Joyce Biaco became the first member of the Class of 2021.

She was in a College of Charleston microbiology lab – and about to take a midterm exam – when the dean of the MUSC College of Pharmacy strolled in with a fistful of balloons and a gift bag to tell her she had been accepted to pharmacy school.

“It was a mix of emotions, especially because I was about to take a midterm exam, so I truly was not expecting anything,” she says now, on the eve of graduating. The MUSC College of Pharmacy Awards Celebration and Hooding Ceremony is Friday, May 14 at Gaillard Auditorium. “I remember thinking ‘Wait! I’m not prepared for this! What is happening? Why is Dean Hall here? Why is everyone looking at me? It was very exciting.”

Since the College of Charleston was using some lab space in the MUSC College of Pharmacy’s Michael P. Araneo Building, Dean Philip Hall and admission coordinator Jenny Bagg had the rare opportunity to give the good news about acceptance in person.

“It was great because two of my best friends happened to be in that lab, so I got to share the moment with them,” Biaco said. “And then I was ready to celebrate, but of course I still had to take the exam.”

The moment proved a suitable preface to the story of her pharmacy education.

“It was definitely more than I expected,” she said. “So many wonderful experiences! The lifelong friendships, learning and growing from all the amazing faculty… The faculty was especially helpful during COVID-19, making sure they were there for us. During rotations, I had the chance to meet some wonderful preceptors who shaped the way we should be thinking as pharmacists. I’m very glad I went to MUSC.”

She’s the first pharmacist in her family. While she was in high school, her uncle suggested pharmacy and the clincher was when she shadowed a pharmacist as a junior in college.

“She said something that really impacted me,” said Biaco, who plans to stay in the Florence, S.C. area and work in independent community pharmacy. “She said ‘Not everyone knows that anyone could talk to a pharmacist for free.’ I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do. I want to talk to people about their medications and help them for free.”