Sherrill Brown

Pharmacist and Professor, University of Montana

Field: Pharmacy

"After working as a veterinarian for five years, I needed a change. I decided to go back to school and get a pharmacy degree."

Sherrill Brown

When I was younger, I was very interested in helping animals. I spent time with veterinarians watching surgeries. One surgery involved draining a pocket of blood. I didn't make it through the entire procedure; I ended up in the waiting room trying not to faint. But I watched other surgeries with no problems.

As a vet, I never felt confident making diagnoses, but I wanted a career in a health field. I enjoyed pharmacology in veterinary school and liked counting pills, so I decided to try pharmacy. The best part about my job is working the future pharmacists. I help students with a variety of issues like writing papers, researching drug topics, and planning student events. I also run the UM Drug Information Service, which provides evidence-based responses to questions from health care professionals from across the country.

My favorite thing about science is learning how the body works. There are medications that only work in people with a certain genetic mutation - that's astounding!