DUI at 20. Am i screwed?

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Hey guys. So last night I got a DUI ticket and was in a holding cell for 10 hours. My court date is in 2 weeks and I doubt the judge would let it slide. Would a DUI affect my chances of getting into pharmacy school and will it affect my financial aid status also? Thanks guys..

Originally Posted by sinoirilax

Hey guys. So last night I got a DUI ticket and was in a holding cell for 10 hours. My court date is in 2 weeks and I doubt the judge would let it slide. Would a DUI affect my chances of getting into pharmacy school and will it affect my financial aid status also? Thanks guys..

You have to call your school up on that. Another potential problem might also be your licensing exam after you graduate from pharmacy school.

I thought there was a thread on this recently but seems like they are all for drug possession or theft, and the ones I looked at got it expunged from their record. I did a search for "arrest" and that brought up a lot of threads in case you feel like looking into it further.

You do have to disclose it if you are convicted in applications for pharm school and licensure, just like you would for any job. I agree you should contact the pharm school and your state's pharmacy board. I don't think it would affect your financial aid, but I don't remember all the questions on the FAFSA.

somewhat...

If i have a strong GPA and a strong background such as community service and whatnot, will the DUI still catch their attention?

I imagine that you will have to address the DUI in one way or another regardless of your GPA or community service. Certainly such merits will help paint you as something other than a delinquent, but having something on your record is cause for concern for any institution that doesn't know you.

Just answer honestly on your applications and add in the details when it asks for your record on your applications. Be prepared to explain that question should it come out during interviews.

--Garfield3d

More community service on an application can't hurt regardless if it's voluntary or not.

Everyone makes mistakes and I'm sure that adcoms will look at you as a whole and not just reject admission based on a dui. You should call the school and ask them specifically.

Go for absolute transparency...disclose the DUI and be up-front about it.

Many schools, mine included, require background checks as part of the matriculation process. A DUI conviction will show up there. We would much prefer to know about it early in the admissions process than as a last minute surprise. We don't like surprises.

Dr. Eric H. Hobson
Associate Dean
Belmont University School of Pharmacy

the absolutely correct. i would be upfront about it, do much much more community service, preferably in the alcohol related field such as MADD, or Alcoholics Anonymous, tell them what you learned from your mistake.

also the fact that your under 21 might hurt you when your licensing issue comes up after pharm school. so to answer your question, your DUI certainly won't help you, but it won't automatically exclude you. good luck.

I hope that this mistake won't ruin your whole future. Personally I think you may have better luck applying well into the future. You might need that time to "learn from your mistake" before anybody will take you seriously. Don't give up but just be realistic.

Even if this does not ruin your chances of getting into pharmacy school you are a retard for doing something like this

A friend of an acquaintance got kicked out for getting a DUI while he was on his 2nd year of pharmacy school. This was a few years ago at a California school. I don't think pharm schools take it lightly.

although it depends on the school, i think if youre up front about it, explain the situation, participate in alcohol related volunteer activities you still maybe in the mix, though your "draft status" will suffer.

if you address it in a personal statement, and mabe send a personal letter to the adcom, i think that would go along way in showing your character and showing that you have learned from your mistake.

also, make sure that this is a one time thing, anything else like this and i dount you will get in anywhere, unless u start "donating buildings" to ceratin schools

as far as after pharm school and taking your state boards, i think that if you get in to pharm school and that your run in w/ jhonny law was a one time thing, i think you would be seen as having matured and put your past behind you.

Originally Posted by andrewattheU

Even if this does not ruin your chances of getting into pharmacy school you are a retard for doing something like this

Good thing you cleared that up for him, he probably thought he was a genius not a retard.

It shouldn't necessarily screw you now. It might hurt you later in the licensing process, but the only crimes that I would imagine Pharmacy schools care about is if you were caught drug dealing illegally?

Even if you were caught smoking marijuana, doing cocaine or heroin, I seriously doubt that it would affect your chances in getting in. Licensing can be a problem though.

Originally Posted by Sparda29

It shouldn't necessarily screw you now. It might hurt you later in the licensing process, but the only crimes that I would imagine Pharmacy schools care about is if you were caught drug dealing illegally?

Even if you were caught smoking marijuana, doing cocaine or heroin, I seriously doubt that it would affect your chances in getting in. Licensing can be a problem though.

And here I thought getting into pharmacy school was supposed to be competitive.

Our pre-health advisor addressed this in one of our meetings. She applied it to med school but it probably works the same for pharm...

You will have to address it at some point. Its much better to be up front about it then they found out another way. Some schools (particularly interviewers) might not be able to get over it. In my roommates med school interview, she had a guy that asked her nothing but questions about her 2 alcohol writeups that occured her freshman year...and even accused her of using drugs. But the norm is that they understand you make mistakes and are looking for the maturity and responsibility aspect that you acknowledge what you did wrong and what you are doing to change it.

If this is your first offense, its a misdemeanor, so get a good lawyer and you could possibly walk away with some community service and an expungement agreement and no I'm not just talking, I'm ex-law enforcement. If it's expunged, no one will have access to the records ever again, unless you apply for a job with the Feds, they have ways of finding everything out!

HTH

I know for the state of Texas you will have to jump through hoops to get your license, if they'll even let you get it, and some schools won't even touch you if you have one. If this is your first DUI, learn the lesson this gave you, pay a lawyer the $5K or so to clear it up and never do it again. This may have killed your chances of getting into a school and/or allowing you to sit for the exams. Don't wait too long to find a lawyer, there should be plenty that specialize in DUI's unless you live in a small town. We had to submit for a background check before we were allowed to sit for our first day of class and I'm sure this is one of the things they check. Also, after your first year when you apply for your intern license through your state board, they will check both state records as well as do a FBI check.

Why would a school waste a spot on a student that might have problems getting licensed when they could give that spot to someone that would become a pharmacist?

Originally Posted by sinoirilax

If i have a strong GPA and a strong background such as community service and whatnot, will the DUI still catch their attention?

The position of a pharmacist should be with great care about the health and welfare of others. Getting behind a wheel under the influence is certainly the opposite of caring about the welfare of others. You place innocent people at risk of their lives.

I don't know how schools will look at this, and I'm not trying to be cruel, but my personal opinion is I wouldn't want to trust the judgement of a pharmacist who would put my life at risk by placing themselves on the road with me (or others) while they were under the influence.

If the question is, how much negative can you do and still be a pharmacist, then you shouldn't. Your job is based on trust, integrity, and caring...hopefully. This isn't something that happened when you were a stupid teenager and now you see the light. This is now. Give it serious thought and search your heart as to how serious you are about your career choice.

I'm sure not what you wanted to hear, and probably not going to be received well by several, but my opinion none the less.

If I were you I would seek advise from a public defender. They tell you everything like it is. All those private lawyers dont have jobs and are trying to rip people off. They will try to scare and you will have heart attacks every time you go to a different lawyer. Don't do anything until you recieve a letter from a prosecutor. You never know they might drop charges for some reason. Right now if I were you I would enjoy your life and relax. When you recieve an official letter from a prosecutor post again and we will advise you then. There is nothing you can do until they officially charge you. You don't know whether they will charge you with a misdiamenor, felony or simply drop all the charges. #1st thing you should do is to seek advise from public defender. They also have bunch of free lawyers. Call the state bar of your state. These people will actually fight for you because government pays them. Good luck. what were you celebrating?

You haven't been charged yet so you''re not screwed yet. Even though if I was in admission and saw that you have DUI at 20 I would never have accepted you even if you had a 4.0 GPA. I'm sorry. But I'm not here to judge you. Let the judge, and possibly jury decide.

Originally Posted by ruth265

If I were you I would seek advise from a public defender. They tell you everything like it is. All those private lawyers dont have jobs and are trying to rip people off. They will try to scare and you will have heart attacks every time you go to a different lawyer. Don't do anything until you recieve a letter from a prosecutor. You never know they might drop charges for some reason. Right now if I were you I would enjoy your life and relax. When you recieve an official letter from a prosecutor post again and we will advise you then. There is nothing you can do until they officially charge you. You don't know whether they will charge you with a misdiamenor, felony or simply drop all the charges. #1st thing you should do is to seek advise from public defender. They also have bunch of free lawyers. Call the state bar of your state. These people will actually fight for you because government pays them. Good luck. what were you celebrating?

I wouldn't be so sure. When you go with a public defender, most are just seeking to plea the case with the least amount of work put out so they get paid. You really are rolling the dice with a public defender. If you want it taken care of and off your record, you should pay a lawyer that will clear it up and expunge it from your record. It's doubtful that any prosecutor would drop the charges on a DUI.

Originally Posted by IrishRxMan

I know for the state of Texas you will have to jump through hoops to get your license, if they'll even let you get it, and some schools won't even touch you if you have one. If this is your first DUI, learn the lesson this gave you, pay a lawyer the $5K or so to clear it up and never do it again. This may have killed your chances of getting into a school and/or allowing you to sit for the exams. Don't wait too long to find a lawyer, there should be plenty that specialize in DUI's unless you live in a small town. We had to submit for a background check before we were allowed to sit for our first day of class and I'm sure this is one of the things they check. Also, after your first year when you apply for your intern license through your state board, they will check both state records as well as do a FBI check.

Why would a school waste a spot on a student that might have problems getting licensed when they could give that spot to someone that would become a pharmacist?

Texas code.....



(B) Intoxication and alcoholic beverage offenses as defined in the Texas Penal Code, if two such offenses occurred in the previous ten years:

(i) Pharmacists:

(I) 0-5 years since date of disposition--evaluation by a mental health professional indicating the individual is safe to engage in pharmacy practice and 5 years probation;

(II) 6-10 years since date of disposition--evaluation by a mental health professional indicating the individual is safe to engage in pharmacy practice and 3 years probation;

(ii) Pharmacy Technicians and Pharmacy Technician Trainees: 0-5 years since date of disposition and determined to have a drug or alcohol dependency--5 years probation;

Originally Posted by ruth265

If I were you I would seek advise from a public defender.

Now thats a good one.

If he will be convicted he will have 2 options. If cops have all the proof they will find him guilty even if he goes to trial unless cops messed up and he can prove it. Then here is his options: 1. wait until probation is over and then record can be expunged in most cases DUI cannot be expunged, only small misdeamenors can. DUIs usually stay on the record forever depends what state he's from 2. If his DUI can be expunged when judge puts him on probation ( 2-3 years) and gives him community service he can file form 1203.4 or 1203.4a in california (check with your state) and his record will be expunged. If he wants his record to be expunged earlier he needs to pay all the fines, complete community services and only then he can file a motion with court to have a hearing with the same judge who convicted him and if the same judge say overturns the sentense of guilty then he can file 1203.4 form and his record can be expunged. If you have any questions just send me a private message. I will guide you through this process. I know all the ins and outs of court system

Originally Posted by ruth265

If he will be convicted he will have 2 options. If cops have all the proof they will find him guilty even if he goes to trial unless cops messed up and he can prove it. Then here is his options: 1. wait until probation is over and then record can be expunged in most cases DUI cannot be expunged, only small misdeamenors can. DUIs usually stay on the record forever depends what state he's from 2. If his DUI can be expunged when judge puts him on probation ( 2-3 years) and gives him community service he can file form 1203.4 or 1203.4a in california (check with your state) and his record will be expunged. If he wants his record to be expunged earlier he needs to pay all the fines, complete community services and only then he can file a motion with court to have a hearing with the same judge who convicted him and if the same judge say overturns the sentense of guilty then he can file 1203.4 form and his record can be expunged. If you have any questions just send me a private message. I will guide you through this process. I know all the ins and outs of court system

Don't compound one mistake with another. Get a lawyer.

Originally Posted by sinoirilax

Hey guys. So last night I got a DUI ticket and was in a holding cell for 10 hours. My court date is in 2 weeks and I doubt the judge would let it slide. Would a DUI affect my chances of getting into pharmacy school and will it affect my financial aid status also? Thanks guys..

so you have an arraignment next week? sorry i missed that part. You can always take extensions until you apply to pharmacy school (you have to hire a lawyer public defenders will not do it for you). On the other hand, I think if you do apply and get in later you will have difficult obtaining intern pharmacy permit in your state board of pharmacy. Tell your public defender/lawyer (do not go alone) to negotiate with your prosecutor to reduce your sentence if you plea guilty (if you decide to plea guilty). Make a deal with them that if you plea guilty, pay your fines for DUI they will expunge your record the next day. Sometimes it does happen depending on situation.

If you check the pre-med forum, students have been accepted to med schools with a D.U.I. Obviously it's a red flag, however I don't think you will be automatically denied acceptance.

My advice: stray as far away from the lifestyle you have been living and work on making responsible and professional choices. Do what's right and a world of opportunity will open up to you, or in this case re-open.

Bottom line, my brother is a criminal defense attorney and has friends that specialize in clearing up DUI's for about $5K here in San Antonio. You don't have to go through two or three years of probation or file any forms yourself. You pay the money to the lawyer and they work their tails off to get you the resolution you want. Criminal defense attorneys are very defense minded, which is why they went into that area of law. You want to keep it at just an arrest and not going to a conviction.

I'm in the class of 2011 at tx tech. We were told at our school if you get a DUI we won't even get to graduate. I dunno if that's true or if it's just to keep us from doing it. Maybe other schools are different.

Originally Posted by Bugieman

I'm in the class of 2011 at tx tech. We were told at our school if you get a DUI we won't even get to graduate. I dunno if that's true or if it's just to keep us from doing it. Maybe other schools are different.

That's b/c Texas doesn't play around with pharmacy licensing. Just b/c you got an arrest for DUI doesn't mean you got convicted. It's mainly DUI convictions that they will not let you continue b/c you won't be able to sit for the boards, hence you will be wasting everyone's time. We got told basically the same thing here in San Antonio. No drug or alcohol convictions.

Keep on drinking and driving. It's the only way.

I'm from Miami,FL and one of my friend not only got caught with DUI but she also crashed her car into someone else. But she she managed to to escape the conviction and actually got accepted to NOVA Pharmacy School. It's probably going to take some work and lots of money for a lawyer. But if it's you're first DUI like my friend, then you could probably work out a deal with the prosecutor (At least in my state).

why did paris hilton go to jail? i remember she was there for 2 weeks? i thought it was harsh. is she a felon or misdeamenor?

Originally Posted by andrewattheU

Even if this does not ruin your chances of getting into pharmacy school you are a retard for doing something like this

I'm sure you've never done anything wrong.

Originally Posted by Idesiretosling

Good thing you cleared that up for him, he probably thought he was a genius not a retard.

+1.

Originally Posted by BME103

Keep on drinking and driving. It's the only way.

I am sure you know that this wasn't your smartest choice. Are you worried that you won't get to professional school/get licensed or are you worried that you might have a problem with beer?

PS Don't try to screw with the adcoms...I'm sure they drink too. They know that people make mistakes...but I wouldn't want to really make them angry by trying to hide it. Count on a background check...this WILL come up.

Doubt it will affect financial aid because they are interested in not giving aid to convicted drug dealers and felons.

Grab a taxi, call a friend, make someone DD for you, or walk back to someone's place next time. Good luck.

Originally Posted by Smiling Moon

And here I thought getting into pharmacy school was supposed to be competitive.

There is no reason for it to be this competitive because there is a nationwide shortage. In the case of pharmacy, you cannot try to lower the demand. You have to increase the supply. And this can be done in 3-4 years if every school starts accepting 1000+/year.

But yeah, if you want it to be competitive, look for academic competition, nothing else.

Originally Posted by sinoirilax

Hey guys. So last night I got a DUI ticket and was in a holding cell for 10 hours. My court date is in 2 weeks and I doubt the judge would let it slide. Would a DUI affect my chances of getting into pharmacy school and will it affect my financial aid status also? Thanks guys..

Ask the governor of your state for a pardon. I know there is a process for that if you done all your time in my state.

Originally Posted by Sparda29

But yeah, if you want it to be competitive, look for academic competition, nothing else.

There's more to a person than just academics. For instance, would you want a pediatrician looking at your child who was a known pedophile? How about a pharmacist with a conviction record for selling illegal drugs? Perhaps it's okay for nursing homes to hire ex-cons. Your grandmother is safe there... maybe.

I know these are extreme examples but you blanket statement to consider academics and nothing else is what makes it easy to pull up counterexamples.

Originally Posted by Sparda29

Personally, I'd prefer it if experience was weighed higher than GPA and PCAT.

And how does this fits in with just looking at academics?

Experience fits into academic competition. I think it's pretty much given that someone who doesn't work would have an easier time in college.

Originally Posted by txpharm2b

There's more to a person than just academics. For instance, would you want a pediatrician looking at your child who was a known pedophile? How about a pharmacist with a conviction record for selling illegal drugs? Perhaps it's okay for nursing homes to hire ex-cons. Your grandmother is safe there... maybe.

I know these are extreme examples but you blanket statement to consider academics and nothing else is what makes it easy to pull up counterexamples.




And how does this fits in with just looking at academics?

Texas Tech will not consider you if you have a DUI. If you've already been accepted and haven't started they will take away your admission. If you've started school, they will kick you out. There was an incident in my second year regarding a soon to be first year student who got a DUI and they took away her admission. It's been 4 years, and things may have changed, but I don't think they have.

DUI bastards need to stop being selfish and thinking abotu themselves because they are putting so many people's lives at risk to make thsemselves look cool in front of their dumb frineds. not smart. you were 20 not 12.

sorry but if i was on the adcomm i'd throw your application right into the shredder. next. thanks.

Thought this was an interesting thread as i was looking through old posts. I have a friend that go into med school, wont say where, and he had a DUI. He told them what happened and that he hadn't drank since and he ended up getting accepted. By the way, he applied to 3 schools and his primary was the one that accepted him. And yes, he had a decent GPA, 3.65 I believe and had a degree in some sort of biology.

By the way, I remember trying to help him wiht this cause I know a "thing or two" about the legal system. He actually passed the sobriety test and was under the legal limit when he blew. The cops took his blood at 2 different times to see if one would come back higher than the next. It did after 2 hours of being pulled over, .083. I do not condone drinking and driving, but I do feel that the cops where I live push the envelope.

They can actually dick you over and give you a DUI even UNDER the legal limit. I read in the paper about a 40 year old woman and her husband were driving home after dinner and she got a DUI for being at .05. She passed the sobriety tests but the cop said her eyes looked red and watery. I thought that was funny since i hardly wear my contacts and when I do, they always look bloodshot and watery. Not trying to dredge up an old argument but I thought I'd share that. haha

FYI; not all cops are like that! I have 5 very good friends that are police officers and they kick ass.

if you get a lawyer you can get what is called a suspended sentence (SIS) at least in missouri. youll be on probation and take alchohol classes probably, but if you stay clean and stay out of trouble it will stay off your record you wont have to admit to a conviction. at least talk to a lawyer and find out how it works in your area but i think youll be fine. Expect to lose about three grand though.

Just call the schools and ask them directly. They'll give you a straightforward answer imo.

Originally Posted by cystapharm

DUI bastards need to stop being selfish and thinking abotu themselves because they are putting so many people's lives at risk to make thsemselves look cool in front of their dumb frineds. not smart. you were 20 not 12.

sorry but if i was on the adcomm i'd throw your application right into the shredder. next. thanks.

Hmm, someone is anal.