0-6 program, or get credits and apply for pharmacy school?

[oates151]

I hope I am not posting in the wrong place. If I am, please excuse my newbie behavior.

My name is Pat. I'm currently entering my senior year of high school. Over the past 3 years, I've been juggling with a bunch of college majors, but I always seem to come back to pharmacy. After taking physics last year, I realized that engineering was not going to be my cup of tea. I love biology and chemistry, which had finally led to my decision to pursue a PharmD degree.

I really need some advice on what the best method is to pursue this degree. I'm going to list my basic high school stats at the end of this post because I understand that pharmacy is a competitive program, often with no guarantees. I live in New Jersey, so Rutgers would be my only option for in-state programs if I go with the 0-6 program. Is 0-6 worth it? Would it be better for me to go to another state college (Rowan or Stockton for example) or a private institution where I could receive a great deal of scholarship money for two years before applying for pharmacy school? How about out of state programs like Northeastern, Rhode Island, or USP?

I know the benefit of 0-6 programs is the guarantee (under most circumstances) of being accepted into the school's PharmD program, but is it worth spending the cash for two years of pre-reqs?


High school stats: SAT: 680 M, 660 CR, 650 W
GPA: 3.9/4.0 (unweighted) - Rank: 3/401
At least 4 honors/AP courses each year - Total of 8 AP classes taken before graduation.
Do EC's matter? I've done a lot of community service work, but I haven't volunteered at a hospital or interned at a pharmacy yet.

Thank you in advance for any advice/personal experience(s) you could share with me.

-Pat

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[bacillus1]

I hope I am not posting in the wrong place. If I am, please excuse my newbie behavior.

My name is Pat. I'm currently entering my senior year of high school. Over the past 3 years, I've been juggling with a bunch of college majors, but I always seem to come back to pharmacy. After taking physics last year, I realized that engineering was not going to be my cup of tea. I love biology and chemistry, which had finally led to my decision to pursue a PharmD degree.

I really need some advice on what the best method is to pursue this degree. I'm going to list my basic high school stats at the end of this post because I understand that pharmacy is a competitive program, often with no guarantees. I live in New Jersey, so Rutgers would be my only option for in-state programs if I go with the 0-6 program. Is 0-6 worth it? Would it be better for me to go to another state college (Rowan or Stockton for example) or a private institution where I could receive a great deal of scholarship money for two years before applying for pharmacy school? How about out of state programs like Northeastern, Rhode Island, or USP?

I know the benefit of 0-6 programs is the guarantee (under most circumstances) of being accepted into the school's PharmD program, but is it worth spending the cash for two years of pre-reqs?


High school stats: SAT: 680 M, 660 CR, 650 W
GPA: 3.9/4.0 (unweighted) - Rank: 3/401
At least 4 honors/AP courses each year - Total of 8 AP classes taken before graduation.
Do EC's matter? I've done a lot of community service work, but I haven't volunteered at a hospital or interned at a pharmacy yet.

Thank you in advance for any advice/personal experience(s) you could share with me.

-Pat

IMO if you get into Rutgers, go for it. It's not that much to pay for the prereqs instate, and you'll get almost guaranteed acceptance.
I've heard of quite a few people that wish they went the 0-6 route since they couldn't get accepted after just 2 years of prereqs, and Rutgers is a really good program. As to USP, NEU, etc... that's your choice. I go to USP and it is expensive, though most everyone gets merit grants (7-9k/year). Better go to Rutgers.

 

[UNMorBUST]

Remember this is just my opinion.

Go to college first and test the waters of other fields before commiting yourself to one career path.

 

[pharm2015]

IMHO if you really feel pharmacy is the right choice for you, apply to the rutgers 0-6 program. When i was in high school i wish i knew that i wanted to do pharmacy so that i could have applied to rutgers pharmacy 0-6 program. Now i am finshing my two years of pre-req at rutgers newark and applying to rutgers pharmacy program this year and wishing for the best. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[nicolemsm]

Hi Pat,

I think your SAT scores will hurt you when applying to a 0 -6 due to the fact many applicants are usually over 2000 and into the clear 2100/2200s. Your gpa is great, but it leads me to assume your school is either a little lenient on grading or you're perhaps not a good standardized tester. I'd recommend either retaking them or taking the ACT just to have a better shot.

Also, as UNM has mentioned, although it seems as if you may like pharmacy if perhaps say you go to college and don't particularly enjoy it you'll have to petition out of your major(just food for thought). don't place all your eggs in one basket, you're way too young for that but hey, Rutgers is a great 0-6 but also very competitive. Best of luck.

 

[bacillus1]

I don't know about Rutgers, but you would probably get into USP/MCPHS/URI. I think you may have a shot at Rutgers as well, as your SAT scores aren't too bad. That, however, is up to the admissions people and your admittance there isn't as certain.

 

[oates151]

First of all, I want to thank you all for your insight. Your advice has already helped me tremendously. I do see that my options are really wide. A friend of mine told me to get a biochemistry BS degree and then move on to Pharm school afterwards because a BS in biochem would open more doors for me (he's an engineer and thinks that I should choose a career that involves more "moving up the foodchain work" rather than getting a job and staying put). I am going to apply for Rutger's 0-6 program along with URI and Northeastern. If it doesn't pan out, I may consider choosing something else for my undergraduate and then applying for pharmacy school after that.

I really do feel that Pharmacy would be an ideal career for me. I am a very community oriented person, so retail wouldn't bother me (even if it is monotonous and involves dealing with stressful individuals). I wouldn't mind maybe getting an MS in biochem afterwards and working for one of the pharmaceutical companies. If I specialize, that also opens up a few more doors to different career opportunities.

As for the SATs, I know they aren't pristine. I certainly wouldn't say my teachers have been light graders - I've worked hard for the grades I've earned. I'm taking the SATs once more in October to hopefully raise the scores up a bit. I'm hoping for a 700 on math and critical reading, but we'll see what happens.

Once again, thank you all for the input. You have certainly helped route me in a more defined direction!

-Pat