Applying to Pharmacy School without PCAT

[GamePlayer11]

Hello, So I applied to several school, all of which do not require the PCAT because I haven't taken it, and its not offered until the summer. I applied to LECOM PA and FL, MCPHS, and Cali Northstate. I would like some input on if these are good enough stats or if I should start preparing for the PCAT and plan to apply the next cycle.

Bachelors in Biology from University of Michigan
Cumulative GPA: 2.96
Biology Club event coordinator for 2 years.
Over 400 hours volunteering at Karmanos Cancer Institute (over the course of 2 years 2013-2015)
Over 250 hours of volunteering at the Burgers School for the Autistic (over the course of 4 years 2007-2011)
Over 150 hours of volunteering at soup kitchens and salvation army (over the course of 4 years 2007-2011)
Over 500 hours of coaching JV basketball at local church (over the course of 7 years non paid volunteering)
Pharmacy Technician at CVS/Pharmacy for 18 months with 30 hours/week (working on becoming licensed pharmacy tech within the next month or so.)
Assistant manager at Gas Station for almost 5 years (June 2015 will be 5 years)
*All of these I can get proof from their respective supervisor.

also i had 3 really good letter of recommendations, 1 from my pharmacist and 2 science professors and i also have what i think a really good personal statement (been reviewed -7 drafts- by school advisor, peers, and english professor).

I am just really nervous about getting in, my application was completed and submitted on Feb 6, 2015, so I know time is against me.

Worst case scenario I take the PCAT in the summer and reapply for the next cycle, but my concern is my chances for this current cycle.

So i'm looking to see if theres anyone who has experience with this or heard someone getting in with similar stats. I do realize that everyone is different so any input would be great. I will be posting more information on what and when I start hearing back from school as they arrive.

Thanks,

-Nervous Student

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[Thestrugglez]

First off, this needs to be moved to pre-pharmacy forums.

I think it'll be rough. I had a similar GPA and a 95+ PCAT and applied to 9 schools. MCPHS was the ONLY one I didn't get an interview for. I know CNSU will probably be difficult as well since Cali schools are notoriously selective (since everybody wants that kind of weather). Not sure about LECOM.

Anyways plan for the worst, hope for the best. Refreshing some biology, chemistry, and math couldn't hurt you even if you do get in. Best of luck mate.

 

[GamePlayer11]

First off, this needs to be moved to pre-pharmacy forums.

I think it'll be rough. I had a similar GPA and a 95+ PCAT and applied to 9 schools. MCPHS was the ONLY one I didn't get an interview for. I know CNSU will probably be difficult as well since Cali schools are notoriously selective (since everybody wants that kind of weather). Not sure about LECOM.

Anyways plan for the worst, hope for the best. Refreshing some biology, chemistry, and math couldn't hurt you even if you do get in. Best of luck mate.

Thanks and answering, yeah I'm reaching out on a limb with this.
I had a feeling i may have done something wrong when posting this, is there a way i can move this to the pre-pharmacy forum?

 

[Thestrugglez]

Np mate, best of luck. Even if you don't get in this cycle, you can just retake a few courses, get a good PCAT score, and be a stronger applicant for cheaper in state schools.

 

[GamePlayer11]

As promised, Here is an update on what I've heard from so far.

Date of Finished PharmCas Application: 3/1/2015

Secondaries:
LECOM Pennsylvania Secondary Received and Submitted: 3/5/2015
LECOM Florida Secondary Received and Submitted: 3/5/2015
California NorthState Secondary Received: 3/6/2015
California NorthState Secondary Submitted: 3/11/2015 (Because it had 3 Essays)

Interviews:
LECOM Pennsylvania Selected for Interview: 3/11/2015
LECOM Florida Selected for Interview: 3/12/2015
California NorthState Selected for Interview: 3/12/2015

Interview Dates:
Date for LECOM Pennsylvania Interview: 3/24/2015
Date for LECOM Florida Interview: Not scheduled yet
Date for California NorthState Interview: 3/27/2015


For Boston I received an email on 3/11/2015 telling me that I will receive their decision through the mail on a rolling basis. I have also since applied to Chapman University in California and I have heard from them is that they have received my application.

So overall I have had quick turn around times, and I will keep this updated. If you have any question feel free to contact me and I will be more than willing to get back to you, I know this is a rather strenuous process.

In the mean time, I have to prepare for these interviews

 

[GamePlayer11]

I am back with an update.

I changed my interview dates a little bit so theres the new ones.

Interview Dates:
Date for LECOM Pennsylvania Interview: 3/24/2015
Date for LECOM Florida Interview: 4/24/2015
Date for California NorthState Interview: 4/17/2015


Yesterday I had my interview at LECOM - Penn and let me first say that it an amazing campus. So nice and small and theres everything around it. The interview itself was quick and very laid back. It started out with an introduction, then went on to a tour of the campus, then the interview itself, then a presentation about the curriculum and financial aid. I also had to take a written assessment at the end because I didn't take the PCAT.

Now what was asked during my interview is probably on your mind, well I'll fill you in. But first let me tell you that it was so relaxed, this was my first interview and I was happy of how smoothly it went. It was a group interview with about 5 people and 2 interviewers.

Now the questions:
1. Tell me about yourself and include why pharmacy, why LECOM, and tell me something about yourself not in your application.
2. What is the role of a pharmacist
3. Senario 1: A lady comes in and she has several prescriptions for her son, she cannot afford some of them, what would you do?
4. Senario 2: (there was another one here but I cannot remember it at the moment)
5. Senario 3: You're in class and you see someone cheating, what do you do?
6. Give me an example, a specific example of when you were doing group work and someone was not doing their part, what did you do?
7. This is an accelerated program what makes you think you can handle it.
8. Are there any questions you have for us?

And we basically went around and we jumped in and answered the questions. It was about an hour long, not bad at all.
The writing assignment was very easy, you just had to answer a simple question and thats all.

If you are worried about this interview I would breathe easy, cause its not as bad as you think.

I will update again once I hear back I will report back!
any questions just let me know!!

 

[GamePlayer11]

Alright I'm back with another update.

Interview Dates:
Date for MCPHS - Worcester Interview: 4/10/2015
Date for LECOM Florida Interview: 4/24/2015
Date for California NorthState Interview: 4/17/2015 (I withdrew from this school and therefore didn't attend the interview)
Date for Chapman University Interview: 5/1/2015

So since I last reported I received 2 more interviews, one in Massachusetts and the other one in California.

MCPHS
I attended the MCPHS interview and it was another great school. Much larger than LECOM-Penn but still very nice campus. Everything is up to date and there are a lot of opportunities around the school from what I was told and the near by hospitals.

The interview itself was very short and quick. The Dr. that gave me interview was very helpful.
The interview started out with her telling me about the school and the curriculum and what it entails. The house work and the load of material I would need to be able to handle. Then she went on to ask me a few very basic questions:
1. Why pharmacy?
2. Why MCPHS?
3. A senario and how I was able to solve it.
Thats about it. We talked a lot about the pharmacy field and how its evolving. It was very laid back and she was very attentive to everything I was saying, taking notes and writing everything out, and she did sneak in questions throughout the conversation and I caught on to answer them right away. That whole process was about an hour.
Then she took me on a tour of the school, there are 3 buildings 2 of which are connected.
After that I had to do a writing sample which was much tricker than LECOM-Penn's writing sample but still not a big deal.
And then I was done. My interview was at 9:30am and I walked in at about 9:15 and I was walking out the door by 11:20am.

I am humbled to say that today, 4/17/2015, a week after the interview I received my acceptance letter for MCPHS.


LECOM-Penn
I received a letter from them a week after my interview and I was placed on the alternate list and that they will contact me up to the first day of classes if a spot opens up. Since it is my fist choice I accepted to be on the list and now I will wait.


I will be back after my other 2 interviews with updates!!
Feel free to ask me any questions!

 

[GamePlayer11]

Another Update!

Interview Dates:
Date for MCPHS - Worcester Interview: 4/10/2015
Date for LECOM Florida Interview: 4/24/2015
Date for California NorthState Interview: 4/17/2015 (I withdrew from this school and therefore didn't attend the interview)
Date for Chapman University Interview: 5/1/2015 (Withdrew from this schools and therefore didn't attend the interview)

MCPHS

My update for this school is that I have received a scholarship of $7,000/year for this program, ($21,000 total) and I also paid my deposit to attend ($750 + $250 for dorming)

LECOM-Florida

My interview here was just like LECOM-Penn. It started out with a welcome and some information about the school, then we went on to the interviews. It was one on one and it was a blind interview, where she didn't know anything about me. The questions that were asked:

1. Tell me about yourself
2. Why Pharmacy?
3. Why LECOM-Florida?
4. Senario 1 and how to solve it
5. Senario 2 and how to solve it
6. Senario 3 and how to solve it
7. Tell me about a time you worked in a group and how did it turn out
8. Questions/Comments?

and that was about if for the interview.

After the interview we went back to the room and talked with current students, along with a tour of the campus, very similar to the other campus, then we went back to our room for a talk about financial aid, and that was about it. It was short and sweet and everyone was very friendly. The area is beautiful and theres a lot to do around the school.

My interview was on a Thursday and by the next Monday I was accepted. I also paid my deposit there ($500)

LECOM-Penn

Still on the alternate list, but my status on the portal has changed from "Alternate List" to "Under Review"


So theres my update on the schools I have went to. Yes I did pay both deposits but that was because I still wasn't sure which school I wanted to attend, I was hopping back and forth between the two schools and I only had 1 week to pay both deposits. As of right now I am planning on going to MCPHS-W.

I will be keeping this updated, possible 1 more update after this one with my final choice. If I get enough requests I may keep this update with paperwork and what I went through up until the first day of classes.

So that was my past few months experience with applying. From day 1 till now thats where I stand. In other words even if you apply really late, with not such great numbers, it can be done!

Any questions feel free to ask them here or shoot me a private message.

Be back soon with my final decision!

 

[vole]

Hi, so which school did u decided to attend. Can u share some experience about lecom and mcphs. Do u think is a hard or easy school. Since i don't wanna pay alot of loans and have a hard time in college. Thank you

 

[archer1992]

Another Update!

Interview Dates:
Date for MCPHS - Worcester Interview: 4/10/2015
Date for LECOM Florida Interview: 4/24/2015
Date for California NorthState Interview: 4/17/2015 (I withdrew from this school and therefore didn't attend the interview)
Date for Chapman University Interview: 5/1/2015 (Withdrew from this schools and therefore didn't attend the interview)

MCPHS

My update for this school is that I have received a scholarship of $7,000/year for this program, ($21,000 total) and I also paid my deposit to attend ($750 + $250 for dorming)

LECOM-Florida

My interview here was just like LECOM-Penn. It started out with a welcome and some information about the school, then we went on to the interviews. It was one on one and it was a blind interview, where she didn't know anything about me. The questions that were asked:

1. Tell me about yourself
2. Why Pharmacy?
3. Why LECOM-Florida?
4. Senario 1 and how to solve it
5. Senario 2 and how to solve it
6. Senario 3 and how to solve it
7. Tell me about a time you worked in a group and how did it turn out
8. Questions/Comments?

and that was about if for the interview.

After the interview we went back to the room and talked with current students, along with a tour of the campus, very similar to the other campus, then we went back to our room for a talk about financial aid, and that was about it. It was short and sweet and everyone was very friendly. The area is beautiful and theres a lot to do around the school.

My interview was on a Thursday and by the next Monday I was accepted. I also paid my deposit there ($500)

LECOM-Penn

Still on the alternate list, but my status on the portal has changed from "Alternate List" to "Under Review"


So theres my update on the schools I have went to. Yes I did pay both deposits but that was because I still wasn't sure which school I wanted to attend, I was hopping back and forth between the two schools and I only had 1 week to pay both deposits. As of right now I am planning on going to MCPHS-W.

I will be keeping this updated, possible 1 more update after this one with my final choice. If I get enough requests I may keep this update with paperwork and what I went through up until the first day of classes.

So that was my past few months experience with applying. From day 1 till now thats where I stand. In other words even if you apply really late, with not such great numbers, it can be done!

Any questions feel free to ask them here or shoot me a private message.

Be back soon with my final decision!

Hey did you hear anything from LECOM-Pennsylvania? I got placed on the alternate list too so I dont know what the chances are of getting in after this.

 

[GamePlayer11]

Hey did you hear anything from LECOM-Pennsylvania? I got placed on the alternate list too so I dont know what the chances are of getting in after this.

I stopped checking it and never looked back into. I just logged on and checked it and it still says alternate list! I don't know what's the next step but I'm not sure as far as the chances after that.