Considering PharmD but have DUI

[starb10]

I recently this year exercised poor judgement and recieved a DUI in 2010.

Can this situation affect my chances of studying PharmD and receiving my license

I have not began the program yet


thanks
Wandering Brian

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[tungsten87]

that's a tough one, especially since the arrest is so recent. it's different if it's something that occurred years in the past. some diploma mill might take you and milk you for your $$ but I think it'd be pretty difficult to obtain a license.

 

[starb10]

Thanks Tungsten87

 

[GamecockPharmD]

Look up the licensing requirements in your state or the states you want to practice in. If you do get into a program, your eligibility for rotations may be affected depending on background check requirements for hospitals, etc. The solution is to get the DUI expunged and you won't have to worry about it. If you are serious about pursuing a PharmD, do what you have to do to get your record clean. It all depends on the state you got the DUI in. Get a lawyer, go to AA classes, community service, whatever you have to do. There are ways to expedite getting it expunged. I have a friend who got a DUI in Virginia, but since Virginia is a commonwealth, their laws are different and it has been on his record for over 5 years. There is no way to expunge it, according to him at least. Just look at what your state requires and do what you have to do.

 

[J ROD]

Chances are slim and none with a DUI.....although I know some that have made it work....

 

[FruitFly]

How close are you to St. Louis, Missouri? I hear Anheuser-Busch's hiring.

 

[StriveForGlory]

I knew a student at Rutgers who was trying to transfer into the pharmacy program and he loved telling the story about a retail pharmacist he worked with that had to ride a bike to work because had gotten a DUI. I have no idea what state this was in (assuming NJ) and I think the DUI was obtained after the pharmacist was already licensed. I also have no reason to trust that this person was telling the whole truth.

I want to say that since alcohol is a legal substance there must be ways to work around a DUI. But as others have mentioned it is definitely something you want to take care of before attempting to get into pharmacy.

My apologies for being unable to provide more help.

 

[njac]

I know someone who got a DUI while in residency and is faculty at a college of pharmacy now.

I think it was a huge pain in the butt with paperwork and whatnot, but that person is practicing.

 

[starb10]

Thanks All!

 

[FruitFly]

I know someone who got a DUI while in residency and is faculty at a college of pharmacy now.

I think it was a huge pain in the butt with paperwork and whatnot, but that person is practicing.

Impaired physicians, pharmacists, nurses, professions, etc is something state boards deal with all the time, and actually have programs for treatment. It has unfortunately become an accepted fact of life that professionals will make mistakes. How they get up from those mistakes and own up to them is the true test.

 

[aboveliquidice]

that's a tough one, especially since the arrest is so recent. it's different if it's something that occurred years in the past. some diploma mill might take you and milk you for your $$ but I think it'd be pretty difficult to obtain a license.

DUI has zero implications for academic purposes. Saying a diploma mill may take you is ******ed.

The issue is licensing, where acts of poor judgement may prevent the OP from getting a license.

The state will likely require full disclosure and the specifics of the case. How the infraction was resolved is an important indicator for the board.

Direct the question to the board, incognito should you choose. They hold all the keys.

 

[tungsten87]

DUI has zero implications for academic purposes. Saying a diploma mill may take you is ******ed.

The issue is licensing, where acts of poor judgement may prevent the OP from getting a license.

The state will likely require full disclosure and the specifics of the case. How the infraction was resolved is an important indicator for the board.

Direct the question to the board, incognito should you choose. They hold all the keys.

so youre saying having a dui on record wont affect his admission to an academic institution??

 

[aboveliquidice]

so youre saying having a dui on record wont affect his admission to an academic institution??

Nope... I know RPhs with marijuana and DUI charges. The issue is licensing.

 

[tungsten87]

Nope... I know RPhs with marijuana and DUI charges. The issue is licensing.

ok... i still dont think it is "******ed" to think that a good amount of them are weeded out by the admissions process, especially at top institutions.

 

[pharm B]

Mikey should chime in on this since the OP is in WV. Looking at the WV intern application, it includes a statement saying

"I have not been convicted, fined or disciplined for drug addiction or violation of liquor or drug laws, nor am I presently charged with any such violations."

http://www.wvbop.com/ResisteredInternInitial.htm

 

[pharm B]

Silver lining: you've been charged with a misdemeanor and not a felony, right? Does the school or Board of Pharmacy say anything in regards to the severity of the crime?

 

[aboveliquidice]

ok... i still dont think it is "******ed" to think that a good amount of them are weeded out by the admissions process, especially at top institutions.

The idea that drug or marijuana use is less of a factor at any specific institution is patently false. You are not speaking from experience - you are speaking out of your *ss.

No one here can give the board's perspective. Speaking from the position of an ADCOM, a student's criminal status was never a component of the decision making process.

 

[owlegrad]

The idea that drug or marijuana use is less of a factor at any specific institution is patently false. You are not speaking from experience - you are speaking out of your *ss.

No one here can give the board's perspective. Speaking from the position of an ADCOM, a student's criminal status was never a component of the decision making process.

That's a suprise to me. Why do applications ask if it is not a factor?

 

[tungsten87]

The idea that drug or marijuana use is less of a factor at any specific institution is patently false. You are not speaking from experience - you are speaking out of your *ss.

No one here can give the board's perspective. Speaking from the position of an ADCOM, a student's criminal status was never a component of the decision making process.

according to an ADCOM at a local medical school applicants with misdemeanor/felony convictions are relegated to their own "special" group. this makes more of a difference at schools that get higher amounts of applications, which the more established schools USUALLY do, since they can afford to be more picky. i don't know how you can say that "a student's criminal status was never a component of the decision making process" when it clearly illustrates poor judgement and immaturity on the applicants part. it's simply not logical.

 

[aboveliquidice]

That's a suprise to me. Why do applications ask if it is not a factor?

For licensing... No point in accepting someone who cannot be licensed.

 

[owlegrad]

For licensing... No point in accepting someone who cannot be licensed.

So it does play a part then?

 

[aboveliquidice]

So it does play a part then?

No - there is no point total associated with your legal status. There isnt a place in the app i needed to check to verify such info.

If the board has no objections, the school won't. You could argue that the license issue is an academic one indirectly, but it would be a semantics argument.

 

[aboveliquidice]

Interesting article about disclosure of criminal history... It talks about some specific instances / situations and far reaching implications.

http://www.annaivey.com/iveyfiles/2...ng_criminal_issues_on_law_school_applications

 

[koercive]

Will take you longer to receive intern license. It's a not a good thing to have on your record, but it is possible.

(some classmates have gotten thru licensing - late with duis)

 

[rph3664]

I know someone whose son got a DUI while he was in physical therapy school, and there was a lot of rigamarole he had to go through, but he was able to get his professional license - and his driver's license was restored before the 6 months was over as well.

How bad was the DUI? Our state's limit is 0.08 and he was 0.11.

I also worked with a young man who, while getting a biology degree and considering pharmacy school because he knew he didn't have the grades for med school, spent a night in jail for throwing beer on a police officer. Since convicted felons cannot practice in our state, he was afraid he wouldn't get in, but the charges were reduced from assaulting a police officer to public intoxication and disorderly conduct. He was sentenced to a fine and community service, which he was able to do concurrently with his job when the judge found out he worked at a hospital, and his record would be expunged if he didn't get in trouble again in several years. The officer was at his sentencing, and told the judge that he felt this was a fair sentence because he was dealing with someone who had done something stupid and likely wouldn't again, and shook my co-worker's hand as they left the courtroom.

Instead, he did a 1-year cytotechnology program because he didn't want to spend 4 more years in school, and he now prepares cell specimens for the pathologist.

 

[297point1]

Speaking from the position of an ADCOM, a student's criminal status was never a component of the decision making process.

The laws in my state prevent us from considering criminal status in the admissions process. However, all accepted students undergo a criminal background check as a condition of enrollment. If the background check reveals anything that may prevent the student from being licensed as an intern, accepted for placement at an IPPE/APPE site, or licensed as a pharmacist in the future, we will withdraw our offer of admission.

It's as simple as that.

 

[aboveliquidice]

The laws in my state prevent us from considering criminal status in the admissions process. However, all accepted students undergo a criminal background check as a condition of enrollment. If the background check reveals anything that may prevent the student from being licensed as an intern, accepted for placement at an IPPE/APPE site, or licensed as a pharmacist in the future, we will withdraw our offer of admission.

It's as simple as that.

Yes it is... Thanks for the clarification.

 

[adma826]

The concern I would have is since you have to appeal to the state board to get licensed, or go through some special process since its on your record (if that is what you are going to have to do?) is that you are a retired senior non-comissioned officer according to your signature, which means you must be at least 37, and you got this DUI this past year. Of course bad choices can be made at any age but when a subjective opinion (if you have to go before a committee) is involved, someone might say "this guy made it all of the way through the Army to retirement as a SNCO and THEN he gets a DUI" - IDK it might be harder to convince them you were a stupid kid doing something stupid and you are long past it. I would definitely have a rock solid explanation of how things are different now if you are going to have to go before the board.

 

[tungsten87]

Yes it is... Thanks for the clarification.

I stand corrected. Shouldn't have generalized something I was told about a related profession to pharmacy.