Do I Stand A Chance?

[throwaway914]

A thread title as old as the pre-pharmacy forum.

I had an incredibly rough start in college that resulted in an abysmal GPA. I genuinely wish I could say I was having fun and slacking off. What's done is done. About six years later I picked up coursework again, this time as a pre-pharmacy student. At my current school, which has not factored in my past grades, I have a 3.93, and a considerable amount of my science coursework is included in this i.e. gen chem and organic chem.

But PharmCAS just calculated my cumulative and overall science and math GPAs, and unsurprisingly they are terrible. 2.79 overall, 2.37 science. (At the end of this semester my science GPA will be 2.6 and my overall GPA will be 2.86.) My concern is that these GPAs do not denote the upward trend in my most recent grades. Does anyone know of pharmacy schools that calculate their own pre-requisite only GPA or science GPA? It was my impression schools rely on PharmCAS GPAs only as to level the playing field for every applicant.

I was hoping my saving grace might be my PCAT (92 composite, 93 chem) and my research experience (as a biomedical research assistant), but I'm unsure these will even matter to adcoms after seeing my PharmCAS GPA. Does anyone know of any leniency pharmacy schools have granted in terms of their minimum GPA accepted? Or are these hard lines?

The last caveat is that I'm not in a great way financially and really can't afford to apply to many more schools-- so far I've applied to 3.

Does anyone have any advice for an applicant like me based on experience? Any information would be greatly appreciated!

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[Thestrugglez]

For minimum GPA accepted, they are usually hard lines. However, it doesn't hurt to call and ask if you are particularly interested in a school. If you do not automatically get eliminated because you don't meet the minimum GPA requirements, adcom should recognize the discrepancy between the old you and the new you.

I think you definitely stand a chance. Even though your GPA is bad, you've shown that you've matured over the years and your GPA, PCAT, and research experience are strong indicators. It's too late to get any experience, but you can definitely write an excellent personal statement and get some great LORs. You are correct that you should focus on how you've made huge improvements, rather than your weaknesses.

To improve your chances at an interview, the most important thing to do is apply wisely. Schools such as VCU, UGA, and Maryland are great choices since they care about PCAT as much as if not more than GPA. Pick schools where you did well in pre-reqs (Eg: I did terrible in Phys 2, so I avoided all schools that required a year of physics). This thread is an excellent resource that I used when I was applying. The OP was in a similar situation as you and compiled a great list to share with others.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/my-journey-motivation-for-applicants-with-low-gpas.976993/

Hope this helps. Feel free to message me if you have any questions and best of luck OP.

Source: Me: Cum GPA < 3.0, PCAT > 90, accepted into pharmacy school starting Fall 2015

 

[throwaway914]

For minimum GPA accepted, they are usually hard lines. However, it doesn't hurt to call and ask if you are particularly interested in a school. If you do not automatically get eliminated because you don't meet the minimum GPA requirements, adcom should recognize the discrepancy between the old you and the new you.

I think you definitely stand a chance. Even though your GPA is bad, you've shown that you've matured over the years and your GPA, PCAT, and research experience are strong indicators. It's too late to get any experience, but you can definitely write an excellent personal statement and get some great LORs. You are correct that you should focus on how you've made huge improvements, rather than your weaknesses.

To improve your chances at an interview, the most important thing to do is apply wisely. Schools such as VCU, UGA, and Maryland are great choices since they care about PCAT as much as if not more than GPA. Pick schools where you did well in pre-reqs (Eg: I did terrible in Phys 2, so I avoided all schools that required a year of physics). This thread is an excellent resource that I used when I was applying. The OP was in a similar situation as you and compiled a great list to share with others.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/my-journey-motivation-for-applicants-with-low-gpas.976993/

Hope this helps. Feel free to message me if you have any questions and best of luck OP.

Source: Me: Cum GPA < 3.0, PCAT > 90, accepted into pharmacy school starting Fall 2015

Thanks very much for the information and insightful response. That seems very helpful. I will definitely look into those schools and that thread.

 

[OldPhotography]

A thread title as old as the pre-pharmacy forum.

I had an incredibly rough start in college that resulted in an abysmal GPA. I genuinely wish I could say I was having fun and slacking off. What's done is done. About six years later I picked up coursework again, this time as a pre-pharmacy student. At my current school, which has not factored in my past grades, I have a 3.93, and a considerable amount of my science coursework is included in this i.e. gen chem and organic chem.

But PharmCAS just calculated my cumulative and overall science and math GPAs, and unsurprisingly they are terrible. 2.79 overall, 2.37 science. (At the end of this semester my science GPA will be 2.6 and my overall GPA will be 2.86.) My concern is that these GPAs do not denote the upward trend in my most recent grades. Does anyone know of pharmacy schools that calculate their own pre-requisite only GPA or science GPA? It was my impression schools rely on PharmCAS GPAs only as to level the playing field for every applicant.

I was hoping my saving grace might be my PCAT (92 composite, 93 chem) and my research experience (as a biomedical research assistant), but I'm unsure these will even matter to adcoms after seeing my PharmCAS GPA. Does anyone know of any leniency pharmacy schools have granted in terms of their minimum GPA accepted? Or are these hard lines?

The last caveat is that I'm not in a great way financially and really can't afford to apply to many more schools-- so far I've applied to 3.

Does anyone have any advice for an applicant like me based on experience? Any information would be greatly appreciated!

I think you'll be fine. I just got my acceptance letter and I had the same composite PCAT score as you. GPA is never a fair measurement of anything in my opinion, because 2 people could take the same class at different schools with a different difficulty. I think your PCAT score speaks for itself.

 

[throwaway914]

I think you'll be fine. I just got my acceptance letter and I had the same composite PCAT score as you. GPA is never a fair measurement of anything in my opinion, because 2 people could take the same class at different schools with a different difficulty. I think your PCAT score speaks for itself.

First off, congratulations! I agree that grades themselves are subjective and, for as many nuances as they encompass, GPAs are weighed far too heavily. But in my case, I think I personally messed up. I should have left school the first time far earlier than I did, rather than struggle in vain and consequently carry that poor academic record with me. Hopefully the PCAT can be considered a redeeming factor. Thanks for your input!

 

[Kelp103]

My GPA was a 2.9 and my PCAT 90+. I'm a current P1 and have all A's right now (admittedly first semester, but still I think undergrad grades do not tell the whole story as most people have NO idea what they want to do when they "grow up"). As long as you meet the minimum I'd say your chances are good especially with an upward trend and if the rest of your application is strong.
I know Texas Tech does grade replacement, but that's the only one I know of since I'm from Texas . Ironically, I got an interview at every school I applied to except Tech.

 

[Sugoi Travis]

2.9 GPA/91 composite. I submitted primary applications to 3 schools and did a secondary for 1 of the 3 and got in.

Just as a frame of reference, my composite score was nearly 30 pts higher than my class average. Just because your GPA sucks doesn't mean you don't know jack.