A bachelors in the future?

[Jahrizzone]

I Have been hearing word that a bachelors in the future will be in effect for most, if not, all pharm school reqs. Does anyone have any info or resources on this question? Feedback deeply appreciated.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[pharmd4me@510]

I Have been hearing word that a bachelors in the future will be in effect for most, if not, all pharm school reqs. Does anyone have any info or resources on this question? Feedback deeply appreciated.

I hope this is true. For california schools, as of August 2008 ,Touro University requires that all students obtain a bachelor's degree prior to matriculation. I think another California school that requires a Bachelors degree is USC, but I'm not positive. I think this is a good idea because it will give the profession of pharmacy more respect.

 

[PharmApp2008]

Ohio State requires it also

 

[omnione]

It's becoming more common as pharmacy involves more than just pill counting and therapy.

I think there's been a growing de facto BS/BA requirement due to the increased competition for pharmacy school admission. The more people apply relative to the number of pharmacy schools, the more people are rejected. Those people get more credits and degrees. Pharmacy school adcoms see that their pools have more BS/BA degree holders and favor them. After all, it's not too unfathomable to understand why a school would be more impressed with a BS holder versus a sophomore assuming that all other variables between them are equal. So, the shift toward degrees now has more to due with the degree needed to be competitive as opposed to schools believing that it's necessary in principle.

I don't think it's so much of an issue now, but it can be in five to ten years from now.

 

[inquirer89]

I have heard that too which is why I am trying my best to get in (hopefully for 09 matriculation). I have talked to pharm students who graduated this spring after 4 years. They have seen it get harder and harder to get in and the competition is fierce, especially over the past 5 years. It seems that the field is on the verge of a boom...I thought I was the only person going into pharmacy but now I know several applicants. I want to get my pharmD without having to complete an undergrad, so I'm trying to get in asap before it gets even harder and requires more out of an applicant.

 

[panzer]

One needs a good science background but a degree by itself wouldn't help much since it requires many irrelevant courses [maybe not in life but for pharmacy they are..]. I have talked to current pharmacy directors and many also consider this new "pharm.D" irrelevant but that is another issue..

PS I have seen it elsewhere too but for those students that are past the process, it is selfish for them to say such things. Maybe they don't want future competition?

It's becoming more common as pharmacy involves more than just pill counting and therapy.

If you don't like Pharm.D or want to go into pharmaceutical research then you should have tried for pharmacology. Though pharm d's can end up in pharm companies but it still is geared towards hospital / retain chain pharmacists...

 

[whitedc5]

A high percentage (>90%) of students from all pharmacy schools have obtained a bachelor's degree. Although it is not a requirement, it seems as if the schools prefer a student with a bachelor' and I see it becoming a requirement in the future.

 

[eric4321]

At the UF open house, the Dean told us that UF always gives 2 years advance notice of any change in admission requirements, AND that there was no plan to require a BS/BA degree for UF CoP any time soon. The same open house they told us that fall 2008 was the last class that's allowed to use Business Calculus MAC2233, which i took; starting next year they only allow MAC2311 Analytical Calculus.

Since then there is still nothing in the UF admission pdf about needing a bachelor's in future years. The 2009 requirements come out next month, so MAYBE it will say a bachelor's is required starting in 2011. I doubt it. Right now at UF it's a tie-breaker - like having more job experience or a really nice personal statement.

As they say, at other colleges it might be important or even mandatory.

 

[omnione]

One needs a good science background but a degree by itself wouldn't help much since it requires many irrelevant courses [maybe not in life but for pharmacy they are..]. I have talked to current pharmacy directors and many also consider this new "pharm.D" irrelevant but that is another issue..

PS I have seen it elsewhere too but for those students that are past the process, it is selfish for them to say such things. Maybe they don't want future competition?



If you don't like Pharm.D or want to go into pharmaceutical research then you should have tried for pharmacology. Though pharm d's can end up in pharm companies but it still is geared towards hospital / retain chain pharmacists...

I'm not sure why you think that I might not like the current PharmD degree.

 

[twester]

A high percentage (>90%) of students from all pharmacy schools have obtained a bachelor's degree. Although it is not a requirement, it seems as if the schools prefer a student with a bachelor' and I see it becoming a requirement in the future.

Really? more than 90%? What's the source of that statistic? According to the AACP, in 2007, 41% of graduating pharmacy students had a degree when they entered pharmacy school (any degree from Associates to PhD) and 39% had a bachelor's specifically. I could not find data beyond the 2003 entering class.

I think that percentage has probably increased somewhat especially since the number of applicants to pharmacy schools has about doubled in the last three years while the number of schools hasn't increased that much.

My school has added a semester of biochem and an extra semester of A&P for the 2009 incoming class, so our trend is toward more educational requirements. But a study done in Texas did not show a correlation between attainment of a BS and passing the NAPLEX, so I don't think adcoms are going to start seeing value in requiring a BS for applicants. (McCall et al Am J Pharm Educ. 2007 Feb 15;71(1):5).

It's a cold, gray, rainy Memorial Day in Denver...obviously.

 

[panzer]

I'm not sure why you think that I might not like the current PharmD degree.

Maybe I misunderstood but it seems you are wanting more from Pharm D degree than what it is designed for?

I don't think anyone here said pharmacists count pill. I think that perception is also going away in general as pharmacies become more common. but it is not some super duper research degree either which is what pharmacology is for and it does require a bachelor to get into that...

 

[omnione]

Maybe I misunderstood but it seems you are wanting more from Pharm D degree than what it is designed for?

I don't think anyone here said pharmacists count pill. I think that perception is also going away in general as pharmacies become more common. but it is not some super duper research degree either which is what pharmacology is for and it does require a bachelor to get into that...

I didn't really discuss my personal opinion about whether or not a bachelors should be required as part of an argument about a value. I was merely offering a possible theory or explanation to why there have been more accepted applicants that enter pharmacy school with degrees as part of an answer that getting closer to a degree will become more necessary in the future. The whole gist of that post was that the percentage of degree holders in pharmacy schools has increased due to greater competition between applicants with more credentials. I was just saying that an adcom may prefer an applicant with more credentials like a BS over a 2-year applicant given equality in the other parts of the application due to the increased complexity and variety of the PharmD degree.

I never made an assertion that someone here said that PharmD = just pill counting and I never said that the PharmD degree should be some "super duper" research degree (though there is always the academic route for pharmacists, but I digress).

 

[Twins fan]

A high percentage (>90%) of students from all pharmacy schools have obtained a bachelor's degree. Although it is not a requirement, it seems as if the schools prefer a student with a bachelor' and I see it becoming a requirement in the future.

I call B.S. (ha...that's a pun!)

I too would like to see the source of this stat (I'm pretty sure the source was yourself). I don't deny that having a B.S. or even B.A. definitely helps an applicant. It certainly helped me. I just don't believe that over 90% of all pharmacy students have one. Even the University of MN, ranked #3 in the latest US News and World Report pharm school rankings, has averaged ~75% of incoming students holding bachelor degrees over the past three years...it was lower than that in previous years. I'm not completely sure what my school's percentage is, but I can pretty much guarantee you it's not anywhere near 90% as a good chunk of the 65 admitted students enter via RHOP (Rural Health Opportunities Program) after taking only 2 years of undergrad classes. None of the many other pharm schools I applied to or researched had advertised a percentage of over 90% of bachelor holders, or even near 90% (over 80%) for that matter.