Advice -- Where to go from here?

[sheep10]

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So, i'm in a situation where i'm not sure which would be more beneficial...

I'm currently apart of an honors program within my undergrad university and i've been planning on dropping out of the honors program and just continue within the 'regular' university. The honors program requires a few extra specific 'intensive' classes and a written thesis portion in order to graduate within the honors setting. I can still complete all of these extra requirements within the next 2 years and still graduate with my intended major, minor, and pre-reqs for pharmacy school. However, these extra classes could potentially lower my GPA with the extra workload.

A friend of mine told me that in order to stand out from all the other applicants for pharmacy school, especially in the coming years when i'll be applying, I should stay within the honors college and battle my way through it. What do you guys think?

I've got a 3.8 GPA right now, pharmacy volunteer experience at my university's pharmacy, planning on some hospital volunteer service over the summer, and I currently have a part-time job on the side. I'm going to be graduating with a biology major and business minor. Do you think this will be enough to have pretty good chances at pharmacy school and still stand out, or do you think it's worth a potential drop in GPA to graduate with honors and have written a ~50 page research-driven thesis paper?

I'm hoping to stay within state to save on tuition and attend Oregon State's pharmacy program. Thanks for all your input guys! 🙂

 

[docss26]

So, i'm in a situation where i'm not sure which would be more beneficial...

I'm currently apart of an honors program within my undergrad university and i've been planning on dropping out of the honors program and just continue within the 'regular' university. The honors program requires a few extra specific 'intensive' classes and a written thesis portion in order to graduate within the honors setting. I can still complete all of these extra requirements within the next 2 years and still graduate with my intended major, minor, and pre-reqs for pharmacy school. However, these extra classes could potentially lower my GPA with the extra workload.

A friend of mine told me that in order to stand out from all the other applicants for pharmacy school, especially in the coming years when i'll be applying, I should stay within the honors college and battle my way through it. What do you guys think?

I've got a 3.8 GPA right now, pharmacy volunteer experience at my university's pharmacy, planning on some hospital volunteer service over the summer, and I currently have a part-time job on the side. I'm going to be graduating with a biology major and business minor. Do you think this will be enough to have pretty good chances at pharmacy school and still stand out, or do you think it's worth a potential drop in GPA to graduate with honors and have written a ~50 page research-driven thesis paper?

I'm hoping to stay within state to save on tuition and attend Oregon State's pharmacy program. Thanks for all your input guys! 🙂

If you GPA stays as high as it is and you do well on your PCAT it won't matter if you graduate within this honors program. I know plenty of people graduating without being in some sort of accelerated honors program. There are so many people applying without bachelors degrees. You will already have an advantage by having a bachelors degree. If you truly think those accelerated classes could hurt your GPA then I would suggest leaving the program. You don't need any extra unnecessary stress. Good luck!

 

[tm79602]

If you GPA stays as high as it is and you do well on your PCAT it won't matter if you graduate within this honors program. I know plenty of people graduating without being in some sort of accelerated honors program. There are so many people applying without bachelors degrees. You will already have an advantage by having a bachelors degree. If you truly think those accelerated classes could hurt your GPA then I would suggest leaving the program. You don't need any extra unnecessary stress. Good luck!

I definitely agree with docss-you do not need unnecessary stress right now. Focus on your prereqs and your bachelors degree (if you are planning to get one), study for the PCAT (if you haven't taken it), volunteer work, and keeping your GPA where it is at. A bachelors degree does look better on an application, but unless you are applying to California schools it is not required. You seem like a great student, so breathe and keep your head up!!!

 

[SCP08]

So, i'm in a situation where i'm not sure which would be more beneficial...

I'm currently apart of an honors program within my undergrad university and i've been planning on dropping out of the honors program and just continue within the 'regular' university. The honors program requires a few extra specific 'intensive' classes and a written thesis portion in order to graduate within the honors setting. I can still complete all of these extra requirements within the next 2 years and still graduate with my intended major, minor, and pre-reqs for pharmacy school. However, these extra classes could potentially lower my GPA with the extra workload.

A friend of mine told me that in order to stand out from all the other applicants for pharmacy school, especially in the coming years when i'll be applying, I should stay within the honors college and battle my way through it. What do you guys think?

I've got a 3.8 GPA right now, pharmacy volunteer experience at my university's pharmacy, planning on some hospital volunteer service over the summer, and I currently have a part-time job on the side. I'm going to be graduating with a biology major and business minor. Do you think this will be enough to have pretty good chances at pharmacy school and still stand out, or do you think it's worth a potential drop in GPA to graduate with honors and have written a ~50 page research-driven thesis paper?

I'm hoping to stay within state to save on tuition and attend Oregon State's pharmacy program. Thanks for all your input guys! 🙂

Kind of unrelated to your question, but are you by any chance at the Clark Honors College at the U of O? I'm at UO too, for a post-bacc year of Anatomy and Physiology! Message me if you have any specific questions about classes or about OSU admission (I've been admitted), if you'd like.

To answer your question, though: I was in your position as an undergrad. Dropping the honors program I was in gave me much more freedom in terms of Gen. Ed. course selection, and was a huge stress reliever--and has absolutely NOT limited me in terms of pharmacy school admissions. If you're not enjoying the program, I wouldn't worry about dropping it; just make sure to keep your grades strong, and to continue your involvement in community service and extracurriculars.