any pharmacy grads goin to med sch?

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Medical school applications are way more than a gpa, such as MCAT scores, gpa, extracurriculars, research, community service, hospital time, essay, awards and honors, student organizations, etc. It would be impossible to simply say that ____ gpa is needed. There are plenty of 4.0 students who don't get into medical school, as there are always students with relatively low gpas who manage to get in. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask, but it would be impossible to give you an accurate answer to your question.

Jason
 
is there a stigma attached to being a pharmacist ?
 
Not at all, assuming you finish pharmacy school. I'd also be quick to point out that you feel pharmacy would prepare you better for medical school than say majoring in microbiology. Medical schools are always looking for a diverse group. Having tons of healthcare experience is a major plus for you.
 
ok here is the deal dude , i did finish pharmacy the 5 year bs with a 2.6 im in a post -bs PharmD program just to get my grades up but its not workin well for me i mean in my bio , orgo , chem , physics i didnt get less than a B plus but the latter p-sch my grades blew esp med chem but in pathophys i did well..... i dont know i feel if i majored in bio id be in med sch .....now im considering of dropping out of PharmD (i always have my rph license to fall back on) and heading to that med sch in england called St Christopher or Spartan Med sch in st lucia i want to be a doctor SO BAD i regret doin pharmacy i wish i did bio and went to med sch ........pharmacy is a great profession but i did it as a back up and it back -fired what can i do with my 2.6 i might as well go to some sucky carribean sch right?
 
Like I said, there is a ton more than just a GPA med schools look at. You have to take the MCAT which may make or break your app. You may have research experience, clinical experience, community service experience, etc. that may significantly strengthen your app. I can't comment on english medical schools, but I will also recommend you consider applying to DO schools. They have (at least the averages of all MD v. DO schools) lower to a good bid lower admission standards than MD schools. I would go to a DO school WAY before I ever considered going to a caribean MD school. Bear in mind that in this country DOs have the same standing as MDs and can sometimes get MD residencies, in addition to the DO residencies available. Foreign MDs generally have a really tough time securing a decent residency, especially in something remotely competitive.

Take the MCAT, at least consider the DO option, and dont give up.
 
pharmd2b,

man, if you can't handle Pharm school...I don't think you could handle medical school either. It's just logical since medical is something different from pharm school... I am not trying to offend anyone here pursuing pharmacy career nor trying to degrace pharmacy school...however , fact is the fact...can't walk? How would you run?
 
I've heard some disagreement with pharmacy as a route to medicine. Try PM'ing "Pilot" and another guy in the DO forum about their experiences getting into med school. At least I know that it is impossible to go to U of A for MD training if you have any degree in pharmacy. The first question out of their mouth is "You're a professional. Why do you need this?" It's a question I've had to answer for law/grad school interviews. Think intelligently about that question.
 
umm , asdasd at first i think you might be right but then again when i took my MCats somethings tells me i can handle medical sch and when i read posts like yours it makes more determined to do it ...............dont worry your not "degracing "
 
PharmD2b,

We have at least one pharmacist that I know of in my class, so don't be discouraged. Do what you have to to be a physician if that's what you want. Also, there are quite a few high quality DO schools (as has been mentioned before) that provide an excellent education (I have often said that PCOM was my first choice and I got rejected). I think that your prior pharmacy experience can only enhance your application. I do want to say however, that in my opinion, the MCAT is a poor indicator of whether or not you can handle medical school.
 
Yeah, pharmd2b, don't let some of the posters here discourage you.
 
I had a 15 year pharmacy career before I started medical school last year. I had wanted to be a physician since age 9, so pharmacy, even though I generally liked it, was a second choice for me. Some schools are more open to accepting pharmacists (esp DO schools), and I believe most schools will seriously consider recent graduates of pharmacy who have great gpa, great MCAT, and the rest that's needed for a good application, BUT you need a pretty good reason for changing professions.

My story, in a nutshell, is that I always wanted to be a physician, got sidetracked at college ( 2 or 3 "bad" grades in pre-med), gave up on medicine, went into pharmacy, had such an awesome clinical experience in pharmacy that I could not go on hiding my suppressed desires to be a physician. They just kept bubbling up and I knew I had to act on my true desires, after many fights/heated discussions with God. Ironically, listening to Madonna sing "I'll remember" as I watched the movie "With Honors" in 1994 did me in. Long story short, by the grace of God, I made it to medical school 8 years later.

All that to say, find out your passion , (pharmacy, medicine, whatever), and pursue it --- let God smooth the path and help you over the obstacles. Never give up. Never. Never. Never.
 
why go for MD when you can become a sceintific doctor(pharmd/phd) easily and shorter time. If you have earned your PharmD and want to become an academic elite, go for phd(3-5yrs depending on how lazy you are). Certainly, a scientific doctor is better than an MD doctor. Plus, no residency required for PHD doctor and less stressful. Life is all about fun and liesure. just my opinion. If MD is something that you really want then go for it.
 
>why go for MD when you can become a sceintific doctor(pharmd/phd) easily and shorter time. If you have earned your PharmD and want to become an academic elite, go for phd(3-5yrs depending on how lazy you are). Certainly, a scientific doctor is better than an MD doctor. Plus, no residency required for PHD doctor and less stressful. Life is all about fun and liesure. just my opinion. If MD is something that you really want then go for it.

I try to do my best to offer good advice and encourage everyone here, but I have to say that may have been the worst post I have read in a long time with statements such as "Certainly, a scientific doctor is better than an MD doctor."

Wow, I got a good laugh out of that post.
Jason
 
Originally posted by Heyyyyy
Plus, no residency required for PHD doctor and less stressful.
Click to expand...

Ever heard of a post-doctoral fellowship? Yeah, it's pretty much the academic equivalent of a DO/MD's residency, if such an equivalent exists. 2 or 3 years of hell for almost no pay. I'm not going to touch the rest of your post with a 10 foot pole. Hopefully you'll learn a little more about these professions before you dive into ANY of them. I really don't think that I'd like to hear my doctor/pharmacist/etc say "Life is all about fun and liesure [sic]".
 
well it's noble and everything to dedicate ur life to medicine or but please there is a life outside of work and if u feel u can do that than I give you mad props, but for the rest of us the residency isn't worth the time, money, or sweat
 
Originally posted by rutpharm
well it's noble and everything to dedicate ur life to medicine or but please there is a life outside of work and if u feel u can do that than I give you mad props, but for the rest of us the residency isn't worth the time, money, or sweat
Click to expand...

I have a feeling many of the pharmacists here will also be doing residencies. It's an incorrect assumption to think all physicians work all the time or that they have no life outside of work. Hell, I plan to retire at 50-55 and spend the rest of my life on vacation.
 
LSUMED2006
You really shock me. How come you ONLY post in this forum if you are a second year medical student. I think you are regretting the decision you made so you come to this forum to ease your mind. Sure, your opinions on this forum are helpful at certain times but it would make more sense if you mingle more with your MD crowd on this website. Keep dreaming that you will retire by the age 55. Your goal by the age of 55 should be paying off your student loans in full and taking more yoga classes to eliminate stress.

Jdpharmd
Fellowship is very different from a residency. Residency you work like 70-100hrs/week whereby you ****, sleep and eat at the hospital. Reminds me of the Slave camps.

This is me
I like life and want to enjoy life(fun and Leisure). PharmD will provide me that unlike MD. If you find enjoyment by being away from your family, working crazy hours and stressing yourself to save a person's life then that is you and your method of enjoyment. I am not arguing that. I am merely stating my own opinion. I am also aware of the fact that only few md specialities provide time for family and enjoyment. These few md specialities are very competitive!!! *******There is no point to life if you don't enjoy it and have time for loved ones*******. My own father is a doctor and so i have seen it all my life.

Academics
Highschool > technical training schools > associates degree > bachelors > masters > md/dmd/pharmd>dvm>dpm>od > PHD.

PHD doctor(scientific doctor if you emphasize an area in the sciences/research) is way better than MD doctor. Additionally, it is more respected amongst in the academic community. This is a fact and all of you should know this if you are into academics.
 
Fellowship is very different from a residency. Residency you work like 70-100hrs/week whereby you ****, sleep and eat at the hospital. Reminds me of the Slave camps.
Click to expand...

Not to say that I know a lot about residencies, but perhaps you either don't know much about post-docs...or never worked in a lab where actual research takes place.
 
Originally posted by Heyyyyy
why go for MD when you can become a sceintific doctor(pharmd/phd) easily and shorter time.
Click to expand...
Uh... maybe they just don't want to be PhD's? I rather like research, but some people find it mind-numbingly dull.
 
Reminds me of the Slave camps.
Click to expand...

...and you have been in a slave camp.....when?
It's not a matter of what is better or what is not, It is a matter of personal preference as Modnar has stated.

Now my question for you is --> What are your reasons for stating that a PhD (or a "scientific doctor") is WAY better than an MD. You've given a statement now let's hear your reasoning.
 
LSUMED2006
You really shock me. How come you ONLY post in this forum if you are a second year medical student. I think you are regretting the decision you made so you come to this forum to ease your mind. Sure, your opinions on this forum are helpful at certain times but it would make more sense if you mingle more with your MD crowd on this website.
Click to expand...

C'mon Heyy. Let's keep it moderately civil here.

Can't say if a pharmd/phd or pharmd/md is better, but they certainly present radically different options and commitments and I can see many reasons why one would chose one over the other. If these guys feel like medicine is a better fit, then they gotta go for it. Regrets suck really bad.
 
Originally posted by Heyyyyy
LSUMED2006
You really shock me. How come you ONLY post in this forum if you are a second year medical student. I think you are regretting the decision you made so you come to this forum to ease your mind. Sure, your opinions on this forum are helpful at certain times but it would make more sense if you mingle more with your MD crowd on this website. Keep dreaming that you will retire by the age 55. Your goal by the age of 55 should be paying off your student loans in full and taking more yoga classes to eliminate stress.
Click to expand...
I'm fast learning to love your posts even more than owl myste's. There is absolutely no regret in my decision to go to medical school. I certainly will retire by 50-55. Quite honestly, I won't be satisfied making anything less than 300k/yr. Couple that with the fact that I will have WAY less debt than many of the people here (less than 100K by the time I graduate), I don't think it too hard to fulfill my goal. I have never mentioned this yet here, but for you I think it appropriate. Oh, don't worry about the long hours, there are still plenty of high paying fields with literally months of vacation each year!

Why shouldn't I post here again? Technically, I have far more experience with the pharmD than the majority of the posters here. I love how you state that I should mingle with my "MD crowd." LOL, I love the segregationist attitude. I thought we were a healthcare team. I mean how dare the O lineman mingle with the D lineman... I'm wondering why you seem to have such animosity towards me. I'm assuming you aren't a troll; perhaps you are regretting your decisions? Maybe, maybe not. You seem to have a degree of anger/jealousy towards MDs. I don't really know why (other than your dad not being around enough), but I'm sure we all notice it a little and could each think of a couple of possible reasons.

But for now, I remain Jason the college dropout. Cheers!
 
LSUMED. I did not start this "cat fight" but you did.

"I certainly will retire by 50-55. Quite honestly, I won't be satisfied making anything less than 300k/yr. Couple that with the fact that I will have WAY less debt than many of the people here (less than 100K by the time I graduate), I don't think it too hard to fulfill my goal. I have never mentioned this yet here, but for you I think it appropriate. Oh, don't worry about the long hours, there are still plenty of high paying fields with literally months of vacation each year!"

Honestly, you are ignorant, buddy. If any real doctor (age 50 & above) reads the above quote, he/she will have the best laugh of their lifetime. Keep fooling your mind till reality hits because you don't know what you are getting yourself into. It will be just a matter of time before switch to OD and then DVM. How old are you? 30+?
I have nothing against MDs. A simple defensive statement on my part towards YOU only, makes me an anti-MD??? I wish the best of luck to your patients if you happen to succeed at all with this attitude and ignorance.
 
Originally posted by Heyyyyy
It will be just a matter of time before switch to OD and then DVM.
Click to expand...

I don't get it. Why would an MD switch to OD? Then to a vet? Makes no sense at all, much like the rest of your post. Why would an ophthalmologist (MD) switch to an optometrist (OD) when his/her medical license alone is enough to qualify him/her as an optometrist?
🙄
 
Jdpharmd, it is not supposed make sense like you want it to. He switched from pharmd to md. It is very possible that he might switch to od, podiatric or whatever. I am just getting back at him for his idiotic posts(2). why the hell are you guys defending this guy? read his posts to me and you can figure it out yourself.

"Why would an ophthalmologist (MD) switch to an optometrist (OD) when his/her medical license alone is enough to qualify him/her as an optometrist?"
what the hell are you talking about??? That is very unintelligent. Optometry is a profession of its own. And, MDs cannot do the tasks of optometrist even though some aspects are similar.



Anyway, i had enough of this ****ED UP thread. time to close or move on !
 
Originally posted by Heyyyyy

Honestly, you are ignorant, buddy. If any real doctor (age 50 & above) reads the above quote, he/she will have the best laugh of their lifetime. Keep fooling your mind till reality hits because you don't know what you are getting yourself into. It will be just a matter of time before switch to OD and then DVM. How old are you? 30+?
I have nothing against MDs. A simple defensive statement on my part towards YOU only, makes me an anti-MD??? I wish the best of luck to your patients if you happen to succeed at all with this attitude and ignorance.

AND


Jdpharmd, it is not supposed make sense like you want it to. He switched from pharmd to md. It is very possible that he might switch to od, podiatric or whatever. I am just getting back at him for his idiotic posts(2). why the hell are you guys defending this guy? read his posts to me and you can figure it out yourself.


Anyway, i had enough of this ****ED UP thread. time to close or move on !
Click to expand...

I couldn't stop laughing when I read these posts. Really, thanks...these are funny as hell. My career goals are NOT out of left field. I will graduate, go into an extremely well paying field dealing with a subject I absolutely LOVE that offers a wonderful lifestyle. I will have comparatively little debt when I graduate as well. I fail to see how any "real" doctor would laugh at my plans. Quite honestly, I don't see how, after 20-25 years of practicing (which I will have done by the time I'm 50-55ish), I would NOT be able to retire. I had the same plans when I considered practicing pharmacy; quite honestly, I think almost everyone here could invest enough money while making 90k+ to retire in 25 years...Don't worry, I am doing quite well in school, so I remain competitive as far as getting into my field of choice (anesthesiology with some pain managment)!

I got to hand it to you, your "insight" about me going to switch to optometry and then DVM is quite humorous! Since you asked, I will tell you my age....drumrole...I turned 23 just over a month ago. I planned on finishing pharmacy school and evaluating my options then, but after 4 total years of school (2 prepharm +2 pharmacy) and after having worked in a pharmacy for nearly 2 years, I decided that finishing pharmacy school, while it would have provided me with some wonderful additional training, would have cost me a significant amount as far as career earnings go. So, I took the MCAT, dotted my i's and crossed my t's, and applied to med school, even landing myself a scholarship in the process.

I think what Jd was saying about opthalmologists is that their training entails basically everything that an ODs does (plus much, much more), not that opthos are actual licensed ODs. However, almost every optho does NOT do many of the things ODs do simply because it would result in a huge pay cut to be prescribing glasses all day and so on.

Again, thanks for the laugh...I haven't had so much fun since...well since I just drove my shiny brand new yellow 2003 50th aniversary corvette I just bought myself with pink fuzzy dice in the mirror to the store to get some caffeine this morning. Funny story, I went into this uber popular restraunt here in town friday night. When I come out, there was, no lie, lipstick on my car door where some chick had actually kissed the car...lol...

Don't quit posting, I'm realling enjoying this!
Jason
 
This is lame. Stop fighting alrieady.

The rule is attack the f'in ARGUMENT NOT THE ARGUER
 
Triangulation,

Oh, shut up and be a "scientific doctor." (I hope my sarcasm is noted) 😉 Seriously, I wish you hadn't jumped in so soon, I find these posts hillarious. I stand by my assertion that Heyyy's encouraging someone to become a "scientific doctor" (pharmD/phD) when the poster asked about becoming an MD, as well as stating that "Certainly, a scientific doctor is better than an MD doctor" is silly at best and not a very well thought out post. The personal attacks then came from heyyy, as he stated that I am obviously regret ridden and should be segregated from here as well as that my carreer goals are laughable dreams. Heyyy's arguments simply become even more ridiculous from there.

Heyyy, since you love making wild statements, insulting people, and apparently leaving without clarifying yourself, I'll repost Monkeyman's post in case you missed it. I would LOVE to hear your reply:

...and you have been in a slave camp.....when?
It's not a matter of what is better or what is not, It is a matter of personal preference as Modnar has stated.

Now my question for you is --> What are your reasons for stating that a PhD (or a "scientific doctor") is WAY better than an MD. You've given a statement now let's hear your reasoning.
Click to expand...


I don't know how much ya'll (southern word) browse the MD/DO boards, but in the past months owl myste had some of the funniest posts EVER. She has switched her career goals more times than I can count and has gone from such extremes as being an MD to OD to PharmD to something like an lpn. Unfortunately, she deleted most of them...for shame. I'm gonna go drive my car now.

You can always tell when I have a test looming over me b/c I can't stay off these message boards...
 
To whomever this may concern, who or where is the board moderator? I certainly must echo Triangulation for a civil board here. I do not want this to become a gunners' board.

I emphatically disagree with LSUMED2006 statement that whoever that poor sap's virulent career change through a year "had some of the funniest posts EVER." This is what these boards are for, a sounding board for those of us who really don't know what to do with their short lives and do not want to waste the time failing out of something to realize that this wasn't fo them. If it turned out that LPN was the thing that s/he was qualified for, more power to them.

To all of us, we are or will be professionals, act like it. You will encounter many jerks and imbeciles. FOr pharmacy, That's for whom you reserve the 0100 med crank calls.
 
Originally posted by lord999
To whomever this may concern, who or where is the board moderator? I certainly must echo Triangulation for a civil board here. I do not want this to become a gunners' board.

I emphatically disagree with LSUMED2006 statement that whoever that poor sap's virulent career change through a year "had some of the funniest posts EVER." This is what these boards are for, a sounding board for those of us who really don't know what to do with their short lives and do not want to waste the time failing out of something to realize that this wasn't fo them. If it turned out that LPN was the thing that s/he was qualified for, more power to them.

To all of us, we are or will be professionals, act like it. You will encounter many jerks and imbeciles. FOr pharmacy, That's for whom you reserve the 0100 med crank calls.
Click to expand...

I will say only this to lord999, the "poor sap" who went through so many career changes was 19 year old HIGH school senior. She inundated every message board here with posts such as "I want to be a doctor, please tell me the pros and cons of EVERY profession" or "I think animal testing is wrong when we can just grow artificial organs in test tubes and use them for human transplants." Owl myste had many, many hillarious posts and stated that she was going to pursue many, many, many different fields and made many, many posts that were just absurd or asked a question that could be answered by google.com. (Keep in mind that she is 19 and in high school and was clogging up message boards meant for MDs, DOs, ODs, DPs, etc.). Oh, she even once posted a picture of a fungus on her foot for diagnosis. I stand by my statement that Owl's were indeed "some of the funniest posts EVER." She was not some poor chap who couldn't catch a break in life. She was high school student doing her best to piss off doctors. Please, do a search; if you still disagree with me we can talk. If you haven't done a search, or she deleted most of her gems, then you missed out.
C'mon give me a little credit here,
Jason
 
Originally posted by Heyyyyy
"Why would an ophthalmologist (MD) switch to an optometrist (OD) when his/her medical license alone is enough to qualify him/her as an optometrist?"
what the hell are you talking about??? That is very unintelligent. Optometry is a profession of its own. And, MDs cannot do the tasks of optometrist even though some aspects are similar.
Click to expand...

Sure they can. They can and they do. Literally, a medical license, at least in the state of Michigan, is enough to allow an MD (ophthalmologist) to work as an OD (optometrist). I know an MD who works as an ophthalmologist on some days and as an optometrist others.
 
Someone asked where the moderator for this forum is? I heard that there was a moderator for the pharmd forum but that he/she switched over to one of the medical forums.




.......JUSSSSSST KIDDING..........CHILL OUT GUYS
 
All i want to say is that my posts speak for themselves. I don't see anything funny in them except md >>>> od >>> dvm >>>..... Dude, good luck and have more fun reading this post!

Lastly, i never encouraged anyone to pursue phd but gave them an option or asked a curious question (why pursue md when you can easily earn a phd). Last time i checked the dictionary, an "option" is different from an "encouragement".


I am a nice guy and still plan to be part of this civilized forum.
 
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