Any RNs applying to pharmacy school? I am so glad to find these forum.

[NPharm]

I am so happy i found this thread.
I have a question about my chances of getting admitted into a pharmacy program. I recently graduated with my bachelors in nursing and I have since continued with my pre-pharm classes. My overall GPA is 3.8 and my science GPA is 4.0. I am taking physics and organic chem 1 currently and the second part will be next semester. Hopefully these classes will not pull my GPA down. I do not have any experience in pharmacy but I have shadowed a pharmacy. My letters of recommendations are from a pharmacist, my clinical instructor in nursing school and an instructor. I work full-time as a nurse and have only a few hours volunteering. I have a pharm tech license, but it has been hard to work with it because i need to pay off my student loans and support my family with my job as a nurse. I am still waiting on my PCAT scores and I cannot even predict on how I did. The schools I am applying to are UIC (Got my 1st degree here), Chicago state university, Midwestern Downers grove and Creighton (distance pathway). Feedback and suggestions about what i can do to increase my chances are welcomed. Thanks

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[owlegrad]

I am so happy i found this thread.
I have a question about my chances of getting admitted into a pharmacy program. I recently graduated with my bachelors in nursing and I have since continued with my pre-pharm classes. My overall GPA is 3.8 and my science GPA is 4.0. I am taking physics and organic chem 1 currently and the second part will be next semester. Hopefully these classes will not pull my GPA down. I do not have any experience in pharmacy but I have shadowed a pharmacy. My letters of recommendations are from a pharmacist, my clinical instructor in nursing school and an instructor. I work full-time as a nurse and have only a few hours volunteering. I have a pharm tech license, but it has been hard to work with it because i need to pay off my student loans and support my family with my job as a nurse. I am still waiting on my PCAT scores and I cannot even predict on how I did. The schools I am applying to are UIC (Got my 1st degree here), Chicago state university, Midwestern Downers grove and Creighton (distance pathway). Feedback and suggestions about what i can do to increase my chances are welcomed. Thanks

One of my classmates is an RN. Your grades are amazing so keep them up. If your PCAT was good, then you are good to go. If not, review and retake.

You have much more experience with the healthcare field them most applicants so don't worry about that aspect of your application. You will be fine. I would be stunned if you were not accapted to most or all of the schools you apply to.

Good Luck!

 

[springcam]

I am an emergency nurse with 1.5 years telemetry experience and 1.5 years ER experience. I just finished FNP program, but I now realize that it isn't what I want. I thought that I was going to get a lot more training on disease management than what I got. I went to nursing school and later to NP school thinking that if I pushed myself further into nursing, I would eventually find my niche. Well, I didn't. I feel so limited. I am tired of dealing with things that no one wants to deal with. I have always been interested in pharmacy and actually finished the prereq for that. I have always been fascinated by what drugs can do. However, due to financial constraint, I was not able to pursue my dream. Now I am seriously considering going to pharmacy school. I am trying to write my personal essay, but I am not sure how to explain the drastic career change from NP to pharmacy. I don't regret going to NP school really because I do think that it is a journey I need to take to find where I truely belong. But, how do I explain to schools that I really don't want to be a NP. Do I truthfully explain why I want to change my career? or just mention the positive aspects of things and write about how my NP degree will make me a better pharmacist? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

confused but hopeful.

 

[xtsukiyox]

I would definitely focus on the positive aspects, and find a way to twist the negatives.
Ex:
- "I would like to be a respected knowledge point & leader in my field" vs "I don't want just the dirty work dumped on me"
- "I would like a work environment in which I am able to balance work and family more effectively, because family is very important to me" vs "I don't like long & physically demanding shifts, then being on call"

You might also talk about your commitment to healthcare as a profession.

If you haven't already got a very good idea of what a pharmacist does all day, I would highly suggest shadowing a pharmacist. NPs certainly have more patient contact than a typical pharmacist, and there is certainly a lot of repetitive / paperwork type work as a pharmacist. As you have already mentioned, pharmacist & NP positions are very different - I would hate for you to take the plunge, then realize this too is not for you.

Good for you, though - I know several bitter nurses who really dislike their jobs, but are unwilling / unable to change. I'm glad you've decided to use NP as a stepping stone rather than getting stuck.

 

[68quebec]

great thread. thank you very much

 

[imfeelingsick]

Current ICU nurse applying to a PharmD program, I can't wait to leave nursing behind . LECOM-E is my first choice, I hope I can finally LOVE my job and not dread going to work. I pondered CRNA but don't want to be reminded everyday by an egomaniac surgeon, MDA, and etc., that I'm "just a nurse." This is a HUGE change for me, as I am not rich or a spring chicken. I know this thread is old but wanted to provide encouragement to any other RNs out there.

 

[SClENCE]

I hope you realize that is most retail pharmacies patients want their script as FAST and CHEAP as possible. Your knowledge of drugs will slowly fade as you worry more about meeting company metrics and not getting screamed at over co-pays. You are a monkey behind a counter and as far as the customers are concerned your top priority is customer service. If you want respect from patients you will probably get less of it as a pharmacist than even a nurse.

 

[imfeelingsick]

I hope you realize that is most retail pharmacies patients want their script as FAST and CHEAP as possible. Your knowledge of drugs will slowly fade as you worry more about meeting company metrics and not getting screamed at over co-pays. You are a monkey behind a counter and as far as the customers are concerned your top priority is customer service. If you want respect from patients you will probably get less of it as a pharmacist than even a nurse.

I'm not looking for respect from patients/customers but my peers. As an ICU nurse I function as a high level medical professional. I administer CRAZY critical care meds, I participate in codes, I serve as a liaison between the patient and different members of the interdisciplinary team. However sometimes I feel like MDs think I'm just a random girl who achieved her BSN online, and my job is to keep them happy and clean up poop. I find that attitude to be purely disgusting and wholly unacceptable. Furthermore, I feel that most nurses LOVE nursing because of the flexibility and the money. That is, they are willing to put up with A LOT because quite frankly they are not in position to do anything else (nursing as a profession has a low barrier of entry in terms of degree cost, prerequisites, overall ease compared to other degrees, and etc.,), and because of their backgrounds (many of them are single moms, come from abusive homes, first college graduates), their priorities are more about "survival" than "enriching work environment." I find working in that kind of environment is becoming detrimental to my health and psyche. I hate working as a bedside nurse with a PASSION. I've spoken to several CRNAs and they say that career path is substantially better, but there is a lot of animosity between some MDAs and CRNAs because of their salary, and most of time they feel like everyone is working against them. I've browsed though the forums here and read how residents/med students refer to CRNAs as "perennial residents", "fake doctors", and again I'm not interested in working in that kind of environment where my experience and education is not appreciated. I don't expect much from uneducated patients/customers but I expect a lot more from my peers. I wanted to pursue pharmacy previously but was deterred by all the gloom and doom on this site, I regret that decision tremendously. I must say though, I am confident that my nursing background will compliment my PharmD beautifully , I'm so excited.