Are out of state public schools harder to get in?

[cy19861126]

Hey folks, I am confused by the fact that whether out of state public schools are harder to get in. I know they "prefer" in state students so it's definitely harder, but how much harder is it? If I apply to an out of state school, what are my chances?

Also, I am concerned about the statistics from the AACP about the number of out of state students being accepted. Definitely, the number of out of state students being accepted is much fewer than in state students (probably about 5% to 25% for public schools), but my question is that "why" has this happened? Is it because fewer out of state applicants apply after seeing that statistics, or is it because of the school just greatly favors in state applicants?

PS: I am all talking about public schools

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[azPharmD2B]

Most states have higher reqs for out of state students, for one.

Part of the reason is that in state students (or their parents) contribute to the economy of that state via taxes. The state in turn provides funds to the university in order to provide for an affordable education for students of that state. Its all a matter of taking care of your own. Plus, there's the assumption that if you go to school in your home state, you're more likely to stay in that state and in turn contribute to its economy. Out of state students are more likely to leave the state once they graduate.

 

[fenixtnlfan]

From what I have seen, state schools have a set max percantage of the incoming class they allow to be out-of-state students. However, they don't always accept up to the max and the amount varies every year. It's also a lot harder as an out-of-state because of course they only want to accept the best out-of-staters. Getting in is not impossible, but it will be more competitive. Most people do apply out of state though because most states only have 1-2 pharm schools, so it betters your chances. Your chance of getting in depends on the competitiveness of the applicant pool and your relation to it.

 

[cy19861126]

From what I have seen, state schools have a set max percantage of the incoming class they allow to be out-of-state students. However, they don't always accept up to the max and the amount varies every year. It's also a lot harder as an out-of-state because of course they only want to accept the best out-of-staters. Getting in is not impossible, but it will be more competitive. Most people do apply out of state though because most states only have 1-2 pharm schools, so it betters your chances. Your chance of getting in depends on the competitiveness of the applicant pool and your relation to it.

So are you saying as an out of stater, applying to private ones would be less competitive for me? From what I've seen at AACP, private schools usually get about 2000~3000 applicants per year while public schools only get about 500~1200. These numbers are just approximations. Even if out-of-state applicants are in a disadvantage for public ones, if you look at the application pool, it won't be much harder to get in compared to private ones. And, thank you for your comments!!!

 

[azPharmD2B]

A lot of people take the shotgun approach to the private schools. They apply via PharmCAS to as many as they can afford just so they get in somewhere, or as backups to top tier schools. This is why the numbers for private schools look so inflated. Plus, a lot of people get accepted to private schools, but back out once they get accepted to the school they really want to go to. This is why the private schools keep such long waiting lists.

 

[genesis09]

At UIC, they give IL residents a point bonus on their application score. Also, the UIC health science colleges, medicine, dentistry, etc, have a policy to limit the number of out of staters at about 10% of the class.

 

[Hels2007]

Most schools set limits for out of state students. Nebraska had it at 10% - but Nebraska also waived out-of-state tuition for everyone they accepted. Additionally, you needed to be from a state bordering Nebraska to qualify for acceptance and tuition waiver.

 

[evilolive]

Out of state publics are the only ones that let me in - I didn't get into any schools in-state

 

[cy19861126]

Out of state publics are the only ones that let me in - I didn't get into any schools in-state

Did you apply to any private ones?

 

[evilolive]

I applied to 1 (USC) but was initially deferred and I didn't bother with the waiting process.