Bad start, several retakes, working my way up, is there a chance?

[rayman991]

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Hello everyone! So I'm pretty new to these forums, and wanted to seek some advice for my situation. I'm studying at a community college, doing pre-reqs and I'll be transferring after this Spring.

I didn't have a good start to my first classes, I have quite a bit of retakes in the pre-req classes. Here's a list of just the pre-reqs for Pharmacy schools I've done. We are on quarter systems, so many of the science classes are in 3 parts:

Gen Chem 1: C- retook: A
Gen Chem 2: D- retook: B
Gen Chem 3: C retook: C 🙄
O-Chem 1: D- retook: B+
O-Chem 2: W (withdraw) retook: B+
Biology 1: D retook: B-
Biology 2: D retook: B-
Calculus I: C retook: A-
Statistics: B
Psychology 1: B+ (some schools I'm looking into require it, but not all)
Microeconomics: A
English 101: B
English 102: A

All the classes I retook were my first and part of my second year. My problem was I didn't study as much as I should Since then, I really changed a lot about my time management, study habits and maturity so I'm really trying to show this in more recent classes.

I'm currently taking O-Chem 3, Biology 3, and Public Speaking. Other pre-reqs that are required by the schools I've searched and I haven't taken are Microbiology, Biochemistry, Anatomy & Physiology, and Physics. I may have missed a couple, but I'm not sure?

My overall GPA at my community college for all classes is 3.06. I'm not sure how to calculate pre-requisite GPA with the all the retakes. I plan to transfer to university in the Fall and work for a Bachelor's degree.

So my question essentially is whether I would have a shot in the next year or so if I can show an upward trend in my academics? Do you guys have advice for my situation as to what I can do in the next year, or couple years to really help improve my chances, or will my history really hinder that? Thanks everyone, I look forward to hearing your responses 🙂

 

[Sugoi Travis]

It's common to see people perform badly during their first year or two in college. High school, even the AP classes, don't adequately prepare you enough to tackle on the beast that is called college. The fact that you retook and scored significantly higher (for the most part) just shows that you didn't put enough effort into your class or you might not have known how to study in the college setting; it wasn't a matter of you not understanding the concepts (that would have been a completely different story).

What matters now is how you'll perform in the upper division classes, since they build upon what you learned in the lower divs. Do great in the upper divs and this will give reason(s) for adcoms to understand why you messed up early on in college.

Also if the schools you apply to require the PCAT, take it and destroy it.

 

[rayman991]

Thanks Sugoi Travis. I feel like I can perform better in the pre-requisite classes I have left, and upper level classes. Most of the schools I'm looking into require the PCAT, so I'll be sure to prepare well for that and rock it.

I'm also going to begin volunteering in the Pharmacy department at a hospital near my home. How much volunteer time do schools generally consider a good amount to be more suited/prepared for Pharmacy school?

 

[Bear Rx]

If you're gonna retake, do try your best to get an A. Retaking and only getting a little bit higher or even getting the same grade as before can work against you. I would think pharm schools want to see that you are capable of fixing your mistakes the second time around. Definitely give it everything you got in your upper divs. Make sure your mindset is "I only have one chance at this and I have to make it count." It's a lot better to do very well in a class the first time around instead of having to retake it. As for volunteering, I don't think there's a set amount of time that's considered good. Just do what you can to be involved in the field.

 

[Sugoi Travis]

Thanks Sugoi Travis. I feel like I can perform better in the pre-requisite classes I have left, and upper level classes. Most of the schools I'm looking into require the PCAT, so I'll be sure to prepare well for that and rock it.

I'm also going to begin volunteering in the Pharmacy department at a hospital near my home. How much volunteer time do schools generally consider a good amount to be more suited/prepared for Pharmacy school?

Like what Bear Rx said, try to get a decent amount of hours in the department. Peoples' opinions will differ from mine, but I'd say having at least 100 hours is enough to make it worth putting the volunteering onto your application.

 

[rayman991]

Sounds good. Well this makes me feel a little better about my chances if I am able to do better in classes, and get some experience under my belt.

I am also interested in getting a pharmacy technician license (I live in Washington State). I'm not really sure if I have to take classes or just pass a test to get that. But I will probably work on that this Summer when I'm done with classes.

 

[The Recoverer]

Hello everyone! So I'm pretty new to these forums, and wanted to seek some advice for my situation. I'm studying at a community college, doing pre-reqs and I'll be transferring after this Spring.

I didn't have a good start to my first classes, I have quite a bit of retakes in the pre-req classes. Here's a list of just the pre-reqs for Pharmacy schools I've done. We are on quarter systems, so many of the science classes are in 3 parts:

Gen Chem 1: C- retook: A
Gen Chem 2: D- retook: B
Gen Chem 3: C retook: C 🙄
O-Chem 1: D- retook: B+
O-Chem 2: W (withdraw) retook: B+
Biology 1: D retook: B-
Biology 2: D retook: B-
Calculus I: C retook: A-
Statistics: B
Psychology 1: B+ (some schools I'm looking into require it, but not all)
Microeconomics: A
English 101: B
English 102: A

All the classes I retook were my first and part of my second year. My problem was I didn't study as much as I should Since then, I really changed a lot about my time management, study habits and maturity so I'm really trying to show this in more recent classes.

I'm currently taking O-Chem 3, Biology 3, and Public Speaking. Other pre-reqs that are required by the schools I've searched and I haven't taken are Microbiology, Biochemistry, Anatomy & Physiology, and Physics. I may have missed a couple, but I'm not sure?

My overall GPA at my community college for all classes is 3.06. I'm not sure how to calculate pre-requisite GPA with the all the retakes. I plan to transfer to university in the Fall and work for a Bachelor's degree.

So my question essentially is whether I would have a shot in the next year or so if I can show an upward trend in my academics? Do you guys have advice for my situation as to what I can do in the next year, or couple years to really help improve my chances, or will my history really hinder that? Thanks everyone, I look forward to hearing your responses 🙂

APPLY TO TEXAS TECH, they do complete grade replacement for their GPA calculatiojns http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=14001574#post14001574

 

[radio frequency]

Finish your BA or BS. Work for a while. Gain life experience. Go back to school when you are hungry enough to get at least straight As at community college. Those retakes are not helpful because the grades are still very low. If those are your grades in prereqs, how will you do in pharmacy school?

The information you are being taught is information you need. How badly do you want it?