Buffalo?!

[panbabylon]

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Can anyone kindly share some insight about going to the University of Buffalo? In particular:

1. is the tuition really THAT low?
2. how hard is it to get in?
3. what PCAT score did current students have?
4. what can be said about living in Buffalo?
5. how long does it take to get to NYC from up there?

This post is mainly addressed to current UB students, not wise guys that go through all the threads and advise people to search the internet for answers. No links to the UB website, please.

 

[pharm127]

I am not a current UB student, but I did do my undergrad there a few years ago and I am now applying to their pharmacy program so I can answer some of your questions.

1. Yes UB is a state school so tuition is much cheaper than most other schools, and first year is charged at undergrad tuition rate (cheaper than the pharmacy tuition which you are charged in P2-P4). If you are not a state resident it is more expensive but most people are eligible to be considered state residents after their first year anyway.
2. Admission is pretty competitive as they are a highly ranked program. Rough estimates of numbers that I have heard are ~1800 apply, ~250 get interviews, and ~125 get admitted.
3. They take the sum of your percentile scores from the subject areas (composite score is ignored) and they say that sum is above ~350 for most people that get accepted.
4. Buffalo is not as bad as most people think. Yes it snows and is cold in the winter, and yes that sucks. It's not as exciting as New York City but it's not a horrible place to live either.
5. To NYC it's about 7-8 hour drive, best way I think is take 90 to Albany and the 87 down to NYC. Or you can fly, I think Jetblue and probably others have direct flights to JFK from Buffalo.

 

[probowler]

4. Buffalo is not as bad as most people think. Yes it snows and is cold in the winter, and yes that sucks. It's not as exciting as New York City but it's not a horrible place to live either.
quote]


Mwuhaha! The one year we got scow starting the week before halloween and it was still snowing in April. Not to mention the October storm we had a year ago.

To the OP, certain parts of Buffalo suck. The campus in Amherst (where the SoP is) is in a nice neighborhood

 

[UncertainRx]

I cant help you with any of that but I just want to gripe about Buffalo cuz I sent my supplemental in early then like a month later they tell me they never got it. Then they tell me Im on the wait list. I cant help but think that little snafu hurt me. >_<

 

[esrodems]

If you want to post your stats I'll tell you whether or not losing your app affected your acceptance. No offense but somehow I doubt that this was the case I go to UB and I have a good idea of how they do things from friends in the school, taking w/ adcom, etc. This year that have people with their MD applying and they also tend to look for people that are going to increase the diversity on campus or you need to have like a 4.0 and 90 something PCAT. Also, they still do early assurance which is tough to do but still there are probably 35 people that got in that way this year which makes it much harder for those of us who have to apply in the regular applicant pool.

Hope this helps.

 

[RxHopeful]

If you want to post your stats I'll tell you whether or not losing your app affected your acceptance. No offense but somehow I doubt that this was the case I go to UB and I have a good idea of how they do things from friends in the school, taking w/ adcom, etc. This year that have people with their MD applying and they also tend to look for people that are going to increase the diversity on campus or you need to have like a 4.0 and 90 something PCAT. Also, they still do early assurance which is tough to do but still there are probably 35 people that got in that way this year which makes it much harder for those of us who have to apply in the regular applicant pool.

Hope this helps.

Hey does anyone know if they wait for your Jan PCAT or have they pretty much interviewed or requested interviews for this admissions cycle?

 

[Street Spirit]

So what is there to do in Buffalo for fun? I heard Niagra Falls is pretty near...😕

 

[probowler]

So what is there to do in Buffalo for fun? I heard Niagra Falls is pretty near...😕

Niagara Falls, we have an outlet mall near the falls, lots of bars and clubs, also casinos, and bowling alleys on every corner practically. I live in Buffalo so I could be missing big things for out of towner to do that doesn't seem like much to me.
Oh yeah, and Canada isn't too far away

 

[esrodems]

If you like pro sports a lot of people here are big BILLS and SABRES fans so a lot of people like to go to the games or like to go out for beers and watch at a bar. If you go to the games tailgating is like a pro sport here, BILLS fans are pretty insane, but it's always a good time.

Winter sports are obviously pretty popular, if you don't ski/snowboard I would definitely recommend getting into it, it's a lot of fun.

I'm not sure how old you are or what your interests are, but there are things to do here if you have a car that is.

 

[bwsalvas]

Hey guys.

I'm a current student of the pharmacy school.

panbabylon: pharm127 has it pretty much right.

UncertainRx: The people working in admissions are very kind and understanding. They put everyone on a wait list at some point during the application process. Its not a bad thing at all!

Its a competitive program, but its not impossible to get into. They want rounded individuals believe me the application process is not a numbers game.

RxHopeful: I took the January PCAT to get in they don't mind it at all they just hold off on your application until they get the grade report.

Hope you find this helpful-

 

[THistime2]

Hey guys.

I'm a current student of the pharmacy school.

panbabylon: pharm127 has it pretty much right.

UncertainRx: The people working in admissions are very kind and understanding. They put everyone on a wait list at some point during the application process. Its not a bad thing at all!

Its a competitive program, but its not impossible to get into. They want rounded individuals believe me the application process is not a numbers game.

RxHopeful: I took the January PCAT to get in they don't mind it at all they just hold off on your application until they get the grade report.

Hope you find this helpful-

bwsalvas,
I saw on another forum that you will be one of the students taking applicants on a tour of the school. Is it common for applicants to wear suits, I am trying to get out of wearing one if I can.

 

[Quiksilver]

I am a current UB student.

1. tuition is low, but its even lower for NY residents. P-1 tuition is undergrad tuition, after that i do not know what it is.
2. its competitive... but i got in. GPA 3.1 PCAT 92 and a well rounded CV, be well rounded. AS you can see, Grades aren't everything. (BTW, I beat out my undergrad GPA last semester)
3. see above
4. buffalo is great! we have bars and clubs downtown that alot of the students frequent, including all you can drink specials for us Rx students. Niagara falls is about 20 minutes away from UB. Shopping, the buffalo bills and sabres are great attractions and draws. Not to mention we do have great restaurants, and the best chicken wings.
5. NYC is about 6 hours away.

YES WEAR A SUIT TO YOUR INTERVIEW!

 

[bwsalvas]

Yes wear a suit!

See you there. Introduce yourself to me, hopefully I can provide some valuable information to you.

 

[BlueCrayon]

bwsalvas: Are you going to be interviewing people Feb 29th? I have an interview that day. I'm kind of a non-traditional student...I got my B.S. in molecular biology in 99 and have been working in the pharmacology dept at UB on the south campus for almost 9 years. I finally decided to apply to UB pharm school. As a matter of fact, if you are currently taking Micro and Phys 2, I am in your class...my classes were too old to transfer so I had to take 2 consecutive semesters of science classes part time to satisfy requirements so I figured I'd take ones that I could wave if I get accepted (I also took Biochem and Phys 1 last semester). A lot of it is just review since I had much of it 10 years ago.

 

[bwsalvas]

How'd you like that last physio test??

Anyway- I won't be interviewing, but I will be giving tours and mingling with everyone...trying to lighten the mood ya know.

I wouldn't worry about being non-traditional. You're probably beating me in physio now and the lessened work load in the fall will be clutch. You shouldn't have a problem getting biochem physio or micro waived...I wish I had taken one or two of them ahead of time because things got pretty hectic during the fall.

Anyway- best of luck. Feel free to ask any more questions

bwsalvas: Are you going to be interviewing people Feb 29th? I have an interview that day. I'm kind of a non-traditional student...I got my B.S. in molecular biology in 99 and have been working in the pharmacology dept at UB on the south campus for almost 9 years. I finally decided to apply to UB pharm school. As a matter of fact, if you are currently taking Micro and Phys 2, I am in your class...my classes were too old to transfer so I had to take 2 consecutive semesters of science classes part time to satisfy requirements so I figured I'd take ones that I could wave if I get accepted (I also took Biochem and Phys 1 last semester). A lot of it is just review since I had much of it 10 years ago.

 

[BlueCrayon]

That's funny, i was going to ask you the same thing! I didn't expect it to be all that hard because I've had most of it repeatedly in the past plus we deal with a lot of endocrinology in my lab....BUT, it was quite a bit harder than I expected! Thankfully he revised the grading...ended up doing pretty well anyways.

Yeah I'm pretty thrilled that if I get in, I'll only have to take 6 courses instead of 10 the first year...should make it quite a bit easier to deal with. I might even consider staying at my job part time until P2 starts. Thanks for the vote of luck!

How'd you like that last physio test??

Anyway- I won't be interviewing, but I will be giving tours and mingling with everyone...trying to lighten the mood ya know.

I wouldn't worry about being non-traditional. You're probably beating me in physio now and the lessened work load in the fall will be clutch. You shouldn't have a problem getting biochem physio or micro waived...I wish I had taken one or two of them ahead of time because things got pretty hectic during the fall.

Anyway- best of luck. Feel free to ask any more questions