Calling all UF St. Pete Students

[andagrkel]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hi guys. I may be attending UF St. Pete this Fall and have a couple questions for you. I really appreciate any info you can give me.

1) What is your class schedule like? I know lectures are online, but how many hours do you spend on classes, including lectures, group activities, labs, etc. every week?

2) How are you financing your education? Do any of you work and if so how much? Also, where are you working and what is the pay rate (estimate)? If you don't work, how much debt will you have racked up when it is all said and done?

3) How do you feel about the program so far?

4) And finally, do you have any regrets as to how your pharm education has gone so far (school, finances, etc.)?

I really appreciate it guys!

 

[dgroulx]

Hi guys. I may be attending UF St. Pete this Fall and have a couple questions for you. I really appreciate any info you can give me.

1) What is your class schedule like? I know lectures are online, but how many hours do you spend on classes, including lectures, group activities, labs, etc. every week?

2) How are you financing your education? Do any of you work and if so how much? Also, where are you working and what is the pay rate (estimate)? If you don't work, how much debt will you have racked up when it is all said and done?

3) How do you feel about the program so far?

4) And finally, do you have any regrets as to how your pharm education has gone so far (school, finances, etc.)?

I really appreciate it guys!

1. Class schedule varies by year. During the first year, you are on campus about 2 days per week. There are lots of lectures to watch. They will take up most your day. When you study for quizzes & exams or drive to class, you end up missing a couple of lectures. It's very easy to fall behind. Many of my classmates were behind 10 to 20 lectures. I get up early and watch the previous day's lectures. By year two, your at school 3 days a week and still have tons of lectures. The lectures get reduced in year 3, but you are on campus 4-5 days a week. After rotations, you return to campus for your last 8 weeks and go to class 2-3 days a week. The days you are at school is for class meetings and presentations. You don't have lab, like underground. There's skills lab and compounding lab in year 3.

2. I don't work. I took out Stafford Loans. They are unsubsidized. I ended up accruring $92,000 with interest. This also includes 2 years of undergrad. It would be more like $80,000 for just UF. My Stafford loan was about 18-19k per year. After tuition, I was left around 12k to live off of for the year. I interned during the summers between years 1 & 2 and 2 & 3. The last summer you are on rotations, so you can't work that one.

3. It's a good program. You'll notice the difference between you and students from other Florida schools when you're out on rotations. UF does a really good job preparing you. All the students who wanted a residency from our campus got their first or second choice. If you want to go right to work, they have career fairs and interviews at the campus. All the local pharmacies/hospitals/home care places attend.

4. I regret my choice of campus. I did not realize how long it would take to get through Tampa traffic. Yesterday, I had to be on campus at 9am. I had to leave at 7am. The class was 40 minutes, then I had to drive back home. I'm only 50 miles away, but the traffic sucks. There is one assistant campus coordinator who is very hard on you. Her reputation has spread to Gainesville. She grades harder than the other facilitators at other campuses. We have to do more work for a lesser grade. I managed to keep from failing, thanks to interventions from Gainesville.

 

[andagrkel]

Thanks so much! I didn't realize there would be so many lectures. I was hoping to be able to work at least 20 hrs a week... looks like that won't be possible. I understand what you are saying about traffic. I live in Tampa, and the thought of having to cross that bridge in the morning gives me a headache just thinking about it. I really appreciate the input! If anyone else has any opinions please post!

 

[GatorRxGirl]

I didn't realize there would be so many lectures.

Lectures? Pharmacy school? Nahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

 

[Brooksville]

Hi, I just wanted to say that for the first year you are going to be on campus more like 3 days a week, because they make you do a bunch of introductory stuff. Second year fall semester is actually a little less time on campus than the first year, but second year spring semester is like 4 times a day on campus.

For watching lectures it is pretty easy to fall behind, especially when the tests start up because there is not a break. By the end of the semester I am usually just going test to test, but it works for me. The key is just not to fall behind to early in the semester.

I too took out stafford loans, but I did not need to take out the full amount.

School sucks, but the program is very good. They really make you study if you want good grades. I think the biggest thing is what college you went to for undergrand, what kind of classes you took, and how you did in them. The harder your undergrad was the easier it will be for you at UF.

Also not too many people in class work during the school year.But there are a few who do put in lots of hours at work and still manage to get through school.

 

[andagrkel]

Thanks again guys. I appreciate it. I'm in the middle of planning a wedding and trying to buy a home, so finances are a huge issue for me. I'm glad I asked about being able to work while in school so that I can factor that into my plans. It's all pretty scary.

 

[ForcedEntry]

Turning pharmacy school financial aid into a marital debt.