Chances

[hopeful05]

Hello everyone,
I have a question for you all regarding my chances of being accepted into a pharmD program. I have 3 interviews till now- mercer, MCPHS, and Temple. I would really like to know what you think my chances are, since from other posts i can see that some of you know a lot about the admissions process. I am a senior - major Biochemistry; by july 2005 i will have managed to acquire my bachelors in 3 years. I have a GPA of 3.993 , Pcat composite 98%, and strong letters of recommendation because my faculty have really supported and encouraged me through this. I am completley commited to studying pharmacy- for all the right reasons too. However, I do not have experince working in a pharmacy- other than shadowing pharmacists in community pharmacy and hospital pharmacy- settings. Also, I came to the US about 3.5 years ago- and these interviews will be my first ever. I have worked really hard on my english, and speak well- but i don't know if i will be able to articulate myself as well as some of the others being interviewed. Do you think they will count the fact that english is my second language during the interview? Don't get me wrong here- I have no problems with grammer or sentence structure or anything.
So what do you think??
<< I think I created the wrong impression by putting this. I had no intention of rubbing my grades in anybody's face. I am genuinly worried about this because last year I was denied admission. But I have decided that pharmacy is what I want to study, so to me it doesn't matter if i have to apply for next year after this. I know my dedication will be rewarded sooner or later >>

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[goheel]

Don't worry, with that grades, you'll get in somewhere.

 

[ultracet]

Your post is amazing for english not to be your first language. I wouldn't worry too much about it during your interview. I believe you are capable of conveying your thoughts and should be fairly successful during the interview.

There are several people in my class that do not speak english as their first language. i'm sure they take that into consideration but the flip side is making sure your speech is good enough to convey your thoughts to the general public.

Try not to worry about it!

 

[Jeddevil]

With grades and scores like yours, go into your interviews and tell them "I am smarter than S$%t and you would be absolutely stupid to not invite me to attend your school!"

Wait, you won't have to tell them that at all, because as soon as they look in your file they will come to that conclusion on their own. Pharmacy experience is not required, especially when you have great grades. You shadowed and that is good enough. I will not be surprised that you get in school. I will be surprised if you don't get accepted into all three. Good luck.

 

[hopeful05]

Thank you to you all who replied to my post- I do feel confident, and though i am not going to walk into these interviews with the attitude of " oh...i am such a genius "- ((i don't really think that because it wasn't easy to get those grades.... )) But i do feel that they will see my diligence- and i've prepared some outlines of responses to some general questions- Now i just have to keep my faith in my abilities.....

 

[tetra327]

Thank you to you all who replied to my post- I do feel confident, and though i am not going to walk into these interviews with the attitude of " oh...i am such a genius "- ((i don't really think that because it wasn't easy to get those grades.... )) But i do feel that they will see my diligence- and i've prepared some outlines of responses to some general questions- Now i just have to keep my faith in my abilities.....

Good Luck!

 

[hopeful05]

Thanx Tetra.....This forum is such a help..i wish i had found it sooner....!!it shows the caliber and enthusiasm of pharmacy students... All you guys are great..

 

[Requiem]

I'm not completely sure this post was warranted, as I mean do you actually doubt acceptance with a 3.99 GPA and 98% composite plus shadowing experience?

" Don't get me wrong here- I have no problems with grammer or sentence structure or anything.
"

I think this is your biggest weakness, because you do have a problem with grammar and sentence structure , but in which case you should just be posting on an english board somewhere to improve your english.

Anyway your english obviously isn't natural, but it's certinaly not imcomprehensible; if you're that smart you should know your chances.

 

[hopeful05]

I'm not completely sure this post was warranted, as I mean do you actually doubt acceptance with a 3.99 GPA and 98% composite plus shadowing experience?

" Don't get me wrong here- I have no problems with grammer or sentence structure or anything.
"

I think this is your biggest weakness, because you do have a problem with grammar and sentence structure , but in which case you should just be posting on an english board somewhere to improve your english.

Anyway your english obviously isn't natural, but it's certinaly not imcomprehensible; if you're that smart you should know your chances.

I am sorry if you feel that I put this post on for wrong reasons. The thing is that I am an International student, and its more competitive because the schools have very few..usually about 2-3 seats...for such students...And i am sure that there are people out there with better credentials than me and more experience- which is what fueled the self-doubt. I had applied last year, and got denied everywhere. I didn't even get interview calls at that time. And thats the reason for my anxiety this year. Believe me if I was sure about my acceptance, I wouldn't waste anybody's time by posting my question. It was a sincere question, and I just wanted to know if they consider that english is your second language during your responses. Some people were nice enough to provide confidence and support. But i guess I should have expected caustic remarks too- clearly you know more english than I do. But did I deny that at any point for you to reply in the way you did?? Way to go!!--but I'll still appreciate your effort in posting the reply.

 

[Gizmo]

Way to go with your grades and learning English so quickly You're bound to get in somewhere; good luck! Don't worry about your English; it's WAY better than most of the native speakers that I have met. Good luck, and keep us posted !

 

[OoShimmeroO]

Hello everyone,
I have a question for you all regarding my chances of being accepted into a pharmD program. I have 3 interviews till now- mercer, MCPHS, and Temple. I would really like to know what you think my chances are, since from other posts i can see that some of you know a lot about the admissions process. I am a senior - major Biochemistry; by july 2005 i will have managed to acquire my bachelors in 3 years. I have a GPA of 3.993 , Pcat composite 98%, and strong letters of recommendation because my faculty have really supported and encouraged me through this. I am completley commited to studying pharmacy- for all the right reasons too. However, I do not have experince working in a pharmacy- other than shadowing pharmacists in community pharmacy and hospital pharmacy- settings. Also, I came to the US about 3.5 years ago- and these interviews will be my first ever. I have worked really hard on my english, and speak well- but i don't know if i will be able to articulate myself as well as some of the others being interviewed. Do you think they will count the fact that english is my second language during the interview? Don't get me wrong here- I have no problems with grammer or sentence structure or anything.
So what do you think??

I hope this doesn't come across as rude but I really don't understand why you are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo "confused". You have a 3.99 GPA, 98%PCAT, a biochemistry degree, and have shadowed pharmacists in two different pharmacy settings. And don't worry about your English skills. I know a lot of pharmacy students and pharmacists with terrible grammar and heavy accents.

 

[ultracet]

I typically hate these threads because i feel as most just want to show off GPA/PCAT scores or just want their ego inflated...

however....

with this person being an international student i see a different take

in my pharmacy school class we have 3 international students
1 is already a pharmacist in Korea
1 has her masters in microbiology
1 has a BS

Perhaps it is not that way at other schools...

I don't know if there is a set number/percentage of international students accepted into pharmacy school or if that's just the percentage that apply....

i guess i can see where this individual is coming from.

If they were denied last year, are competing for a few seats (as they state), and are going up against people who are already pharmacists, have their masters, etc.. then i would be concerned too.

While yes this may be a stellar applicant and perhaps more qualified than most...

i simply don't know enough about getting into pharmacy school as an international student to make that call.

While this may not be what we all want to hear... it is completely possible that this person may not get in (though more qualified than most) because the other international students that apply are more qualified.


If anyone does have some light to shed on this topic then i'm sure it would be more than welcome

Try not to give this person too hard of a time unless you can identify with their situation...

i hate to think how many people on here have worried about getting into pharmacy school

 

[2005pharmD]

I am sorry if you feel that I put this post on for wrong reasons. The thing is that I am an International student, and its more competitive because the schools have very few..usually about 2-3 seats...for such students...And i am sure that there are people out there with better credentials than me and more experience- which is what fueled the self-doubt. I had applied last year, and got denied everywhere. I didn't even get interview calls at that time. And thats the reason for my anxiety this year. Believe me if I was sure about my acceptance, I wouldn't waste anybody's time by posting my question. It was a sincere question, and I just wanted to know if they consider that english is your second language during your responses. Some people were nice enough to provide confidence and support. But i guess I should have expected caustic remarks too- clearly you know more english than I do. But did I deny that at any point for you to reply in the way you did?? Way to go!!--but I'll still appreciate your effort in posting the reply.

I am an international student as well, with English being my second language. I also have a bit of an accent when I speak (just a little though; I'm well understood by most everyone, and people don't say "excuse me, come again..." often at all). This is the very first time I'm hearing regarding the number of seats for foreign students in pharmacy schools. Do you know in fact that each school takes 2-3 foreign students only? What does everyone else think here? I mean I took EN101 and EN102, and had a B and an A in them, respectively. I'm able to participate in more than just "eveyday stuff" conversations as well, and capable of expressing myself during interviews. I don't know what to think now...

comments on this are welcome

 

[hopeful05]

I am an international student as well, with English being my second language. I also have a bit of an accent when I speak (just a little though; I'm well understood by most everyone, and people don't say "excuse me, come again..." often at all). This is the very first time I'm hearing regarding the number of seats for foreign students in pharmacy schools. Do you know in fact that each school takes 2-3 foreign students only? What does everyone else think here? I mean I took EN101 and EN102, and had a B and an A in them, respectively. I'm able to participate in more than just "eveyday stuff" conversations as well, and capable of expressing myself during interviews. I don't know what to think now...

comments on this are welcome

I agree with you. I am fine with everyday conversations, not just with peers- but with my professors as well. I don't have "pardon me!--what was that you said?" problems either. I guess I am just nervous about the interviews. But I know that the number of seats offered to international students are very limited, and the competition is fierce. And that is not just for pharmacy schools but for other disciplines as well. But I don't think there is anything unfair about it. The quality of US education is so good, which is why everyone wants to study here- but its fair that the schools demand that the student be exceptional to get in here.
I know that University of Utah hasn't accepted any intern. stud. or even any out-of -state students for that matter- in the past 2-3 years ( my source for that is an email from the admissions office there) because they are a state funded univ.,. But private Colleges usually accept more. Its not the same everywhere ofcourse, but its just something I have heard over and over- and maybe I accepted that as an explanation for why I was declined last year. When people in the forum looked at my grades they thought I had a good chance...well they were just as good last year- but i didn't get any Interview calls. I guess i found it easier to accept that it was because I was a Int. Stu., rather than because i wasn't good enough. So maybe there is no such thing as a limitation on the number of seats. And if that is true then that's Great!!

 

[WVURxGal]

To the best of my knowledge, most schools won't have a concrete number of seats for international students, though they will not have priority. At WVUSoP, in-state residents and out-of-state students completing the bulk of their undergraduate courses in West Virginia have priority status, as it's the only pharm school in the state. You might be best off applying to private schools if you don't get in next year.

Your grades/PCAT are great, and shadowing is helpful. I think you've got a much better chance this time around because you'll have completed your BS, which isn't something you had last year. Have you taken the TOEFL? Some schools might require the test... perhaps if you sent results to schools, they wouldn't count non-native English against you (the concern there is in communicating with patients; even if you don't stay in the US you'd have to be able to communicate for rotations.)