Do I stack up?

[Amanda C]

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Hey everyone, I just want to get some opinions because I am new to the idea of Pharmacy school. I have been a science major for 2.5 years without knowing what I wanted to do (but knowing I wanted to go to grad school somewhere). The more I think about it, the more I am leaning toward Pharmacy school. My question is regarding whether I fit the profile of a typical prospective Pharmacy school student.

I started off at a community college, earning a specialized degree in biotechnology with a cumulative GPA of 3.25

After that, I transferred to my local university and am now a biology major minoring in chemistry. Right now my GPA is at a 3.3, and soon to be higher after this semester ends (hopefully higher than 3.4).

I still have a year and a half left at my university, but I will be able to meet all the prerequisites for Pharm school by the end of next year.


I know there are probably so many other posts identical to mine. Sorry for that 🙁

 

[tellsarah]

I think you could get in. However, I would suggest a good PCAT score to go along with the 3.4 GPA. IMO getting accepted into pharmacy school means evaluating your application and deciding which school you would actually be a competitive applicant. Apply to many schools and increase your odds of admissions.

 

[mrblah]

Hey everyone, I just want to get some opinions because I am new to the idea of Pharmacy school. I have been a science major for 2.5 years without knowing what I wanted to do (but knowing I wanted to go to grad school somewhere). The more I think about it, the more I am leaning toward Pharmacy school. My question is regarding whether I fit the profile of a typical prospective Pharmacy school student.

I started off at a community college, earning a specialized degree in biotechnology with a cumulative GPA of 3.25

After that, I transferred to my local university and am now a biology major minoring in chemistry. Right now my GPA is at a 3.3, and soon to be higher after this semester ends (hopefully higher than 3.4).

I still have a year and a half left at my university, but I will be able to meet all the prerequisites for Pharm school by the end of next year.


I know there are probably so many other posts identical to mine. Sorry for that 🙁

not much to add, but you are on the right path.

 

[Transformer]

Yes, you do fit the profile of a typical prospective Pharmacy school student.

Good job and Keep up the GPA!

 

[Amanda C]

Yes, you do fit the profile of a typical prospective Pharmacy school student.

Good job and Keep up the GPA!

Thanks!

I also have a question about the housing which various pharm schools provide for students. I'm 23, and a single mother of 1 child (she'd be 6 when I start pharm school). We live with my parents right now, but if I were to apply to pharm schools, I wouldn't want to limit myself to the schools which are around me. Does anyone know if there are schools that provide housing/living expenses for people like myself who have a child?

Thanks 🙂

 

[eelo]

Thanks!

I also have a question about the housing which various pharm schools provide for students. I'm 23, and a single mother of 1 child (she'd be 6 when I start pharm school). We live with my parents right now, but if I were to apply to pharm schools, I wouldn't want to limit myself to the schools which are around me. Does anyone know if there are schools that provide housing/living expenses for people like myself who have a child?

Thanks 🙂

The school isn't going to do that, and they shouldn't be expected to do that. You might be able to procure a loan to cover those expenses, but from a practical standpoint, I think you're better off sticking with a school close to home and your support system.

I would question how you'd be able to support the child, attend school functions, be available if the child needs to be home from school, etc, etc, if you are geographically separated from what has been your primary support structure until now.

 

[Amanda C]

The school isn't going to do that, and they shouldn't be expected to do that. You might be able to procure a loan to cover those expenses, but from a practical standpoint, I think you're better off sticking with a school close to home and your support system.

I would question how you'd be able to support the child, attend school functions, be available if the child needs to be home from school, etc, etc, if you are geographically separated from what has been your primary support structure until now.

You do have a point. While I would prefer to stay at home, I'm very limited as to which schools I can go to. The closest school is Wilkes, and I heard that they only accept a few transfer students every year. Also, I'd have to commute about 1.5 hours each way if I were to be accepted to a school in Philly. I'd actually think that living at home and commuting would be easier than living on my own. I am just trying to figure out all of my options here.

Also, I don't expect schools to provide for me. However I heard that there are some that do. So that is why I asked. Perhaps I've asked that question in the wrong place!

 

[eelo]

You do have a point. While I would prefer to stay at home, I'm very limited as to which schools I can go to. The closest school is Wilkes, and I heard that they only accept a few transfer students every year. Also, I'd have to commute about 1.5 hours each way if I were to be accepted to a school in Philly. I'd actually think that living at home and commuting would be easier than living on my own. I am just trying to figure out all of my options here.

Also, I don't expect schools to provide for me. However I heard that there are some that do. So that is why I asked. Perhaps I've asked that question in the wrong place!

Do you have an option of hiring a nanny, or something like that? Maybe bringing a relative to live with you, who could provide daycare for the child while you're in school? Depending on where you go, you might find that it will cost almost the same to have two adults and one child in one living area, as it would for one adult (you) during the week while the child stayed with your parents.

Short of that, you might be better off being the 'weekend mom' to your daughter. That's a hard choice, and nobody can make that choice but you and her. The other side of that coin is that you might be able to arrange for summer internships at places closer to your parents' location, and you could spend the summers at home with your baby.

Ooooh, also-- depending on the school (this was edited after reading tellsarah's post below), you might be able to enroll your daughter in a before-and-after-school program through the school, kind of a child development lab program that might be available at schools that run education programs for teachers, child development professionals, social workers, parks & rec majors, etc. I think they may give priority enrollment to someone in your position. It's worth looking into....

I don't envy you your choice, and I wish you strength in making it.

 

[tellsarah]

You should definately consider the housing options at potential pharmacy schools before applying. I know that many schools offer family housing for students with dependents, married or both. Two of the universities I attended have family housing. I dont know anything about institutions funding living expenses for single parents, I would look at the student housing webpage for that specific info.

Good luck

 

[Amanda C]

Do you have an option of hiring a nanny, or something like that? Maybe bringing a relative to live with you, who could provide daycare for the child while you're in school? Depending on where you go, you might find that it will cost almost the same to have two adults and one child in one living area, as it would for one adult (you) during the week while the child stayed with your parents.

Short of that, you might be better off being the 'weekend mom' to your daughter. That's a hard choice, and nobody can make that choice but you and her. The other side of that coin is that you might be able to arrange for summer internships at places closer to your parents' location, and you could spend the summers at home with your baby.

Ooooh, also-- depending on the school (this was edited after reading tellsarah's post below), you might be able to enroll your daughter in a before-and-after-school program through the school, kind of a child development lab program that might be available at schools that run education programs for teachers, child development professionals, social workers, parks & rec majors, etc. I think they may give priority enrollment to someone in your position. It's worth looking into....

I don't envy you your choice, and I wish you strength in making it.

Thank you 🙂 Knowing that I am going to be extremely busy at school is something that is a little scary (because of the thought of barely getting enough time to spend with her), but at the same time it is exciting and promising. The ultimate reason I'd be doing it is for our future, and because I refuse to be dependent on someone else when I know that I could live a life knowing that I did something for myself! I'd like to think that I can be someone she'd look up to one day.

Anyhow - the after-school child care is definitely something that would be helpful and I'm going to do some research to see if there are schools that offer that.

 

[Amanda C]

You should definately consider the housing options at potential pharmacy schools before applying. I know that many schools offer family housing for students with dependents, married or both. Two of the universities I attended have family housing. I dont know anything about institutions funding living expenses for single parents, I would look at the student housing webpage for that specific info.

Good luck

Thanks for the info! I am also going to research to see which schools offer this type of housing.