Do non-prepharmacy courses get ignored or will they count against me

[sodiumd]

When I was a freshman, I was an idiot. I chose to take philosophy, a class that is not on the list of pre-pharmacy requirements for the school I would like to apply, and ended up with a C. My question is, when the school calculates my GPA in determining whether or not to accept me, will they ignore my C in philosophy or will they still count it in? I would love to have it ignored as it would bring up my 3.4 GPA.

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[bw6]

When I was a freshman, I was an idiot. I chose to take philosophy, a class that is not on the list of pre-pharmacy requirements for the school I would like to apply, and ended up with a C. My question is, when the school calculates my GPA in determining whether or not to accept me, will they ignore my C in philosophy or will they still count it in? I would love to have it ignored as it would bring up my 3.4 GPA.

They will count it.

Many schools calculate both science GPA and overall GPA. PharmCAS definitely does this. Either way, they will see every grade your received whether it was a prerequisite or not.

 

[sodiumd]

They will count it.

Many schools calculate both science GPA and overall GPA. PharmCAS definitely does this. Either way, they will see every grade your received whether it was a prerequisite or not.

Wait, you are saying two different things. You say they will COUNT it and then you say they will SEE it. If it is just a matter of them SEEING it, then I am not concerned at all. It is only problematic if they COUNT it.

 

[owlegrad]

Every school has their own policy. Check their websites.

Many use prereq or math/science GPA .

 

[bw6]

Wait, you are saying two different things. You say they will COUNT it and then you say they will SEE it. If it is just a matter of them SEEING it, then I am not concerned at all. It is only problematic if they COUNT it.

I did not say two different things. PharmCAS provides an overall GPA as well as a science GPA to the schools which receive your application. They all count your overall GPA. Many put more weight into your science GPA. Either way, if they see something then it is part of your application. Seeing something is counting something.

I don't know where these kids get the idea that admissions is based purely off of statistics. Real people are on these admissions committees and everything they SEE will COUNT towards their opinion of, and therefore admission decision regarding, you...

With that being said, since it is real people reading your application, a bad year isn't the end by any means. A 3.2 GPA is just a stat to COUNT. When someone on the committee SEES that you had a 2.6 freshman, 3.0 sophomore, 3.4 Junior (and so on), it paints a picture that statistics can't. It shows that you matured and found some direction.

Let's not play semantics about what schools will COUNT and what they will SEE, because they will make a decision based off of what they think and feel about you as a person. Stats, experience, PCAT all matter. What really matters is the story the combination of these things tell and, honestly, your interview is when they really judge your character.

So no, I did not say two different things. Learn to take advice without picking it apart.

 

[owlegrad]

They all count your overall GPA. Many put more weight into your science GPA. Either way, if they see something then it is part of your application. Seeing something is counting something.

I do hate to nit pick, but UF does not count overall GPA: http://www.cop.ufl.edu/education/student-affairs/admissions/admission-requirements/

1. Science GPA—This is determined by calculating the GPA from all science courses. It is not the same as your cumulative GPA or an overall math/science GPA. The average science GPA for the admitted fall 2012 class was a 3.45; the range was approximately 3.0 to 4.0. The minimum required science GPA to apply is a 2.5, however the competitive is a 3.0-4.0. The University of Florida does not allow grade forgiveness, which means that grades for multiple attempts for the same course number will be averaged together for that course. Dropped courses are indicated as a “W” and are not factored into the GPA since a grade was not earned. We do accept AP/IB credits for pre-professional courses, but there is no grade value assigned for those courses, so they cannot be factored into the GPA.

 

[bw6]

I do hate to nit pick, but UF does not count overall GPA: http://www.cop.ufl.edu/education/student-affairs/admissions/admission-requirements/

There are always exceptions.. Almost every school does consider overall GPA. I have seen my school's admissions committee review applications - they print PharmCAS and the supplemental and review both. It is a discussion about how well this person could do in school and as a pharmacist. Anything on your application will be consider because they are all people with opinions. The interview is a biggie for sure.

Again, I'm sure this differs slightly from school to school. Just giving the gist.

 

[sodiumd]

I did not say two different things. PharmCAS provides an overall GPA as well as a science GPA to the schools which receive your application. They all count your overall GPA. Many put more weight into your science GPA. Either way, if they see something then it is part of your application. Seeing something is counting something.

I don't know where these kids get the idea that admissions is based purely off of statistics. Real people are on these admissions committees and everything they SEE will COUNT towards their opinion of, and therefore admission decision regarding, you...

With that being said, since it is real people reading your application, a bad year isn't the end by any means. A 3.2 GPA is just a stat to COUNT. When someone on the committee SEES that you had a 2.6 freshman, 3.0 sophomore, 3.4 Junior (and so on), it paints a picture that statistics can't. It shows that you matured and found some direction.

Let's not play semantics about what schools will COUNT and what they will SEE, because they will make a decision based off of what they think and feel about you as a person. Stats, experience, PCAT all matter. What really matters is the story the combination of these things tell and, honestly, your interview is when they really judge your character.

So no, I did not say two different things. Learn to take advice without picking it apart.

There is a reason why I chose to pick it apart. The school of my interest claims that they offer interviews based on three things - PCAT + GPA + Letters. As you can see, this is almost entirely statistics based (except for the letters). I guess they will evaluate my GPA trends once comes interview.

 

[bw6]

There is a reason why I chose to pick it apart. The school of my interest claims that they offer interviews based on three things - PCAT + GPA + Letters. As you can see, this is almost entirely statistics based (except for the letters). I guess they will evaluate my GPA trends once comes interview.

Yes those are the statistics that they consider. If you don't think personal statement, trends in GPA, or any other subjective factors matter than you are being naive. These are people judging your application, they do not plug your credentials into a formula and receive an output of yes or no.

You can continue making assumptions but I am not lying to you. This is how the admissions process works and I have seen it first hand. The majority of schools do it this way. Whether you like it or not, this can be a subjective process. Life is subjective, not everything can be broken down into stats.

Then again, why bother believing me? You ask the question and then reject my answer by quoting a website. Find me 1 pharmacy school that lists subjective approval of the admissions committee as a requirement for admission.. Yet all of them require it.

But then again I'm sure you have an intimate understanding of the admissions process, having read the website and all..

 

[sodiumd]

Yes those are the statistics that they consider. If you don't think personal statement, trends in GPA, or any other subjective factors matter than you are being naive. These are people judging your application, they do not plug your credentials into a formula and receive an output of yes or no.

You can continue making assumptions but I am not lying to you. This is how the admissions process works and I have seen it first hand. The majority of schools do it this way. Whether you like it or not, this can be a subjective process. Life is subjective, not everything can be broken down into stats.

Then again, why bother believing me? You ask the question and then reject my answer by quoting a website. Find me 1 pharmacy school that lists subjective approval of the admissions committee as a requirement for admission.. Yet all of them require it.

But then again I'm sure you have an intimate understanding of the admissions process, having read the website and all..

Please don't misunderstand me. I appreciate your wisdom very much and I realize that you are a pharmacy student. I don't know why my posts came off as rude, but I assure you that was not my intention. And it wasn't me who quoted the website. Quite contrarily, you have motivated me and incited a more serious attitude in me about the admission process.

 

[bw6]

Please don't misunderstand me. I appreciate your wisdom very much and I realize that you are a pharmacy student. I don't know why my posts came off as rude, but I assure you that was not my intention. And it wasn't me who quoted the website. Quite contrarily, you have motivated me and incited a more serious attitude in me about the admission process.

Glad to hear it! We have some back and forth going on a couple of threads but I am routing for you. Your credentials are good and I can promise you (because it happened to me), that an upward trend in GPA and good PCAT can offset a little too much partying as a freshman.

 

[sodiumd]

Glad to hear it! We have some back and forth going on a couple of threads but I am routing for you. Your credentials are good and I can promise you (because it happened to me), that an upward trend in GPA and good PCAT can offset a little too much partying as a freshman.

Alright, great we got that cleared up.

There is something that I would love to hear your opinion on. So, I haven't really done any extracurricular, volunteering, etc. - those things that measure a persons character. I plan on racking up (hate to use the phrase "racking up") these non-numerical stats from now on to interview day. One way I would like to do so is by obtaining a pharmacy tech certification in about two weeks by studying my butt off. How smart is this move do you think?

 

[bw6]

Alright, great we got that cleared up.

There is something that I would love to hear your opinion on. So, I haven't really done any extracurricular, volunteering, etc. - those things that measure a persons character. I plan on racking up (hate to use the phrase "racking up") these non-numerical stats from now on to interview day. One way I would like to do so is by obtaining a pharmacy tech certification in about two weeks by studying my butt off. How smart is this move do you think?

It will help but it is completely unnecessary. Any philanthropic work can be good volunteering.

If you really want to work as a pharm tech it is a good move. If you are only doing it to help your application, I wouldn't bother.

 

[sodiumd]

It will help but it is completely unnecessary. Any philanthropic work can be good volunteering.

If you really want to work as a pharm tech it is a good move. If you are only doing it to help your application, I wouldn't bother.

I want to do it in order to work as a pharm tech and get exposure to the pharmacy setting. It is in this sense that I hope it can help my application.