Doubts

[vasoolraja]

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Hi friends,

I have a couple of questions and would appreciate your replies. I am planning to apply for pharmacy schools in 2013, so how much experience do I need to get in this field. I mean every weekend if I get little bit of experience in retail setting or volunteer clinics, would that be enough? I can spare only weekends because I am on a full time job. Is there a minimum requirement as far as hours of experience are concerned? If I have just 10 to 12 hours of experience would that be sufficient?

I am more interested in research and teaching in pharmacy. I have a master's degree in fisheries and I plan to switch fields. I am assuming in the interview (if I get an opportunity 😀)there is a chance that the professors may ask me why I did not consider going for a direct PhD in pharmacology. So how do I answer such a question. I am actually interested in getting a PharmD degree first and then doing a PhD instead of a direct PhD in pharmacology.

I would really appreciate your comments and suggestions!

 

[ShadowRX]

Hi friends,

I have a couple of questions and would appreciate your replies. I am planning to apply for pharmacy schools in 2013, so how much experience do I need to get in this field. I mean every weekend if I get little bit of experience in retail setting or volunteer clinics, would that be enough? I can spare only weekends because I am on a full time job. Is there a minimum requirement as far as hours of experience are concerned? If I have just 10 to 12 hours of experience would that be sufficient?

I am more interested in research and teaching in pharmacy. I have a master's degree in fisheries and I plan to switch fields. I am assuming in the interview (if I get an opportunity 😀)there is a chance that the professors may ask me why I did not consider going for a direct PhD in pharmacology. So how do I answer such a question. I am actually interested in getting a PharmD degree first and then doing a PhD instead of a direct PhD in pharmacology.

I would really appreciate your comments and suggestions!

As far as experience goes, you don't need a whole lot, but having some experience helps. Currently, I just work 1 or 2 days a week, while going to school full-time. When it comes to breaks, sure I worked extra, but other than that, my work schedule was light for the past couple of years. You're working a full-time job + you want to work a weekend shift for a pharmacy = I don't think it should be a problem, as long as there's availability. 10 to 12 hours is sufficient, as long as you impress your pharmacists with your quick learning, and you can get a great letter of recommendation from them.

I really don't think your interviewers will ask you why you didn't consider going for your Ph.D. in pharmacology, unless you mention it yourself. It's really not worth mentioning, since you want to get your Pharm.D., then your Ph.D. in Pharmacology. If you want to, seek schools that offer a dual degree program and hope to get into those programs. That way, you have a better feel of wanting to do a dual degree or get just your Pharm.D.

Good luck.

A lot of people have degrees in other fields, like business, math, art, or computer science, and yet they want to apply to pharmacy schools. The only thing that matters to pharmacy schools, curriculum-wise, is the pre-requisites that they ask you to have complete.

 

[OldPharm]

Hi friends,

I have a couple of questions and would appreciate your replies. I am planning to apply for pharmacy schools in 2013, so how much experience do I need to get in this field. I mean every weekend if I get little bit of experience in retail setting or volunteer clinics, would that be enough? I can spare only weekends because I am on a full time job. Is there a minimum requirement as far as hours of experience are concerned? If I have just 10 to 12 hours of experience would that be sufficient?

I am more interested in research and teaching in pharmacy. I have a master's degree in fisheries and I plan to switch fields. I am assuming in the interview (if I get an opportunity 😀)there is a chance that the professors may ask me why I did not consider going for a direct PhD in pharmacology. So how do I answer such a question. I am actually interested in getting a PharmD degree first and then doing a PhD instead of a direct PhD in pharmacology.

I would really appreciate your comments and suggestions!

Hmm... You are not telling us the full story here. If you are REALLY interested in research and teaching in pharmacy, PhD is the way to go and wouldn't even bother thinking about getting PharmD. So, it's going to be a hard road for you to defend yourself during interviews. Do some more soul searching and come up with an honest reason why you want the PharmD degree. Once you figure this out, then you got your answer. The answer is inside your head, so don't ask us, but ask yourself.

P.S. I'm not trying to be a prick or anything, but I also had to go through the same process, so... good luck.

 

[vasoolraja]

Hmm... You are not telling us the full story here. If you are REALLY interested in research and teaching in pharmacy, PhD is the way to go and wouldn't even bother thinking about getting PharmD. So, it's going to be a hard road for you to defend yourself during interviews. Do some more soul searching and come up with an honest reason why you want the PharmD degree. Once you figure this out, then you got your answer. The answer is inside your head, so don't ask us, but ask yourself.

P.S. I'm not trying to be a prick or anything, but I also had to go through the same process, so... good luck.

Hi OldPharm: Thanks for your reply. The following are the reasons why I am considering a Pharm D degree instead of a PhD.
1. with pharm D you have the flexibility of changing from one area to another. For instance, after working as a retail pharmacist for a number of years you have the option to work in a hospital setting or in a health insurance industry. On the contrary if I do a PhD, I have to do research and teaching life long and I don't have the flexibility to become a retail pharmacist or work in a hospital setting. Pharm.D gives this flexibility.
2. With a pharm D degree you can work directly with the patients. This opportunity will give us a better understanding of the needs of the patients. This knowledge might be helpful when conducting research.
3. You can become a certified pharmacist with a Pharm D degree. This would give you more prestige and will fetch you a higher salary.

I don't know if these reasons are sufficient to justify the question "why you did not consider going for a direct PhD if you are interested in research and teaching?"
Please let me know your comments and suggestions

 

[Pharmacist Zoom]

Hi OldPharm: Thanks for your reply. The following are the reasons why I am considering a Pharm D degree instead of a PhD.
1. with pharm D you have the flexibility of changing from one area to another. For instance, after working as a retail pharmacist for a number of years you have the option to work in a hospital setting or in a health insurance industry. On the contrary if I do a PhD, I have to do research and teaching life long and I don't have the flexibility to become a retail pharmacist or work in a hospital setting. Pharm.D gives this flexibility.
2. With a pharm D degree you can work directly with the patients. This opportunity will give us a better understanding of the needs of the patients. This knowledge might be helpful when conducting research.
3. You can become a certified pharmacist with a Pharm D degree. This would give you more prestige and will fetch you a higher salary.

I don't know if these reasons are sufficient to justify the question "why you did not consider going for a direct PhD if you are interested in research and teaching?"
Please let me know your comments and suggestions

Yeah true it gives u more options after having a pharmD....but at the end of the day if u really want to be a teacher then pursuing a PhD isn't a bad idea...👍

 

[OldPharm]

Hi OldPharm: Thanks for your reply. The following are the reasons why I am considering a Pharm D degree instead of a PhD.
1. with pharm D you have the flexibility of changing from one area to another. For instance, after working as a retail pharmacist for a number of years you have the option to work in a hospital setting or in a health insurance industry. On the contrary if I do a PhD, I have to do research and teaching life long and I don't have the flexibility to become a retail pharmacist or work in a hospital setting. Pharm.D gives this flexibility.
2. With a pharm D degree you can work directly with the patients. This opportunity will give us a better understanding of the needs of the patients. This knowledge might be helpful when conducting research.
3. You can become a certified pharmacist with a Pharm D degree. This would give you more prestige and will fetch you a higher salary.

I don't know if these reasons are sufficient to justify the question "why you did not consider going for a direct PhD if you are interested in research and teaching?"
Please let me know your comments and suggestions

Hmm, I should have elaborated "soul searching". Anybody with internet access or 30 mintue meeting session with a career advisor can come up with those lists. Adcoms see thousands of applications with very similar reasons why they would like to pursue a career in pharmacy. So then, what distinguish you from others?

Let me ask you some questions to make it easy.

1. Have you done any research projects relating to pharmaceutical research? If not, how do you know you want to pursue a career in research?
2. Have you taught students before as a TA or sunday school teacher at your church or as a intermural sport coach? If not, how do you know you want to teach?
3. Have you work directly with patients before? If not, how do you know you like working directly with pateints?
4. Do you have a role model with PharmD/PhD who flexibly switches around their career from clinical to research and vice versa?

What I meant by soul searching is how did your LIFE EXPERIENCES lead you to where you are now and help you decide to pursue a career in pharmacy?

I guess my questions also answer your other question about volunteering and EC's.

I'm sure you are very intelligent and I wouldn't doubt there are many pharmacy schools that will snatch you up when you start applying, but if you want to challenge yourself and go for the top ranking pharmacy schools, you better be prepared to answer these questions I asked.