Fishing for compliments here...

[StartingLater]

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Hello, I am new to SDN. Reading these posts has helped me a lot so far...

To give you my background, when I was 16 I worked in a pharmacy. I graduated HS with honors, got a scholarship, and started college. I stopped going the second year because I had no clue what major to work towards. I have since been traveling overseas... I've taken a few online classes here and there, and have failed a few because again I couldn't grasp what I was working towards and didn't care and just stopped turning in the work, blah blah blah immature crap... So now it's nearly 6 years since I graduated high school and I find myself finally desiring a profession (pharmacy). I have a pretty low GPA based on my immature days (2.7 or so) and haven't taken anything but Calculus that would be considered pre-pharmacy.

Question: I am still overseas for another 12-18 months. How can I start uber-preparing for my life change? I have thought about getting certified as a CPT, and the PCAT/Organic Chem/Pharmacy Opps books are on their way. I realize I'm going to have to work a bit hard to make up for my fickle behavior years ago, and I have no problem with that, I'm a smart lady.

Honestly, I am just hoping for some people to share similar stories with me, tell me that 23 isn't old to be starting pre-pharmacy, etc... I am nervous and excited and scared and could honestly use a little encouragement from like minded people. That said, I am so freaking happy to have finally 'discovered' what I really want to do with my life, even though it was right in front of my face when I was 16.

Thanks for anything nice you have to say, and I'll give you plenty of chances to be rude/sarcastic/witty with me later on... But for now, niceness would be nice. 😀

 

[AngelaCL]

There are several students in my p1 class who are 25 and older - The ones I know of are 25, 27, 32, 33, and 38. And I go to a school with only a few transfer students (it's a 0-6 school) so it has a lot more 20 year olds than other schools. 23 is not too old! Getting a doctorate by the age of 30 is not bad at all.

 

[alenadoma]

Hello, I am new to SDN. Reading these posts has helped me a lot so far...

To give you my background, when I was 16 I worked in a pharmacy. I graduated HS with honors, got a scholarship, and started college. I stopped going the second year because I had no clue what major to work towards. I have since been traveling overseas... I've taken a few online classes here and there, and have failed a few because again I couldn't grasp what I was working towards and didn't care and just stopped turning in the work, blah blah blah immature crap... So now it's nearly 6 years since I graduated high school and I find myself finally desiring a profession (pharmacy). I have a pretty low GPA based on my immature days (2.7 or so) and haven't taken anything but Calculus that would be considered pre-pharmacy.

Question: I am still overseas for another 12-18 months. How can I start uber-preparing for my life change? I have thought about getting certified as a CPT, and the PCAT/Organic Chem/Pharmacy Opps books are on their way. I realize I'm going to have to work a bit hard to make up for my fickle behavior years ago, and I have no problem with that, I'm a smart lady.

Honestly, I am just hoping for some people to share similar stories with me, tell me that 23 isn't old to be starting pre-pharmacy, etc... I am nervous and excited and scared and could honestly use a little encouragement from like minded people. That said, I am so freaking happy to have finally 'discovered' what I really want to do with my life, even though it was right in front of my face when I was 16.

Thanks for anything nice you have to say, and I'll give you plenty of chances to be rude/sarcastic/witty with me later on... But for now, niceness would be nice. 😀

I'm 23..actually I'll be 24 in 12 days and I'm applying for next fall. Sometimes I feel like I'll be too old too, but there are so many people even on SDN that are in their 30s or 40s, have families, and decide to switch careers. It's never too late!
If you are serious about this, it will take some time. It will take about 2 years to finish all of the pre-reqs that are required for pharmacy school. Do some research to find which schools you are interested in, and see what their pre-reqs are. Take some online courses while you are still away, and make sure to get A's in all of them. Once you have some biologoy, chemistry, and organic chem under your belt, start preparing for the PCAT. Again, make sure you do as well as you possibly can on the PCAT (I'd say 80+). In the midst of all of this, try to find some extracurricular activities to do, especially ones that are pharmacy related. Shadow a pharmacist at a local hospital (I've done this in the UK, so it can be done), if you are able to work then find a job as a technician. Engage yourself in some volunteer activities..basically try to make yourself as well-rounded as possible. I'm sure you will sound interesting to the adcoms anyways, given that you've travelled so much. Make sure to include your experiences in your personal statement!
I'm sure that if you put your mind to it you will be able to achieve your goals. Good luck!

 

[FireyDragon]

First of all, welcome to SDN and 23 is not too old to start pharmacy. Personally I'm older than you are and preparing for pharmacy, so age doesn't matter. It doesn't matter how long it takes to accomplish your goal as long as you accomplish it.

Obviously you have internet. Since you will need to take prepharmacy classes it would be prudent to research what pharmacy schools you will want to apply to and look at the required prepharm classes there. All pharmacy schools have prereq websites. Make a list of all classes you need and keep track of it. Try to get A's in your classes. Study well for the PCAT (I would take it after you've taken most of the prereq). Keep up with the pharmacy experience.

The best advice I can give you is be organized and stay on top of your studies. Also, use the search function. You will be able to find answers from previous posts.

Good Luck!

 

[triumphbr]

Fishing for compliments here...

Your hair looks wonderful today. 😉

I started my pre-reqs for pharm at 29 years old and was accepted to my first choice school this year at 31yo.

No problem.

 

[jyw003]

don't let age be of concern

 

[ILoveOrange]

I so agree..I am just starting and I am 33...😳

There are several students in my p1 class who are 25 and older - The ones I know of are 25, 27, 32, 33, and 38. And I go to a school with only a few transfer students (it's a 0-6 school) so it has a lot more 20 year olds than other schools. 23 is not too old! Getting a doctorate by the age of 30 is not bad at all.

 

[UNMorBUST]

I will be 23-24 my first year in pharm at the earliest.

 

[sakigt]

Read my first post ever on SDN and my last post on SDN (besides this one)

Two years of prereqs flies by. Go for it.

 

[JHFP83]

My story is very similar to yours actually. I did wonderfully in HS. Went to college (NYU), but I started to care less for my work. I was planning to major in bio but for whatever reason felt my heart wasn't fully in it. I had some sort of mini-breakdown the beginning of my sophomore year (reason for the breakdown is a whole 'nother story). I left with a GPA of 3.2.

I traveled overseas to the UK. Lived in Scotland for over two years. Met and married a lovely man, had a kid.

I'm 25 now and ready to go back to college. I'm going to start my pre-reqs in the spring.

 

[StartingLater]

Thanks so much, each day that goes by I get more and more excited to pursue these goals. I'm absolutely terrified, don't get me wrong (I'm pathetically afraid to do things that are possible for me to fail at), but I feel more and more sure of myself as the days go on. 🙂

 

[Nemo777]

I so agree..I am just starting and I am 33...😳

I'm staring at 32! ILove Orange, I'm in the Dallas as well (a close suburb). Where are you going to school for your pre-reqs? I'm thinking of going to one of the local community colleges. 🙂

 

[ceruleansky]

Amazing how you're realizing your dream StartingLate! It doesn't matter how long it takes or what age you start, as long as you know what you want 🙂

there is a huge age range in my class...although the average age is around 23-24, my class has a lot of "older" students, some married with families and kids. Oldest person in my class is in his early 40s...so you're not even that old at all!

 

[drugdoc]

Average age in my class starting out P1 year was 31....yes, 31!

 

[UNMorBUST]

Average age in my class starting out P1 year was 31....yes, 31!

I would never think 31.

 

[illtreaturite1]

My situation took a bit of a different route, but honestly, not all that different.

I went to school from 97 to 2001, had a horrible year in 2000 to 2001 after the death of my father and a school transfer, and took a break for a few years. During this break was when I seriously got interested in pharmacy and as a result have worked in the field off an on for the past 8 years.

I finished my degree in 2004 and had a really good semester, I took a break from school, worked in a lab for 2 years and tried sales for a month to see alternate ways into the work as I thought they would be fun, but realized this past year that I really needed to become a pharmacist to fulfill my life goals.

I spoke with a Dean at the college I'm applying to, and upon her advice am retaking Organic Chem and Calculus this year. I have submitted my application and now am just waiting to see the outcome. PharmCas has calculated my gpa at a 2.89, although its honestly closer to a 3.1 or 3.2. My saving grace is that I have done well in all my courses since I returned to school in 2003. I figure if I'm not successful this year, I have my foot in the door and will definitely be successful next year. Upon their final decision of my application, if I am rejected I will return to the dean and get an evaluation of my application, learn the pro's and con's and see what classes I need to take the following year. Also, on my own I have decided to include in this years academic plan to retake the classes I failed in my fateful 2001 year (1.06 gpa for due to 1 bad semester). I figure this will prove that I am a capable student who has grown more responsible as I have grown older.

I wish you the best of luck. Your determination now will help you succeed more than you realize. BTW, I'll be 30 next year, so I'm a bit older than you. Just study your butt off, it'll go a long way in helping offset those "bad" years.

 

[ILoveOrange]

I am getting my pre-reqs out of the way at Dallas County Community College. I want to go to a Texas pharmacy school, unfortunately there are none in Dallas 🙁 but there are several that are less than 4 hours away by car 🙂 so I will make it work.

I'm staring at 32! ILove Orange, I'm in the Dallas as well (a close suburb). Where are you going to school for your pre-reqs? I'm thinking of going to one of the local community colleges. 🙂

 

[ILoveOrange]

Now this really makes me feel better! 🙂😍

Average age in my class starting out P1 year was 31....yes, 31!