I'm afraid :(

[dstormz]

What if i won't be able to get accepted into a pharmacy program?

I heard it's very competitive and all

Anyway, what would you do, go back to college and change your major or apply for med school?

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[neonam11]

David,

Hey, if you don't get in, it won't be the end of the world, and you can believe me because I was one of those people who got rejected last year when I applied to UCSF, the only pharmacy school I applied to. I was so cocky back then (I'm still trying to master the art of modesty) and thought that I could get into UCSF with the snap of my finger. Needless to say, for the interview, I did not bother to research about the profession nor honed my verbal and written skills. Sure, I had a good GPA, community service, and some leadership skills, but UCSF, like so many other pharmacy schools, only accept applicants with the full package. When I did get the rejection letter, I thought it was the end of the world. Here I was making all these plans about how great it would be to attend classes at UCSF and "wham" it fell all apart. However, after talking to a lot of thoughtful friends, I realized that a one year delay in my future career did not matter especially if I have 35-40 years left and really worked hard to ensure a seat for the fall of 2003. Looking back, I am glad I got rejected to UCSF the first time. Not only did it land my stratospheric ego back down to sea level, but many other cool things happened in the intervening year. Don't get me wrong. Work hard so that you don't have to apply twice, but if things don't work out, but you really believe pharmacy is in your blood, just work harder the second time around to make sure you get accepted. Apply to a few schools that are less competitive to make sure that you get accepted to some pharmacy schools.

If you already graduated and unless you need to fulfill your prepharmacy prerequisites, you don't need to return back to school just for the sake of killing some time before you get into a professional program. Instead, try to work as a pharm technician if you feel pharmacy school is still the way to go. Not only will you gain experience and insight into the profession, but you will earn a little extra cash before you head off to school. As far as applying to medical school, I think overall it's harder to get accepted there than in pharmacy school, but who knows, maybe you have a knack for medicine, and you just don't know it yet. Know what you are capable of and do what you love. Don't compromise your happiness by going into a profession that is your second-choice. Later.

 

[LVPharm]

Well said, neonam11!

David, if you really want to become a pharmacist, what you should be afraid of is a future where you question whether or not you COULD have gotten into pharmacy school. Sure it's competitive this year, but that shouldn't stop you. If you don't get into schools you've applied to, take your rejections as an opportunity to find out how to improve your application, not as a defeat of your aspirations.

I don't know where you are in your education...have you done your undergrad and fulfilled your prereqs? Are you concerned about grades you've earned doing those prereqs?

 

[LSUMED2006]

Originally posted by dstormz
What if i won't be able to get accepted into a pharmacy program?

I heard it's very competitive and all

Anyway, what would you do, go back to college and change your major or apply for med school?

It is indeed very competitive. If you really want to be a pharmacist and don't get in, find out where you were weak and spend the next year strengthening your application. Volunteer/ work in a pharmacy and do some research. I wouldn't let one rejection make me change my major, especially if I wanted to be a pharmacist. Simply turning around and applying to medical school wouldn't be an ideal solution either. Med school is at least as difficult to get into, and would look extremely unfavorably at you applying to pharmacy, being rejected, and then applying to medical school. Get all of your ducks in a row, and if need be spend a year strengthening your application. If you truly want to be a pharmacist, then don't let a setback as minor as a rejection keep you from it.

Jason

 

[dstormz]

This is *going to be* my 2nd year at a community college, i havn't got the chance to start any sciense courses yet, which i'm going to in the Fall semester.

Sorry if the question seems foolish since i don't want to waste another two years pursuing something that will provide me nothing in return.

After college, i hope that i will get accepted into UMBC's pharmacy program. So far my gpa has been consisting, 3.50; However, the problem is that i have no job experience I was thinking of going to a retail store like Giant and ask them if i could be an intern, is this possible? I thought you need your degree first to show that you know what you are doing?

p.s. Is it possible for a high school student to be accepted into a pharmacy school?

 

[Kovox]

UMBC's entering class have a couple of students who just fininshed their 63 credits and applied directly. You'll be more competitive with a degree but it's not required.

Job experience - it would be great if you could get some pharmacy experience because one of the interview questions will be "why pharmacy," "What got you into pharmacy"

 

[LVPharm]

Originally posted by dstormz
This is my 2nd year at a community college, i havn't got the chance to start my sciense courses yet, which i'm going to do in the Fall semester.

Sorry if the question seems foolish since i don't want to waste another two years pursuing something that will provide me nothing in return.

After college, i hope that i will get accepted into UMBC's pharmacy program. So far my gpa has been consisting, 3.50; However, the problem is that i have no job experience I was thinking of going to a retail store like Giant and ask them if i could be an intern, is this possible? I thought you need your degree first to show that you know what you are doing?

p.s. Is it possible for a high school student to be accepted into a pharmacy school?

I'm not familiar with Marlyland pharmacy law, but you could gain experience as a pharmacy technician or at the very least as a clerk. If you don't have at least an associate's degree in a science (or attend a pharm tech training program) your best bet will be to go around to different pharmacies and see about employment as a clerk/typist. Talk to the pharmacy managers and store managers. Intern licenses are only for PharmD students or PharmDs who haven't passed board exams. Clerks don't need licensure or a college degree.

You've got a 3.5. Your're starting off having done very well for yourself. If you like what you see working in a pharmacy, it'll only help motivate you to do well in your prereqs and pursue pharmacy. It'll also help you remain competitive in the application process, and provide you with professional sources for letters of rec. You may, instead, find out that pharmacy isn't what you really want to do...

Never heard of high school students getting accepted directly to pharmacy school. I always though that you had to complete your prereq courses prior to admissions, which usually meant 2 years of college work minimum. I think UOP will allow you to use high school calculus and physics, but that's the extent of "acceptable" high school coursework. Anybody heard anything different?

 

[jdpharmd?]

Originally posted by dstormz
This is my 2nd year at a community college, i havn't got the chance to start my sciense courses yet, which i'm going to do in the Fall semester.

Sorry if the question seems foolish since i don't want to waste another two years pursuing something that will provide me nothing in return.

After college, i hope that i will get accepted into UMBC's pharmacy program. So far my gpa has been consisting, 3.50; However, the problem is that i have no job experience I was thinking of going to a retail store like Giant and ask them if i could be an intern, is this possible? I thought you need your degree first to show that you know what you are doing?

p.s. Is it possible for a high school student to be accepted into a pharmacy school?

First, you need to make sure that you're pursuing pharmacy for the right reasons. If you haven't taken ANY college-level science courses and don't have any experience, then I would wonder why you think that pharmacy so specifically fits your interests. Like you said, you don't want to waste two years pursuing something that will provide you nothing in return. That being said...

I don't know Maryland's pharmacy laws either, but you can always slip by somehow. Either as a cashier or tech or whatever. If you have 1 or 2 years until you even apply, then you've got the time.

Yes, it is possible for some HS students to be accepted into a few, very specific pharmacy programs, usually referred to as "six year programs". UConn comes to mind. They take HS students and as long as you can maintain certain pre-reqs and grades, you are automatically admitted into the pharmacy college at year #2. None of the 6 year schools that I know of will take transfer students who have already graduated from high school (i.e. you could't apply after, say, taking one year of college somewhere.) Some schools also offer their honors college undergrads seats in the pharmacy school if they maintain certain grades. (UofP, Ferris State)

Hope I've been of some help,
Jd

 

[neonam11]

David,

Alrighty, from the messages you wrote, this is my interpretation of your predicament: You are going to be a third year college student this coming fall, hoping to get into the University of Maryland pharmacy program in the future, yet you are unsure whether you will get accepted or not because of your lack of experience in pharmacy. (By the way, did you recently graduate from high school but attended college during the last two years of high school, thus have not fulfilled the science requirement?) At this point, I'm even guessing that you have doubts whether you want to be a pharmacist or not. As such, you are unsure whether you should take the required courses needed to get into pharmacy school. The picture I painted, is it correct?

If this indeed the case, my friend, first you need to decide whether pharmacy is what you want to get into. To determine if it is the right profession, read books and articles about pharmacy, and at the very least, volunteer at a pharmacy to get to know the profession and people doing the work. Parroting what the others advised, I suggest you try to become a clerk at a retail pharmacy if at all possible. Once you know pharmacy is what you want to do, then you can decide whether to invest your energy to completing the prerequisites, and applying to pharmacy schools, and interviewing there. Good luck!

 

[LVPharm]

Originally posted by jdpharmd?
Yes, it is possible for some HS students to be accepted into a few, very specific pharmacy programs, usually referred to as "six year programs". UConn comes to mind. They take HS students and as long as you can maintain certain pre-reqs and grades, you are automatically admitted into the pharmacy college at year #2. None of the 6 year schools that I know of will take transfer students who have already graduated from high school (i.e. you could't apply after, say, taking one year of college somewhere.) Some schools also offer their honors college undergrads seats in the pharmacy school if they maintain certain grades. (UofP, Ferris State)

Hope I've been of some help,
Jd

Oh yeah! That's right! (LVPharm slaps forehead)...Drake University in Iowa now comes to mind (my pharmacy supervisor's alma mater).

 

[johnnyk]

Actually there was a time when some school accepted students directly into the pharmacy program (4yr). That has long been gone.

In terms of 6yr programs, I also hear that STLCOP....St. Louis College of Pharmacy, accepts high school students. It is a stand alone university not directly affiliated with anyother. From what I have heard, they have a great program.

 

[jdpharmd?]

Originally posted by johnnyk
Actually there was a time when some school accepted students directly into the pharmacy program (4yr). That has long been gone.

Wasn't the B.S. Pharm usually a 5-year program? Now it's all PharmD, and a completely different animal as far as admissions, pre-reqs, etc go. Even my old boss (c/o 1984) was a 5year B.S. Pharm. Did a 4 year ever exist? Not that it matters anymore....

 

[Triangulation]

I'm kinda confused Dave. You've gone two years w/out taking any science courses pre-pharm? That almost seems like you've been avoiding them. Like everyone else, and not to pick on you or anything, bc you still have a great chance and an awesome opportunity, but you need to find out if you can hack the science pre-reqs before speculating on this career. I know that people can get in w/ C's into pharm school, and that's not a bad thing, at the same time you should make sure you're cut out for this and a good litmus test of that is coursework.

You're sweating on this too much. Take some pre-reqs, you're gonna need em for med school or pharm school, and even if you land up in business, it won't hurt you that you took g chem.

You'll be alright, just take the step

 

[TCB]

Hey

You live exactly where I live !! how cool is that ?
what community college are you attending ? Montgomery College ? I hope so .
Maybe we can study for the PCAT together ? My friend got accepted to University of Maryland, it is all about the PCAT, another friend got rejected because her PCAT score was too low; in fact she applied to four schools with no luck. She is trying again this year, this time she is really going to study for the PCAT.
Oh well I am sure that you will do good , stop panicking just work hard you know you can do it. Oh yeah you can apply for a Pharmacy technician position at CVS, they are not too big on prior experience. If you want to apply at Giant , go ahead but they want experienced people. You can always give it a try, they are currently hiring.