Is my advisor correct?

[Ross434]

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So i mentioned pharmacy school to my advisor today. I'm thinking of applying this fall for fall of '08. He told me "you have no chance without having organic chem first, and practically no chance without a bachelor's degree". He made it clear that it "wasnt worth applying at all" without having had organic. I have a decent background knowledge of organic (i believe enough for the pcat).

My question is: come this fall, should I apply? (i desperately want to get out of undergrad and my current city). By this fall i will have completed 2 sems of A&P, 1 sem microbiology, 1 sem general bio, 2 sems general chem, 2 sems econ, all of my social science and humanities requirements, and calculus. I'll still need to take organic, stats, 2nd semester bio, physics, and a 2nd composition course. I have a 3.97 GPA (4.0 science) though, pretty good LOR writers, several years of volunteering and tutoring, will have pharmacy experience, and have done pretty well on practice PCAT's.

Do you think schools would admit me even without having finished those pre-reqs, given my academic track record? Is a bachelor's really necessary? Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[shaun009]

Your chances with ochem and a bachelors are awesome. However, you still have a pretty good chance of making it without those two. I applied during my first semester of ochem and had two interviews.. it's possible. Your advisor is wrong though, I know plenty of people accepted with no bachelors. Some schools, like Ohio State, require 100% of their applicants have a bachelors.

 

[LowGPAHighPCAT]

So i mentioned pharmacy school to my advisor today. I'm thinking of applying this fall for fall of '08. He told me "you have no chance without having organic chem first, and practically no chance without a bachelor's degree". He made it clear that it "wasnt worth applying at all" without having had organic. I have a decent background knowledge of organic (i believe enough for the pcat).

My question is: come this fall, should I apply? (i desperately want to get out of undergrad and my current city). By this fall i will have completed 2 sems of A&P, 1 sem microbiology, 1 sem general bio, 2 sems general chem, 2 sems econ, all of my social science and humanities requirements, and calculus. I'll still need to take organic, stats, 2nd semester bio, physics, and a 2nd composition course. I have a 3.97 GPA (4.0 science) though, pretty good LOR writers, several years of volunteering and tutoring, will have pharmacy experience, and have gotten great practice scores on my PCAT.

Do you think schools would admit me even without having finished those pre-reqs, given my academic track record? Is a bachelor's really necessary? Thanks in advance for any advice.

I don't know of any school that would fudge on Organic. Pharmacy is based on biochemistry and biochemistry is based on organic chemistry. It doesn't matter what you get on the PCAT, you're going to have to have those classes (and possibly biochem as well depending on where you are applying). In addition, organic is typically a two-part course with a lab, so you'll probably need two full semesters to complete the coursework. Sorry to burst your bubble, but I believe that anybody who tells you otherwise is either lying or doesn't know what they are talking about. Listen to your advisor and if you're still not satisfied, contact the pharmacy schools that you are considering applying to and speak to someone from student services.

 

[LowGPAHighPCAT]

Your chances with ochem and a bachelors are awesome. However, you still have a pretty good chance of making it without those two. I applied during my first semester of ochem and had two interviews.. it's possible. Your advisor is wrong though, I know plenty of people accepted with no bachelors. Some schools, like Ohio State, require 100% of their applicants have a bachelors.

I do agree with the bachelor's thing - you don't have to one to get in. But you MUST HAVE the pre-reqs.

 

[Jbuprepharm]

as long as you will have taken Ochem by the time you'd be admitted, and you have good stats and experience, I don't see what the problem would be.

Just check the prereqs and any schools you're interested in. Having a bachelor's doesn't hurt, but about half of our class is not degreed, so it shouldn't hold you back either

 

[Ross434]

as long as you will have taken Ochem by the time you'd be admitted, and you have good stats and experience, I don't see what the problem would be.

Just check the prereqs and any schools you're interested in. Having a bachelor's doesn't hurt, but about half of our class is not degreed, so it shouldn't hold you back either

By time of admission? or time of enrollment?

 

[eddie269]

I think organic is one of the main things adcoms will look at when judging your transcript. I had C's in the first 2 qtr's of gen chem and bio, but I believe getting B's and A's in ochem really made overlook those early C's.

A bachelors is just the icing on the cake so don't worry too much about that.....yet. In a few years, having a bachelors will be vital but for now, I think you will be okay at most schools.

 

[Rumplestiltazepam]

Well applying to Fall 07 is kinda out of the picture I would say. It is really late in the application process and I agree with the above poster that I doubt a school would overlook not having OChem. Plus I don't think you would want go into Pharmacy school without Ochem. But sign up for Ochem for next year or even accelerated classes this summer and with your GPA and decent PCAT score you should be on your way.

Your advisor is wrong about having no chance without a Bachelors degree, plenty of people get into school without a Bachelors. I will not finish my bachelor until the second term of my P1 year.

Also take some time this summer if you havent already to get some pharm tech experience and you should be good to go. Your GPA is awesome so just get those Ochem courses and a PCAT score.....

 

[senzabee]

I would say your advisor means well and is mostly true, but of course it won't be impossible for you to get into pharmacy school for 2008. Just...it might be tougher. Even though you are great, you are competing with students who have degrees (some even have masters or beyond), who have taken courses beyond the prereqs, and who have had more experience in pharmacy. There are schools out there that, although people turned in their application early, have held their application because the adcoms wanted to see how they would do in ochem. I believe they see your ochem grade as an indication of how you may do in the tougher classes of pharmacy school.

Also, you do have quite a bit of prereqs to take. It depends on the schools you apply to, because some may require molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, etc etc. Your grades and ECs look great and I'm sure you'd be a kick-a$$ applicant if you had a degree. You might be fine getting into pharmacy school next year without a degree, but I wouldn't be too picky about where you go since you have a slight disadvantage. If you have the money and time to invest, I guess it doesn't hurt to apply and see. Just make sure you research which schools have a higher acceptance of non-degree students to make your odds higher.

 

[Farmercyst]

So i mentioned pharmacy school to my advisor today. I'm thinking of applying this fall for fall of '08. He told me "you have no chance without having organic chem first, and practically no chance without a bachelor's degree". He made it clear that it "wasnt worth applying at all" without having had organic. I have a decent background knowledge of organic (i believe enough for the pcat).

My question is: come this fall, should I apply? (i desperately want to get out of undergrad and my current city). By this fall i will have completed 2 sems of A&P, 1 sem microbiology, 1 sem general bio, 2 sems general chem, 2 sems econ, all of my social science and humanities requirements, and calculus. I'll still need to take organic, stats, 2nd semester bio, physics, and a 2nd composition course. I have a 3.97 GPA (4.0 science) though, pretty good LOR writers, several years of volunteering and tutoring, will have pharmacy experience, and have done pretty well on practice PCAT's.

Do you think schools would admit me even without having finished those pre-reqs, given my academic track record? Is a bachelor's really necessary? Thanks in advance for any advice.

It sounds like you know you need Orgo since you did list it on the "need to take list" You will need to do relatively well in terms of comprehension. With your GPA you could probably get away with a C in one of the two semesters. I'm not saying slack off, I'm just saying if you don't do as well as in other science classes it can still be okay. The whole BS/BA thing is becoming a popular trend, but there are still plenty of schools that will take you without it. PCAT is not required at all schools, but I think the ones that don't require it also have a higher percentage of BS/BA students (I've haven't checked across all schools, but I know that goes for most CA schools.) OSU may not have as high a percentage, but they do require upper-division prereqs. (specifically Micro and Biochem). So I'd say your advisor is half-right.

By the way, IMO, I say do your own research and only go to an advisor if you have to due to school requirements or if you can't find the answer to a question somewhere else. Otherwise you risk putting your future in someone elses hands. Quite frankly someone who has less vested interest in your future than you do.

 

[Farmercyst]

By time of admission? or time of enrollment?

By the school's deadline. Sometimes it's by matriculation, sometimes it's by the end of spring quarter/semester before matriculation.

 

[jun99]

I don't know of any school that would fudge on Organic. Pharmacy is based on biochemistry and biochemistry is based on organic chemistry. It doesn't matter what you get on the PCAT, you're going to have to have those classes (and possibly biochem as well depending on where you are applying). In addition, organic is typically a two-part course with a lab, so you'll probably need two full semesters to complete the coursework. Sorry to burst your bubble, but I believe that anybody who tells you otherwise is either lying or doesn't know what they are talking about. Listen to your advisor and if you're still not satisfied, contact the pharmacy schools that you are considering applying to and speak to someone from student services.

I disagree. First, if you start applying next fall, that still gives you two semesters to finish Organic, and with a GPA track record like yours, I don't think the admissions people are going to doubt your ability to do well! The bigger problem is not having a bachelor's degrees. The overwhelmingly large majority of those accepted (at least at the schools I've researched) have bachelor's degrees by the time they enter pharmacy school. However, it's usually not 100% so you definitely have a chance. Use the spring and summer to do some outstanding volunteer work and get pharmacy experience, in order to pad your application and make up for the fact that you'll be deficient in that area. You might have more limited choices without a bachelor's degree, but if you're really desparate to go to pharm school early, I would definitely recommend giving it a try. If nothing else, you'll have good experience for the next application cycle.

Good luck!

 

[sputnik25]

When I applied to LLU the the Fall 06 I was rejected because I didn't have enough classes done. I took several more classes this year and was excepted.

 

[LowGPAHighPCAT]

I disagree. First, if you start applying next fall, that still gives you two semesters to finish Organic, and with a GPA track record like yours, I don't think the admissions people are going to doubt your ability to do well! The bigger problem is not having a bachelor's degrees. The overwhelmingly large majority of those accepted (at least at the schools I've researched) have bachelor's degrees by the time they enter pharmacy school. However, it's usually not 100% so you definitely have a chance. Use the spring and summer to do some outstanding volunteer work and get pharmacy experience, in order to pad your application and make up for the fact that you'll be deficient in that area. You might have more limited choices without a bachelor's degree, but if you're really desparate to go to pharm school early, I would definitely recommend giving it a try. If nothing else, you'll have good experience for the next application cycle.

Good luck!

It depends entirely on the school whether or not you need a bachelor's degree. At my school, only about half of those admitted have a degree, but ALL of them, without exception, have taken Organic Chemistry, and most have had biochem. Some schools like to see the degree, others don't care so much as long as you have the pre-reqs. But you will have to have the pre-reqs.

 

[KellyBean]

I say just go ahead and apply for fall 2008 because by the time you update your fall transcript, you will have at least your organic I grade. That window doesn't close until February. Just take a chance and apply anyway. I know someone that got accepted even before she finished her organic 1. Maybe because she went to a VERY GOOD school and was in the navy and been working for 8 years.

 

[cycloketocaine]

It depends entirely on the school whether or not you need a bachelor's degree. At my school, only about half of those admitted have a degree, but ALL of them, without exception, have taken Organic Chemistry, and most have had biochem. Some schools like to see the degree, others don't care so much as long as you have the pre-reqs. But you will have to have the pre-reqs.

Only 33% that APPLIED had Bachelors (you) and 13% had an Associates (me). That means that the majority had NO degree whatsoever. Everyone had completed or will complete their pre reqs by June 1 though. 😎

 

[piyi]

I would definitely apply for Fall 2008. I got accepted to USN and I haven't even completed Ochem 1 yet. My GPA is really good, 3.9 overall and 4.0 science, and I have a B.A. in Telecommunications. I really did not think I had a chance since I had so few pre-reqs completed. But anything is possible, and with your scores, I think you have a good chance at getting accepted. So apply, the worst that can happen is that you don't get in (and you lose some money, but you have to figure out if it's within your budget to do that). But if you don't apply, then you don't even have a chance.

 

[Pharmcat]

Once you have all your pre-requisites, APPLY and apply early! Not all Pharmacy schools require a bachelors degree. Remember, if you apply they may say no, but if you don't apply, you are telling yourself no.