MINIMUM GPA really the minimum?

[rx27563]

i emailed shenendoah and wingate about their min. overall GPA requirements (2.8) b/c the way it looks ill have a 2.7ish when i send my app in this summer but they both said that they would review my application and to excel on the PCAT in June....so why do they even post this minimum GPA? do all schools review the apps if the min. GPA has not been met?

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[fmbzp5]

they will take the money?

Maybe the assumption that you can still take enough classes to bring your GPA over that amount OR their min. is for the pre reqs not the overall.

all guesses

 

[cystapharm]

I agree. they just want your money. Theyll probably glance at it really quick to see if your other areas are superb. if not, in the trash it goes and NEXT!

 

[daoismz]

schools have a minimum so they won't have to waste their time looking at 2.2 GPA application.

Come on, aren't you even gonna give yourself a chance to pull above their 2.8 GPA requirement?

And if you do get your grades above the minimum and you do great on the PCAT (somewhere close to 90, i'm guessing), then you might have a chance. Read all the other threads about pplz gettin' in with sub 3.0

 

[omnione]

I agree with the other responses....

Admissions staff often like to be positive, which doesn't always mean realistic. They would like your $50 - $100 dollars.

If its possible, remind them to consider your fall grades too. Of course, do very well this fall.......

 

[Time2Sig]

The pharmacy I work at just hired a new pharmacist that graduated from the UW pharmacy school pretty recently and when I asked her about her pre-pharmacy she said she had just over a 2.7 GPA. She said the question came up in her interview on why she had a low GPA and she told them anyone can get a high GPA if they don't have to work full time to put themselves through school. Apparently that impressed them.
Her PCATs score was pretty high and she had 5 years of pharmacy experience going into the interview if that helps

 

[mtgirl]

I guess it depends on the school. WVU's min. for both overall and pre-req is 3.1. Nothing else on your application gets read if you don't have 3.1. Found this out the hard way with my 3.05 pre-req.

 

[LowGPAHighPCAT]

i emailed shenendoah and wingate about their min. overall GPA requirements (2.8) b/c the way it looks ill have a 2.7ish when i send my app in this summer but they both said that they would review my application and to excel on the PCAT in June....so why do they even post this minimum GPA? do all schools review the apps if the min. GPA has not been met?

I don't know about your school, but it seems that mine will fudge a little. My school's minimum GPA is advertised as 2.5, but during the interview session, they told the interviewees (including me) that they didn't interview anybody with a GPA of less than 3.0. Mine is well below 3.0. However, I had great PCAT scores, experience and LOR's. In addition, they told us that there was a minimum PCAT score. However, there was at least one person in my interview session whose scores were lower than the minimums. Do great on a PCAT, have good LOR's and experience and you never know...One point however. I did receive an interview, but I've not yet been accepted. I'm still waiting (as are many other people who interviewed at my school).

Good Luck!!!

 

[Trancelucent1]

The pharmacy I work at just hired a new pharmacist that graduated from the UW pharmacy school pretty recently and when I asked her about her pre-pharmacy she said she had just over a 2.7 GPA. She said the question came up in her interview on why she had a low GPA and she told them anyone can get a high GPA if they don't have to work full time to put themselves through school. Apparently that impressed them.
Her PCATs score was pretty high and she had 5 years of pharmacy experience going into the interview if that helps

And then some people can work full-time and get A's. It depends on the person. My boyfriend has worked full-time to get himself through school and he has a close to perfect GPA. Just depends on the person. I worked part-time and had mostly A's, I also worked late hours (home at 12-1am) and had to get up at 7am to get to an 8am class. It depends on the person and I think a pharmacy school would be more impressed if you worked full-time and were more competitive, that shows a great ability to multi-task and organize your schedule (something very much needed in pharmacy school).

 

[DoNtGIvEUp]

what was the school she applied to?

 

[DoNtGIvEUp]

what was the name of the school she applied to?

 

[hpharm07]

who would not want to take your money?...btw in fine bold point print it read NON-REFUNDABLE, money-order or check only y, watch out, which school?... i've heard from from school administration who bs with nice letter , e-mail, scheme etc, after you send them the money, don't bother to hear from them, but you do get another nice supplement letter for more money or apply undergrad, such donations, such false hope

 

[Lurkerkat]

I know UCHSC is the reverse, they claim their minimum is a 2.5 on paper, but when they spoke at my school they were very forward with the fact they don't accept anything below a 3.0. They told us that if anyone got accepted with a GPA below 3.0, it's because they had already been accepted and pulled C's in their remaining pre-req classes. I find that a bit silly, might as well just make the official minimum GPA 3.0 then, but I guess it's an easy way to make some money off of the application fee.

Maybe those schools make exceptions in very special cases, like low grades were due to a death in the family, or were isolated to a single semester while everything else has been awesome. Maybe someone is absolutely spectacular in every other aspect of their application and kicks major butt during the interview and they decide to take a chance. If you feel that the other areas of your application are very strong, then I say go for it... if not it might be a waste of money and they'll just pluck the check out of the envelope and dump your app in the trash.

 

[binghamkid]

I know UCHSC is the reverse, they claim their minimum is a 2.5 on paper, but when they spoke at my school they were very forward with the fact they don't accept anything below a 3.0. They told us that if anyone got accepted with a GPA below 3.0, it's because they had already been accepted and pulled C's in their remaining pre-req classes. I find that a bit silly, might as well just make the official minimum GPA 3.0 then, but I guess it's an easy way to make some money off of the application fee.

Maybe those schools make exceptions in very special cases, like low grades were due to a death in the family, or were isolated to a single semester while everything else has been awesome. Maybe someone is absolutely spectacular in every other aspect of their application and kicks major butt during the interview and they decide to take a chance. If you feel that the other areas of your application are very strong, then I say go for it... if not it might be a waste of money and they'll just pluck the check out of the envelope and dump your app in the trash.

That's very true, but the reason they don't accept people with below a 3.0 and allow them to progress to the interview stage really is because they know that they'll get more than enough applicants who have a 3.0 or higher. Therefore, it's not a blanket cutoff, but it's more of an expectation for them knowing what their typical candidates are like and what they should expect. However, they do give you the courtesy of perusing your application to see if you are a notable exception. I know, because I'm one of those exceptions =)

 

[rx27563]

well you know Campbell is famous for taking 2.5's over some 3.5's....as a matter of fact i have two friends in lab who both applied last september. the guy with a 3.45 made a 78 on his PCAT (3 yrs work experience) and the guy with the 2.5 made a 82 on his PCAT (5 yrs work experience). the 2.5 was accepted and 3.4 rejected i couldnt believe it..well it kind of made me happy because maybe this way i still have a chance. Campbell lists their min. gpa on their website as 2.5 but on pharmcas it says 2.8...so i dont think they even know what it is. I talked to an intern this weekend who is graduating from Campbell and she told me that GPA is important but the PCAT is valued more in Campbell's eyes - and the interview is the deal-breaker. she said that she got in w/ a 2.9 and no work experience but a 92 on her PCAT...talk about weird admissions.

 

[cdpiano27]

I know that campbell has weird admissions because I know people who have gotten in with low GPA's and others with 3.8-3.9 with 90's on the PCAT who have not. It is more like applying to a job than a university. The interview seems to count almost 80% and everything else around 20%. Maybe that is exaggerating. But I suggest for those with low GPA's and very strong experience / extracurriculars, Campbell may indeed be the place to apply. Even though Campell does not say this, they seem to favor in state people from NC even though they are actually a private school.

Anyway, were the people with 2.8-2.9 who got in from prestigious undergrad schools (such as Johns Hopkins, UC-Berkeley, Duke, etc)?

Just curious.