New pre-pharm student (with questions)

[Ticer]

Hello. I have been reading SDN for about a month now, and this is my first post. I have learned so much about pharmacy, and pharmacy school and its admission process from reading these forums. Awesome, thanks to all you

I am brand new to college. I am starting at a CC and plan on transferring to UCSB for a B.S. in Pharmacology. I am currently enrolled in a few classes (pharm pre-reqs and for major). I will be enrolling full-time summer, and 18+ unit semesters here on out (stopped working for this). I have a few questions (hopefully not too obscure) concerning my pre-pharm path, along with my future B.S. transfer to a UC. Any feedback or suggestions will be appreciated much

The idea is that I want to combine both pre-pharm classes with major classes as best as I can.. and for the most part it seems I am able to do so. However I have a few hangups.

1.a To transfer to UCSB from ARC (CC) under the pharmacology b.s. according to assist.org, I need to take "1 complete sequence (2-3 terms) of major-applicable General Biology w/Lab". Using the assist.org resource it tells me to take 'Principles of Biology', 'Principles of Botany', and 'Principles of Zoology'.

1.b My question is whether you think I should be able to swap botany and zoology with anatomy&physiology 1&2. These are equivalent in both units and lab hours. Again, I am trying to have my courses apply both to transfer and pre-pharm reqs. Although, this resource does not list anatomy and physiology as classes that will satisy, it seems like it would?

2. I am thinking of taking 'Calculus for the Life and Social Sciences 1&2' to satisfy my full year of calc. This will satisfy my major transfer. I am wondering if these are acceptable as pre-pharm? They are 3 units versus the 5 units of "regular" calc.

3. Before I take Gen Chem 1 this upcoming fall semester, I will be enrolling in a prerequisite chemistry class. My options are 'Introduction to Chemistry' and 'Chemical Calculations'. For the purpose of preping for Gen Chem, does anyone have a suggestion as to which I should take?

If you made it this far then I both thank you and apologize.

Ticer

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[charfdorn]

Hello. I have been reading SDN for about a month now, and this is my first post. I have learned so much about pharmacy, and pharmacy school and its admission process from reading these forums. Awesome, thanks to all you

I am brand new to college. I am starting at a CC and plan on transferring to UCSB for a B.S. in Pharmacology. I am currently enrolled in a few classes (pharm pre-reqs and for major). I will be enrolling full-time summer, and 18+ unit semesters here on out (stopped working for this). I have a few questions (hopefully not too obscure) concerning my pre-pharm path, along with my future B.S. transfer to a UC. Any feedback or suggestions will be appreciated much

The idea is that I want to combine both pre-pharm classes with major classes as best as I can.. and for the most part it seems I am able to do so. However I have a few hangups.

1.a To transfer to UCSB from ARC (CC) under the pharmacology b.s. according to assist.org, I need to take "1 complete sequence (2-3 terms) of major-applicable General Biology w/Lab". Using the assist.org resource it tells me to take 'Principles of Biology', 'Principles of Botany', and 'Principles of Zoology'.

1.b My question is whether you think I should be able to swap botany and zoology with anatomy&physiology 1&2. These are equivalent in both units and lab hours. Again, I am trying to have my courses apply both to transfer and pre-pharm reqs. Although, this resource does not list anatomy and physiology as classes that will satisy, it seems like it would?

I can't speak to the specifics of this school system because I don't know it at all, but you will need general biology as well as anatomy & physiology for pharmacy school (at least for most programs). So put of A&P until you get the general down; it'll make A&P easier later.

2. I am thinking of taking 'Calculus for the Life and Social Sciences 1&2' to satisfy my full year of calc. This will satisfy my major transfer. I am wondering if these are acceptable as pre-pharm? They are 3 units versus the 5 units of "regular" calc.

3 units each? That seems fine to me.

3. Before I take Gen Chem 1 this upcoming fall semester, I will be enrolling in a prerequisite chemistry class. My options are 'Introduction to Chemistry' and 'Chemical Calculations'. For the purpose of preping for Gen Chem, does anyone have a suggestion as to which I should take?

If you made it this far then I both thank you and apologize.

Ticer

I can't answer this one at all. My gut says take the first option (intro). Are you sure you need these pre-reqs? If you had high school chem a lot of CCs will let you skip the pre-req. It sounds like you need to speak to an advisor at your school about this, and possibly one at the 4-year school you will be transferring to as well.

Is anyone out there more familiar with the California system that can answer this more specifically?

 

[idkwmcr]

I am still working on Biological Science degree. I have my pre-reqs complete along with 60 or so units. I wanted to try to apply to UOP before I completed my degree. Everyone that I have spoken to says that they hardly take any students without their degree completed. What are my chances of getting in early?

Science GPA: 3.4
Pharmacy Tech -8 months

 

[lymmys]

1.a To transfer to UCSB from ARC (CC) under the pharmacology b.s. according to assist.org, I need to take "1 complete sequence (2-3 terms) of major-applicable General Biology w/Lab". Using the assist.org resource it tells me to take 'Principles of Biology', 'Principles of Botany', and 'Principles of Zoology'.

1.b My question is whether you think I should be able to swap botany and zoology with anatomy&physiology 1&2. These are equivalent in both units and lab hours. Again, I am trying to have my courses apply both to transfer and pre-pharm reqs. Although, this resource does not list anatomy and physiology as classes that will satisy, it seems like it would?

Most of the pharmD programs require humman ana and human physio. However, you have to check with the school you want to apply to for alternative courses, which can be replaced for human ana and human physio. The list of alternative courses that I've seen so far from pharm school do not include botany nor zoology

2. I am thinking of taking 'Calculus for the Life and Social Sciences 1&2' to satisfy my full year of calc. This will satisfy my major transfer. I am wondering if these are acceptable as pre-pharm? They are 3 units versus the 5 units of "regular" calc.

Do you have course description for Cal for the Life and social sciences? The name of the course doesn't seem like just math for me, it sounds more like application...


3. Before I take Gen Chem 1 this upcoming fall semester, I will be enrolling in a prerequisite chemistry class. My options are 'Introduction to Chemistry' and 'Chemical Calculations'. For the purpose of preping for Gen Chem, does anyone have a suggestion as to which I should take?

Intro chem.

 

[Hydrocodeine]

Hey Ticer, I happen to have attended UCSB and received my B.S. in Pharmacology from there in 2007. I also was accepted to pharmacy school and am attending this Fall. I got into UCSB right after high school so my story will be somewhat different. I actually got into UCSB as a Computer Science Engineer, but quickly transferred out of that after my first quarter there. I actually wasn't officially a pharmacology major until my junior year (even though I was taking all the pre-requisites as a pre-bio major). My advice to you is to get all of your general-education classes taken care of first at your CC, i.e. calculus, english, humanities, and make sure you do well in them (nothing less than a B). You should be able to transfer to UCSB as a pre-bio student, and then once you are accepted you can petition to apply as a Pharmacology major. I found out through my interviews that having the Pharmacology B.S. degree was EXTREMELY helpful in that it gave me an edge that nobody else had (only 3 undergraduate campuses in the nation offer it as a B.S. last I checked). My grades were below average, so this was something that really boosted my chances. If you get good grades, you should be able to get into wherever you want. On a side note, I had the best time of my life at UCSB and the pharmacology program there is top-notch. The labs are brand new, and the technology used in the program is very innovative. Good luck and if you have any questions about the program or UCSB in general let me know.

 

[fenixtnlfan]

My guess is the Calc you mentioned will not satisfy pharmacy requirements. Anything with titles like "for non-science majors, for business majors, for social science majors" should probably be avoided as those classes are usually the simpler versions and will not work. However, it might be worth e-mailing a couple of pharm schools you are interested in applying to and see what they say. It would also be a good idea to contact someone at UCSB about what classes will transfer and what you can substitute as relying on a website isn't the most accurate source of info. I also agree A&P could not substitute for Gen Bio as they are not the same thing and you will actually have to take Gen Bio for a pharm school pre-req anyways.

 

[Ticer]

Charfdorn, lymmys, Hydrocodeine, and fenixtnlfan. Thanks a bunch for the swift replies and insights!

I'm gonna consolidate my answers in this one post so I don't clutter things up...

Principles of Biology = General Biology

As far as I can tell 'Principles of Biology' at my CC is this campuses version of General Biology. My campus does offer a class called 'General Biology', however it is less units, less lab hours, and uses the language "for non-science majors' hehe. So I am pretty sure 'Principles of Biology' is equiv to the 'General Biology' you guys/gals are mentioning.

I should clarify, as I think I worded my original question badly. I am not asking if I should replace Principles of Biology (General Biology) with A&P. I am wondering if you guys think UCSB would accept A&P 1&2 as substitution courses for Zoology and Botany. The transfer paperwork I got from my counselor for CC to UCSB lists 'Principles of Biology', 'Zoology' and 'Botany'. I am hoping to swap only zoology and botany with A&P 1&2 (and still satisfy the transfer). I realize I need to ask the department over at UCSB this question ultimately, but I figured I would ask you guys too!

It's been a long time since I was in HS... I wanted a primer for Gen Chem. Can't take Gen Chem until this fall semester anyways, so I figured I wouldn't challange the pre-requisite aspect, instead i'd make use of the extra time in summer to prep for Gen Chem. The school counselor suggested 'Chemical Calculations' over 'Intro Chem' as a pre-req for Gen Chem. I could potentially take both... Here is the description for 'Chemical Calculations' (I figure I don't need to post Intro Chem):

CHEM 310 Chemical Calculations 4 Units
Prerequisite: *Elementary Algebra* with a grade of "C" or better
Corequisite: *Intermediate Algebra*
Hours: 54 hours LEC ; 54 hours LAB
Description: This course is an introduction to chemical calculations, terminology, chemical concepts and laboratory techniques. It is designed for those who will take *General Chemistry* and need intensive preparation in problem solving.

The 'Calc for Life Sciences' I wasn't too worried about, but I am now lol. It would suck if I went that route only to later have to take Calc 1&2 at UCSB. The 'Calc for Life Sciences' are indeed less units, however it doesn't have the keywords "non-science majors'. UCSB accepts them as sub for Calc 1&2 for their Pharmacology degree. Here is the description:

MATH 350 Calculus for the Life and Social Sciences I 3 Units
Prerequisite: *Trigonometry* with a grade of "C" or better
Hours: 54 hours LEC
Description: This course covers functions, limits, and derivatives, and introduces antiderivatives. Algebraic and computational techniques are emphasized in applications from business, and social and biological sciences. It is not recommended for math or engineering majors.

Yeah I wasn't sure about the accuracy of this resource (assist.org) either, which fueled my questions. However, this is the resource my CC counselor used to print out my transfer plan, etc.

Thanks again for the help everyone!

p.s. Hydrocodeine I am excited about talking with you further since you already finished what I am doing. Thanks for the offer, I will definetely take you up on it *thumbs up*

 

[Passion4Sci]

Hey, Ticer, it's a small world!

I am also at ARC, and I am also applying to Pharm. school. The big difference between us is that I already have my Bachelor's, so I'm just doing pre-requisites there before finishing my PharmCAS for UoP.

I bring it up, because while UCSB (And UCD too, probably all UC/CSU schools for the IGETC TAG) will accept Chem 310 in lieu of Math 400 (Our Calculus) for the Pharmacology BS, as did UC Davis, however the key difference is that Tuoro, UoP and UCSF all require Calculus I and II, meaning (In ARC speak) Math 400 and 401. It would behoove you to see if Math 400 and 401 would transfer into UCSB for their degree, lest you end up needing to take Calc again in order to qualify for Pharmacy school (like you mentioned earlier as a scary possibility).

I have worked extensively with Veronica Semler at UoP on this, and I have gone, in person with her, class by class from ARC to ensure that each pre-req. will be accepted by UoP. I see no reason why Tuoro, USC, UCSF or Northstate would be any different at all. Certainly they could be, and you can triple check that, but I doubt it (In my experience in getting ready to apply).

As far as Biology, you're correct, BIO 400 is the right one (Which requires Chem 400 I believe?) Bio 300 is for "non-science majors" and I am sure would not be acceptable to any Pharm. school, and I am positive UoP would not accept it.

I have found the ARC counselors to be completely useless. Mr. Hoag is the only one even remotely dedicated to the process in my experience and even he is, at times, insufferably ignorant when it comes to anything beyond a run of the mill TAG to CSUS or UCD.

Have you taken Intermediate Alg yet? If not, you'll need to have that as a co-req with Chem Calc, so bear that in mind when you're planning your schedule (I.e., be careful about when you schedule those classes... one time I scheduled poorly due to a co-req I needed and ended up being at ARC for like, 13 hours... not fun). Of course, if you took chemistry in HS with a C or better, you can skip the 310 altogether and go righ tinto 400. If you're comfortable with that.

Anyway, welcome to SDN, I think I spewed enough into this window for one post. Happy hunting, see ya 'round our religious zealot-ridden school.