on the waitlist, apply for master's or ph.d?

[eggroll]

so now i'm on the waitlist... and i'm going ahead and studying for the gre and applying for the master's, and still reapply for pharm school if i need to.
i've heard that we get to skip the master's program and go directly to the ph.d.

question is: should i go for the master's or to ph.d. would it be beneficial?
why do ppl have this choice?? (i'm still wanting to do pharm.d.!) thanks a lot!

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[atomi]

so now i'm on the waitlist... and i'm going ahead and studying for the gre and applying for the master's, and still reapply for pharm school if i need to.
i've heard that we get to skip the master's program and go directly to the ph.d.

question is: should i go for the master's or to ph.d. would it be beneficial?
why do ppl have this choice?? (i'm still wanting to do pharm.d.!) thanks a lot!

If you want to do pharm school, then get a job and make a living and keep on applying until you get in. Graduate school isn't a place to just hang out or kill time -- it's for people who know exactly what they want to do in life and need that exact degree to get there. You shouldn't be in a grad program unless you are truly passionate about a subfield in your area, want to do original research on it, are willing to dedicate many years of your life to your work, and know why you need the degree to do the kind of job you want to do when you finish.

I mean, I guess if you're rich go for it. Good luck. Work experience will be much more meaningful than graduate work you aren't interested in and eventually end up dropping out of.

BTW, yes there are some direct-PhD programs that skip the masters. Only do this if you want a PhD. (These are extremely difficult to get in btw - GRE scores don't mean anything for grad school - it's all about your GPA). If you want a PharmD, you need to be in a PharmD program. I can't comment too much about PharmD because I am new to it myself, but I do know a thing or two about PhD schooling.

 

[imperialto]

im a business major and am working on MBA and still trying to get into Pharm school. currently working as an accountant (1yr) and pharm tech (8yrs). I think if your gonna be waiting might as well excell yourself. work experience is great but doesnt mean you cant do both. You can always take upper level courses in sciences also to boost your resume while you wait. For me, I've been trying to get into pharm school for last 3 yrs and finally decided to move on just in case I dont get into pharm school, MBA and accounting job.

 

[dovebar]

i agree with atomi...get a job, some pharmacy experience, have some fun, make some money, travel, just don't go into something if it's not what you want. it's too much stress when it's not going to benefit you to get to your final destination.

 

[AbsoluteEthanol]

If you want to do pharm school, then get a job and make a living and keep on applying until you get in. Graduate school isn't a place to just hang out or kill time -- it's for people who know exactly what they want to do in life and need that exact degree to get there. You shouldn't be in a grad program unless you are truly passionate about a subfield in your area, want to do original research on it, are willing to dedicate many years of your life to your work, and know why you need the degree to do the kind of job you want to do when you finish.

I mean, I guess if you're rich go for it. Good luck. Work experience will be much more meaningful than graduate work you aren't interested in and eventually end up dropping out of.

BTW, yes there are some direct-PhD programs that skip the masters. Only do this if you want a PhD. (These are extremely difficult to get in btw - GRE scores don't mean anything for grad school - it's all about your GPA). If you want a PharmD, you need to be in a PharmD program. I can't comment too much about PharmD because I am new to it myself, but I do know a thing or two about PhD schooling.

 

[medicalCPA]

If you want to do pharm school, then get a job and make a living and keep on applying until you get in. Graduate school isn't a place to just hang out or kill time -- it's for people who know exactly what they want to do in life and need that exact degree to get there. You shouldn't be in a grad program unless you are truly passionate about a subfield in your area, want to do original research on it, are willing to dedicate many years of your life to your work, and know why you need the degree to do the kind of job you want to do when you finish.

I mean, I guess if you're rich go for it. Good luck. Work experience will be much more meaningful than graduate work you aren't interested in and eventually end up dropping out of.

BTW, yes there are some direct-PhD programs that skip the masters. Only do this if you want a PhD. (These are extremely difficult to get in btw - GRE scores don't mean anything for grad school - it's all about your GPA). If you want a PharmD, you need to be in a PharmD program. I can't comment too much about PharmD because I am new to it myself, but I do know a thing or two about PhD schooling.

You can get your PhD straight out of undergrad, especially in the sciences. But like the quoted post, don't do it if you are not interested in it. However, grad schools don't look only at your GPA. I got rejected by two grad programs with a 4.0 GPA and a 1590 (800Q, 790V) GRE.

 

[Drug Doc]

If you are looking to get a degree in order to kill time while you apply to pharm school, then a masters is the way to go. however, be aware that masters programs are typically 2 years long, so if you plan on getting in to pharm school anytime soon then don't do it. as for your inclination about getting a phd, thats just ridiculous. phd's take no less than 4 years to complete, and if you are unlucky enough to get a horrible project(s), you could be working towards a phd for 7 or so years. judging from your post, you are looking to get into pharm school as soon as possible, so i wouldnt do either of these programs.

oh yeah, getting into phd programs is not entirely dependent on gpa or even test scores (except at the top schools of course). although those are important factors, the most important thing to have when applying is previous research experience. obviously the more the better. since research has its ups and extreme lows, having previous research shows that you know what you are getting into.

 

[Sparda29]

At LIU, a Master's takes 30 credits. Theoretically, you can finish it up in 1 year.

LIU actually has a program where if you become a Teaching Assistant, you get 12 credits free, and you get a nice stipend as well.

 

[atomi]

You can get your PhD straight out of undergrad, especially in the sciences. But like the quoted post, don't do it if you are not interested in it. However, grad schools don't look only at your GPA. I got rejected by two grad programs with a 4.0 GPA and a 1590 (800Q, 790V) GRE.

Yes, a lot of it has to do with your previous research experience, how well you know the faculty at the program you are applying to, what kind of funding you have, the extent of your previous coursework and rigor of your undergraduate studies, and the nature of your proposed research. Also, your citizenship matters. If you're not American, good luck. Pretty much the only thing that DOESN'T matter (at least in the sciences) is the GRE (esp. the verbal).

 

[medicalCPA]

Yes, a lot of it has to do with your previous research experience, how well you know the faculty at the program you are applying to, what kind of funding you have, the extent of your previous coursework and rigor of your undergraduate studies, and the nature of your proposed research. Also, your citizenship matters. If you're not American, good luck. Pretty much the only thing that DOESN'T matter (at least in the sciences) is the GRE (esp. the verbal).

Also not true. When I was interviewing, I met people who had done their undergrad in foreign countries and who were in the process of obtaining their PhD's. And there are lots of schools that accept students from the world over and give those students full funding. Furthermore, I was accepted to one grad school, even though I'm an international student. I didn't know the faculty at the school I got accepted to, either. I believe the GRE matters some (but probably not as much as the MCAT or the PCAT for med and pharm school). If it didn't, schools would have stopped requiring it as part of their admissions process.

 

[atomi]

Also not true. When I was interviewing, I met people who had done their undergrad in foreign countries and who were in the process of obtaining their PhD's. And there are lots of schools that accept students from the world over and give those students full funding. Furthermore, I was accepted to one grad school, even though I'm an international student. I didn't know the faculty at the school I got accepted to, either. I believe the GRE matters some (but probably not as much as the MCAT or the PCAT for med and pharm school). If it didn't, schools would have stopped requiring it as part of their admissions process.

Regarding the GRE, the faculty of the department you are going to decides whether or not they want you, then they tell the office of graduate affairs whether or not to accept your application. The GRE is required by the graduate office - the actual faculty (the ones making the decision) almost always don't care about it. I was told by the head of the department I was at that they NEVER look at the GRE unless the person is from out of the country.

Regarding my claim that it's harder to get in being from out of the country, yes that is absolutely true. The competition amongst international students to get graduate admissions in the U.S. is ENORMOUS. Take China for example. In China only the best of the best even get to go to college over there. Then only the very, very tops of the classes have a shot at getting in an American graduate school. Be assured that all the foreign graduate students you see at American universities are incredibly incredibly bright people. It is much easier to get in if you are a citizen. If you don't believe me, check the admit:reject ratios for a school compared between American and international students. Because the bulk of graduate school applicants tend to be international students, being an American makes you very attractive to graduate schools.

Everything I'm saying here is based on what I was directly told in person by graduate admissions faculty at Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, and UCLA.

 

[cdpiano27]

That is good but also bad that departments try to admit more qualified domestic students, even though there are fewer applicants. Then on the PhD qualifiers, sometimes only half or so can pass. And then you are competing against these people at the qualifiers. In my field, there was even an outcry that there were so few US citizens able to get PhD in statistics, that some schools (including mine) took some steps to change that. Sure, you can get your foot in the door, but it is even harder getting out. Remember that in graduate school (you are on stipend, and tuition waiver), and there is not as much reason to do whatever you can to be kept there (like in some pharmacy schools and medical schools). So once you get in, even harder to get out. PharmD would be easier to finish than most PhD programs for several reasons. You are paying for your education, rather than having someone else pay it for you. So if you fail out of pharmacy school, there is a loss of investment for both you and the school.

Also, I have many international student friends from China. Many will do whatever they can to avoid coming back, even though I think the situation in China is really getting much better. And I even admire what the Chinese do, and the great development of the great nation of China. But for some reason, they still think they want to stay here.

So for those of you thinking of going to a PhD because you cannot get into pharmacy school, think again. The graduate school contains so many more difficulties than just a professional program.

If one really wants to do research in an area of something, or a specific job that requires a PhD (for example, staitstician in pharmaceutical industry, or quantitative finance, or pharmacokineticist), then absolutely go for the PhD and not a professional degree.

Do not use the PhD as a credential to get into pharmacy or medical school!!

 

[UES Girl]

so now i'm on the waitlist... and i'm going ahead and studying for the gre and applying for the master's, and still reapply for pharm school if i need to.
i've heard that we get to skip the master's program and go directly to the ph.d.

question is: should i go for the master's or to ph.d. would it be beneficial?
why do ppl have this choice?? (i'm still wanting to do pharm.d.!) thanks a lot!

W/out trying to offend you I don't think you understand how Ph. D application process works. My bf applied last year so he learned quite a bit about it. You can't just randomly apply to a Ph.d program like you would apply to medical school or pharmacy school - you have to be either admitted into someone's lab or work in somebody's lab prior to entering the program. To be admitted into somebody's lab right off the street they have to be interested in taking you, in other words your research must somewhat correlate to what they are doing.

I don't think you should apply to Ph. D simply because why would you want to postpone your applying to pharmacy schools 5-6 years just to buff up your application ?

If you don't plan on finishing a Ph. D and rather plan to apply one or two years later, then pharm schools can view you entering a Ph. D as being indecisive/not knowing what you have your heart on and it may work against you rather than to your benefit imho.

I've read some of your posts on SDN and I thought you were a really good candidate, I think you just need to re-apply this year to more schools and you'll have better luck. I am positive about it.