PBA vs. GA-PCOM

[TiffanyNA07]

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So Palm Beach Atlantic and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine - GA campus were my top two choices for pharmacy school, with PBA being my #1. I interviewed with PBA in December and they put me on the waiting list. Then I interviewed with PCOM and got an acceptance within a week of the interview which was in January, so I paid a deposit with PCOM because I wasn't sure what was going to happen with PBA. I was completely prepared to move to GA and even booked a flight to look at places to live in GA.

Then I got an acceptance phone call from PBA last week, and now I'm unsure where to go. I have 2 weeks to make a decision. The following are the pros and cons I've come up with anyone with anything to add would be GREATLY appreciated!!

PBA Pros:

• Currently live 1 hour north of West Palm Beach the move would be much easier.
• Highest NAPLEX pass rate of all FL schools
• Small Class size ~75
• Computer provided
• Christian oriented school, my beliefs align with theirs.

PBA Cons:

• Very adamant at the interview that they do NOT recommend working during school due to the heavy course load and demand. But I have a car payment to worry about that I don't want to tact onto my forth coming LARGE student loan.
• $1,000 more than PCOM
• Cost of living much higher in West Palm Beach

PCOM Pros:

• Recommended working in Pharmacy during the school year, and offer decent paying, on campus work study.
• Cheaper to live in Suwannee or Lawrenceville compared to West Palm Beach
• All books online and free (but I like print books better)
• All lectures recorded and provided to students

PCOM cons:

• Has only previously graduated one class, they had a good NAPLEX pass rate but that's all I have to go on.
• Books are only offered online, I'd have to pay for print books myself.
  
• Larger class size ~150
• New computer recommended but not provided
• Had a few interactions with the Admissions staff on the phone and they weren't professional, very nice, but not professional. I called and asked about a form they originally said to fill out online then in an email they sent, it said to fill it out on paper and mail it. So I called to ask which to do and the exact reply I got was "It ain't gonna matter how you do it, ok?" Not a deal breaker but still alarming.

Apologies for any grammar errors!!
Thanks in advance for any feedback!

 

[iZodliquify]

I'll go with GA-PCOM. Recorded lectures, free ebooks, and cheaper cost of living is a plus. Florida has almost double the amount of pharmacy schools as georgia.

 

[SClENCE]

Neither are great schools but I'd probably choose PBA just because they have higher standards for admitting students, smaller class size, and don't have osteopathic in their name.

 

[TiffanyNA07]

Neither are great schools but I'd probably choose PBA just because they have higher standards for admitting students, smaller class size, and don't have osteopathic in their name.

Thanks for the feedback, is there a negative connotation for schools with osteopathic in the name?

 

[SClENCE]

Thanks for the feedback, is there a negative connotation for schools with osteopathic in the name?

It's my opinion. I think many would agree and some would disagree.

 

[TiffanyNA07]

bump

 

[CaffeineAddict30]

Uhhh neither.