PBA vs Wingate vs Albany

[lfc-2086]

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Hello ya'll. I was fortunate enought to have been accepted to 3 Programs (so far). 1) Palm Beach Atlantic 2) Wingate university and 3) Albany. I was wondering which one to put my deposit down on for now. I didn't really think I'd have this dillema. I really doubt it will be PBA, their enforcement of religion is a bit too much ~ $22k. Wingate seemed like a nice school, one where they truly wanted to mould you into a good pharmacist not to mention the smaller class size (awesome). However, they only have candidate status, but they're 1st class graduates in May (I doubt they'll have any problems) ~22k. Albany is a 3yr accelerated program and is about $40k a year...everything included (books and housing). I would appreciate getting everyone else's opinions. Hopefully I'll get into Mercer becuase it is close to home and seems like a nice school. And for the international students: it is possible just put ypur mind to it, but do remember you have to be that much more competitive.

Cheers 😀

 

[lfc-2086]

bumpity bump

 

[yawj797]

Well, I would pick PBA. I think people get intimidated by their premise of christianity...but it's not a big deal. People of all religion attend the school, even atheist. Of the three schools you listed, it's the only one that's fully accredited AND 4 years. To me 3 years (Albany) is too much. Not to mention PBA is cheaper. Besides, if you have the option, why would you pick NY and NC over South Florida?

 

[lfc-2086]

well...I have family in NY and NC...so that saves me on housing and the hassle of food....by the way Albany is fully accredited...atleast according to pharmcas

 

[Utterdevotion]

I'd say Wingate. Their program sounds very good; at lot of experience before your fourth year. And it's not as expensive as Albany. And of all the schools I've interviewed at, they seemed the most approachable, friendly, and willing to help you succeed.

 

[lfc-2086]

that's kinda what i was thinking too. They seemed genuinely interested in the student.

 

[beccala33]

A few things to consider...
I have friends at both Albany and PBA (I grew up in New York and lived in SoFla for 8 years) and I go to Wingate, so I know lots about this. My friend at Albany (she actually graduated two years ago, and she did the 5 year program right out of high school) really liked it there and says she would go back again, but that it was very taxing and that people dropped out. She also says that she wishes that the teachers cared a little more about the individual student. My friend who currently goes to PBA says that she doesn't like it at all and that they are crazy about the religious thing (that's practically a direct quote.) I don't know first hand, but I lived in Delray Beach and taught for a college in Boca, and I know that they are definitely strict about certain things (I once heard that you aren't allowed to live with someone of the opposite sex if you aren't married to them, i really couldn't tell you if that's true - just hearsay really.) It IS a great place to live though, I can't say anything bad about South Florida. Wingate - I love it here. The down sides are that my school is in a middle-of-nowhere town and the school isn't accredited yet. The upside is that the school is great, the teachers are awesome, the classes are small, Charlotte is a cool city not too far away, since there's not much to do your grades will be better (I know mine were), and the cost of living is CHEAP (I bought a house, which is something I couldn't have afforded in either NY or FL.) Plus, we do everything on the computer, which I have grown to LOVE - they post our lectures online 48 hours before class, it's so nice. I don't know how I ever did it any other way. So it's a tough call, they all have their pros and cons. If you have any questions about Wingate, feel free to PM me. Good luck!

 

[omnione]

Though Wingate itself is a really small town, it's not like you're detached from civilization like other towns of Wingate's size. Nebraska has plenty of towns of Wingate's size that are truly out in the middle of nowhere. There is so much commercial development along Highway 74, which connects Wingate to big city Charlotte, that it doesn't seem like you're far away from people and big-city stuff.

 

[klampster23]

I say screw wingate and Palm beach. Go for Albany. Think about it logically. You graduate 1 year earlier. By going to wingate of pba, you're losing $100,000 of potential income. Do you realize how much $100,000 is what yu can do with that....plus your saving a years worth of tution. PBA is one of the most expensive schools out there. Albany assuming it's 40k a year for everything, your pharmayc education will only cost you 120K, which is really cheap compared to other schools.

 

[PharmD Is Me]

Maybe I'm a little biased because Wingate is my first choice, so it really depends on you. PBA is religious, plus cost of living is probably high since it's in South Florida. Albany's cost of living is probably up there too, and you are rushed into doing everything because it's an accelerated program, that you may be too busy memorizing everything to completely absorb and understand what you are actually doing.
When I interviewed at Wingate, the professors and dean truly care for their students and emphasized the student to be the main focus of the program and trust the students to place the patient in their best interests. I personally want to go to a school where I learn everything and can apply it to my job and life. (Not that Wingate is the only school out there that has an awesome program.)Pharmacy school is a big step in life because once you get that degree, you are responsible for lives no matter what you do. I don't want to regret that I didn't learn enough or take the time to understand things and end up hurting someone else. I got into an accelerated program also, and am declining it because I think that the materials are too intense to cover in 3 years. I want to work as a hospital pharmacist, so I know I will be prepared for critical and emergency situations and decisions. I would go for an accelerated program, hands down, if I had planned on going for a community pharmacy. (No offense to anyone because I'm not looking down on community/retail pharmacy, if it weren't for the insurance crap you had to go through, community would be my choice. Community pharmacies don't have situations where they need a Reopro STAT because someone is open and bleeding on a table. )

Good luck with your decisions, and maybe I'll meet you as a future classmate!!

 

[dgroulx]

I'd choose Wingate, because it is small and North Carolina is beautiful. You're there for 4 years. Why not enjoy the surroundings? Albany is too freaking cold. PBA is way too religious, not a clinical school, and it costs a ton to live in that area of Florida.

Wingate will get accredited when they graduate their first class this fall. I wouldn't worry about candidate status.

 

[lfc-2086]

thanks all...i put my deposit down at Wingate...I really loved it there and they place so much emphasis on experiential learning...plus everyone there seemed nice...and caring.....thanks for the input

 

[angelil_yu]

Hi,

COngratulations on your acceptance at those 3 schools. It's great that you have 3 selections so that you can select your future school CAREFULLY to enjoy the next 4 yrs of your life.

Based on my personal experience, if I were you, I would not go to PBA. Yeah... sad but true... it's my own school. There are numerous reasons as to why you don't wanna go there.

1) Mandatory workship hours of 45 HOURS per year, meaning that you need to do total of 45 hours x 4 yrs = 180 workship hours during your pharmacy school. (imagine dedicating 180 hrs!)

2) Mandatory Chapel credit of 24 hours PER YEAR, meaning that you have to attend the chapel (a 50-min service) as many as 24 weeks per year.
Total = 24 x 4 = 96 hours of time spent sitting down in the chapel during your pharmacy school

3) They keep on changing the curriculum--we're one of the guinea pigs-- so that it will "best suit" the students, and of course, that really confuse the heck out of us.

4) Faculty shortage - been a chronic disease for the past 1 year. The number reaches double digit (rumor says it). This school has not been successfully staffing itself.

5) Faculty shortage leads to less courses available for electives. And you know what? SInce this school no longer provides electives like "Infectious Disease," "Toxicology", etc. (interesting classes pertaining to pharmacy education) d/t faculty shortage, they have to open a "Mission Class" that will help you to do a mission trip in the future (if you have the calling for the mission, i'm sure you'll enjoy this course)

6) Last year, 7 faculty members left our school for a better career somewhere 🙁

7) We're still waiting from ACPE. 😕

8) It's a small private school.... (i don't feel like i'm in a university...feels like i'm in a community college)

9) whole bunch of other reasons...

 

[fmbzp5]

My friend graduated from albany and didn't like the school. He feels all he was prepared to do was go into retail (he also said 80% of the class went on to retail).

3 years is nice if you consider the money lost for being in school for one year but you also have to consider how much you don't keep because of the rushed schedule.

 

[cdpiano27]

I would go to Albany. You are really lucky to get into that school and it is cheaper.

PBA, well I am from West Palm Beach, FL. Very expensive area, school very tiny, very, very religious, very expensive school. Nice facility, nice building. But yes, many of your study hours I think will be taken up by their mandatory community service / chapel service. This should be professional school, and I think it is a little bit too much. But you can always take a vacation there later, and go down Worth Avenue, and see Tiger Woods home in Jupiter Island, Donald Trump's Mar-A-Lago, Greg Norman's house in Jupiter Island, and you get the idea.



Wingate, I do not know much about.

I think you will most likely end up going to retail from either of these three schools. None are big research schools. So I think, choose the cheaper school.

 

[cdpiano27]

Yes, I also know one of the faculty who left. I knew her from when she was very young. She was teaching in the business side of pharmacy, since she had worked at Novartis after earning a double MBA / PharmD from UF. I was surprised she had left because she was a baptist and one of her parents is a church minister.

She went back into retail, and now is working as a clinical pharmacist at Cardinal health in WPB.

She just felt that the school did not have its feet on the ground long enough, and was not as effective of a program as NOVA or UF is in Florida.

 

[lfc-2086]

thanks y'all👍 .....by the way albany is about 40k per year...comes to about 120k over 4 years (housing n books included)....while wingate's about 22k per year...comes to about 88k a year (jus tuition) but i do have family in charlotte 😀 ....so i doubt books'l be that expensive over 3 years (yay to half.com)....plus i get home cooked food everyday (can't beat that)...wingate here i come....

 

[Gizmo]

thanks y'all👍 .....by the way albany is about 40k per year...comes to about 120k over 4 years (housing n books included)....while wingate's about 22k per year...comes to about 88k a year (jus tuition) but i do have family in charlotte 😀 ....so i doubt books'l be that expensive over 3 years (yay to half.com)....plus i get home cooked food everyday (can't beat that)...wingate here i come....

Also, you can get used books from other students and the university has text books that you can look at in the bioinformatics room. You won't have to spend a lot on books unless you want to.