Pharm to Med

[Thegron]

I have looked at other threads but I can't find one that relates well enough to my own situation. I apologize if I am asking a question that has already been asked.



I did three years undergrad and now I'm a first year pharm student. I'm applying to med schools soon and studying for the MCAT. I will list my academic credentials below.

Undergrad GPA: 3.54 (sophomore and junior year cumulative: 3.91)
PCAT: 92nd percentile
Pharm school GPA: 3.98

Now let's assume for a second that I get at least a 33 on the MCAT.

I don't have a bachelors degree... however, I have 117 credits (I took a lot of summer classes) and I will have way more than that after a couple more semesters of Pharm school. By doing so well so far in Pharm school I'm hoping to demonstrate that I can handle a more intensive course of study than was seen previously in undergrad.

Now let's also assume that there are plenty of Med schools that will take my application even though I don't technically have a bachelors degree.

I figure that 117 is basically a bachelors equivalent even without all of my Pharm credits. Do you think they will see it that way? I think not having the diploma is my main setback but I am hoping that my sheer number of credits will assuage any fears that they may have.

-Thegron

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[MedPR]

I have looked at other threads but I can't find one that relates well enough to my own situation. I apologize if I am asking a question that has already been asked.



I did three years undergrad and now I'm a first year pharm student. I'm applying to med schools soon and studying for the MCAT. I will list my academic credentials below.

Undergrad GPA: 3.54 (sophomore and junior year cumulative: 3.91)
PCAT: 92nd percentile
Pharm school GPA: 3.98

Now let's assume for a second that I get at least a 33 on the MCAT.

I don't have a bachelors degree... however, I have 117 credits (I took a lot of summer classes) and I will have way more than that after a couple more semesters of Pharm school. By doing so well so far in Pharm school I'm hoping to demonstrate that I can handle a more intensive course of study than was seen previously in undergrad.

Now let's also assume that there are plenty of Med schools that will take my application even though I don't technically have a bachelors degree.

I figure that 117 is basically a bachelors equivalent even without all of my Pharm credits. Do you think they will see it that way? I think not having the diploma is my main setback but I am hoping that my sheer number of credits will assuage any fears that they may have.

-Thegron

1. Let's not assume that you get a 90% MCAT score.
2. Idk about other universities, but mine required 120 credits for a BA/BS.
3. Taking greater than the required number of credits for a BA/BS doesn't equate to a BA/BS. There are coursework requirements that you likely don't meet if you were on a pharm track.
4. You're better off completing a BA/BS and going from there, imo.

 

[Jas1360]

Schools will not see 117 or even 130 credit hours as equivalent to a BS/BA.

If you want to go into medicine, figure out how you can use all the credits you already have to quickly finish a degree program.

 

[Thegron]

1. Let's not assume that you get a 90% MCAT score.
2. Idk about other universities, but mine required 120 credits for a BA/BS.
3. Taking greater than the required number of credits for a BA/BS doesn't equate to a BA/BS. There are coursework requirements that you likely don't meet if you were on a pharm track.
4. You're better off completing a BA/BS and going from there, imo.

1. Unnecessary comment. And actually, I assumed that because I'm pretty confident I can achieve that score. You don't know me.
2. You are correct.
3. I wasn't on a pharm track. I was on track to graduate but I had a life interrupting incident and I didn't go back to school. I have taken a wide variety of courses and I went to a liberal arts school.
4. You are probably correct but I am wondering if it is worth it or if I should try my luck.

 

[Thegron]

I actually only need four courses to get my bachelors... hmm... I guess I could tell Med schools that I intend to get my degree before matriculation. Then I could just do the courses the summer before I matriculate.

 

[Temperature101]

1. Unnecessary comment. And actually, I assumed that because I'm pretty confident I can achieve that score. You don't know me.
2. You are correct.
3. I wasn't on a pharm track. I was on track to graduate but I had a life interrupting incident and I didn't go back to school. I have taken a wide variety of courses and I went to a liberal arts school.
4. You are probably correct but I am wondering if it is worth it or if I should try my luck.

You probably can, but be mindful that the MCAT is very different from the PCAT.

 

[mcloaf]

1. Unnecessary comment. And actually, I assumed that because I'm pretty confident I can achieve that score. You don't know me.

Confidence is good. I don't think he was necessarily trying to put you down. It's simply the truth that many more people going into the MCAT think that they will make a 33 or some other arbitrary number and many of them fall short. There's no reason to think that you can't score that well with a smart expenditure of time and effort.


More importantly, why are you in Pharm school if you plan on medicine? Why didn't you finish your BA/BS instead?

 

[MedPR]

Assuming 90%+ with absolutely 0 basis is unreasonable. I don't have to know you to make that judgement.

 

[SpecterGT260]

Assuming 90%+ with absolutely 0 basis is unreasonable. I don't have to know you to make that judgement.

This is true.

Its also pretty irrelevant in either direction until the OP takes the test. I'm somewhat suspicious of someone just eeking out 90%ile on the pcat just assuming the mcat is gunna be the same. Probably not.

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[Thegron]

Ok I think you guys are seriously missing the point here... I said assume a 33 because I did not want the MCAT to be a factor in our discussion here. The reason I made this thread was to talk about my lack of a degree.... I didn't want the MCAT to be a factor because then all you guys would be saying would be.. "What was your MCAT score?", "Depends on your MCAT score"..... When I obviously know that if I score poorly then that is that and I'm in trouble... Relax.

More importantly, why are you in Pharm school if you plan on medicine? Why didn't you finish your BA/BS instead?

Like I said above, I had a life-interrupting incident and had to leave school right before my senior year. However, luckily I had already acquired the necessary credits to apply to Pharm school.

I'm in Pharm school because I thought I would like the career. I think I was wildly misguided by those around me about what the field was really like and about. If I have to continue with Pharm, it won't be the worst thing ever but I feel as if Med is a better fit for me for a myriad of different reasons.

 

[CrimsonKing]

Get your bachelor's degree. Even for schools that don't "require" one, your chances are almost nil, no matter how well you do on the MCAT.

For schools that require a bachelor's degree (ie the vast majority of schools) you have absolutely 0% chance of admission, even if you received a 45 on the MCAT.

You need to do the following things if you want a reasonable shot at pursuing medicine:
1. Get back to your undergrad and finish your degree ASAP.
2. Write a personal statement compelling enough to explain why you are switching from Pharm to Medicine.
3. Get some serious clinical experience and get an LoR from a physician explaining why you yourself would make a good physician.
4. Study very hard for your MCAT. Scoring 90% on the PCAT will not correlate at all to an MCAT score, they are extremely different tests.
5. Apply very broadly to many schools (MD and DO) to maximize your chances. This list should of course be modified once you have your MCAT score.

 

[Thegron]

Get your bachelor's degree. Even for schools that don't "require" one, your chances are almost nil, no matter how well you do on the MCAT.

For schools that require a bachelor's degree (ie the vast majority of schools) you have absolutely 0% chance of admission, even if you received a 45 on the MCAT.

You need to do the following things if you want a reasonable shot at pursuing medicine:
1. Get back to your undergrad and finish your degree ASAP.
2. Write a personal statement compelling enough to explain why you are switching from Pharm to Medicine.
3. Get some serious clinical experience and get an LoR from a physician explaining why you yourself would make a good physician.
4. Study very hard for your MCAT. Scoring 90% on the PCAT will not correlate at all to an MCAT score, they are extremely different tests.
5. Apply very broadly to many schools (MD and DO) to maximize your chances. This list should of course be modified once you have your MCAT score.

Thank you, I will do that. All very helpful advice.

 

[SpecterGT260]

Get your bachelor's degree. Even for schools that don't "require" one, your chances are almost nil, no matter how well you do on the MCAT.

For schools that require a bachelor's degree (ie the vast majority of schools) you have absolutely 0% chance of admission, even if you received a 45 on the MCAT.

You need to do the following things if you want a reasonable shot at pursuing medicine:
1. Get back to your undergrad and finish your degree ASAP. May catch some resistance to this, but I agree here. Always better to have a bachelors than not.
2. Write a personal statement compelling enough to explain why you are switching from Pharm to Medicine. Again, yes. Adcoms are wary of people switching fields. Don't make anything up. If your reasons for not going medicine originally are compelling enough, write about it and the com may see it as a plus
3. Get some serious clinical experience and get an LoR from a physician explaining why you yourself would make a good physician. clinical volunteering is an unspoken rule nowadays. If you haven't demonstrated that you have some idea of what medicine is they are very unlikely to take you. ER volunteering is very common. But make sure your volunteering is varied and continuous while you apply.
4. Study very hard for your MCAT. Scoring 90% on the PCAT will not correlate at all to an MCAT score, they are extremely different tests. There are practice tests out there. Stay away from Kaplan if you want any idea of how you will do. They write different tests based on what response they want out of you. The "here is a free sample test to see if you may need our services" is about 9001 times harder than the real MCAT. The one they give HS seniors as a "maybe you should think about this later" is considerably easier. I had a score range on these between 22-39. The more legit ones were always in my actual range of 32-34. Someone else may know which ones are best now. I think AMCAS has a couple themselves that are pretty good predictors.... but I took it in 2008 so I barely remember
5. Apply very broadly to many schools (MD and DO) to maximize your chances. This list should of course be modified once you have your MCAT score.This is the only thing I don't like..... MD and DO is good, but what does "apply broadly" mean? We say it here all the time, but I have never seen a definitive list of schools for the person who is uncertain. I can tell you that many schools with lower averages are also heavily skewed towards their home state which makes applying often a further cry than going Ivy.

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[Thegron]

Thank you Specter. Good advice, especially about the MCAT!

 

[MedPR]

Ok I think you guys are seriously missing the point here... I said assume a 33 because I did not want the MCAT to be a factor in our discussion here. The reason I made this thread was to talk about my lack of a degree.... I didn't want the MCAT to be a factor because then all you guys would be saying would be.. "What was your MCAT score?", "Depends on your MCAT score"..... When I obviously know that if I score poorly then that is that and I'm in trouble... Relax.



.

The discussion is kind of pointless if we don't consider all aspects of the application. Assuming a 33 is not any better than not having a score at all.

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[Thegron]

Hi,

Update: I decided I'd take all of your great advice and get my B.S.

For any who are in a similar situation... I did end up contacting the Dean of Admissions for Drexel med. He said even without the B.S., I stood a pretty good chance of getting in. Mind you, that was with the 33 MCAT score. But still, it was nice to hear that from him. Regardless, I'm getting my degree.

 

[mik30102]

I'm also a pharm D student who will be applying to medical school (currently a P2). I called many programs and a Pharm D will replace the bachelors at most programs. If your talking about not finishing the pharm degree and applying with nothing then everyone is right, you must get your bachelors.

 

[Thegron]

Clearly you did not read what I posted just a few hours ago...

 

[Thegron]

I'm sorry. That was unnecessarily rude of me.