Pharmacy School Admissions/Being Pharmacy Tech

[LuvCaramelFraps]

Is there anyone out there who got into pharmacy school and is NOT working as a pharmacy tech? I'd like to know if being a pharmacy tech helps make you a better candidate. Thanks!

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[nerv12345]

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[mike36]

I was accepted with zero pharmacy experience.

 

[LoKoTe]

I was accepted with zero pharmacy experience.

Where? Could you share your stats when applying? Thanks!

 

[confettiflyer]

about 80% of my friends who have gotten into pharmacy school have gotten in with zero pharmacy experience. Specifically, USC, UCSF, Western, Boston, and UCSD.

Pharmacy experience doesn't add very much to your application. It's equivalent to maybe joining a community service club.

 

[mike36]

Where? Could you share your stats when applying? Thanks!

Accepted for Fall 2007 at UT Austin COP.
Overall GPA 3.5
PCAT 98%
B.S. in Clinical Laboratory Science
After graduation, worked for two years in reference lab in hematology, urinalysis, blood bank, and serology
There are several in my class without pharmacy experience, though I think there are more that do have pharmacy experience.

 

[confettiflyer]

just be prepared to answer why you chose pharmacy without any related experience...but that's easy anyway.

 

[evilolive]

I, too, was also a 0 experience candidate, but about 60% of my class had worked as a tech or had previous pharmacy experience.

 

[LoKoTe]

Florida schools "strongly recommend" pharmacy experience. In real life, they want you to be in a pharmacy ( either work or volunteer ) for at least 6 months.

 

[LuvCaramelFraps]

Accepted for Fall 2007 at UT Austin COP.
Overall GPA 3.5
PCAT 98%
B.S. in Clinical Laboratory Science
After graduation, worked for two years in reference lab in hematology, urinalysis, blood bank, and serology
There are several in my class without pharmacy experience, though I think there are more that do have pharmacy experience.

That's definitely good to hear. I am currently working as microbiology lab assistant at a hospital and last summer I interned for a pharmaceutical company. I really don't want to have to go to school to become a pharmacy tech to strengthen my profile when I already earned my B.S. in Chemistry and B.S. in Biology. I'd rather look for research opportunities or jobs that use my degrees.

 

[firefighter9015]

That's definitely good to hear. I am currently working as microbiology lab assistant at a hospital and last summer I interned for a pharmaceutical company. I really don't want to have to go to school to become a pharmacy tech to strengthen my profile when I already earned my B.S. in Chemistry and B.S. in Biology. I'd rather look for research opportunities or jobs that use my degrees.

In most states you don't have to be certified to be a tech, and you don't have to go to school to be certified. I know many techs who have just worked for several years in the pharmacy and then took the test.

I also had zero pharmacy experience when I got into pharmacy school. While it is strongly encouraged, other factors are more important than your pharmacy experience.

 

[lmaonadestand]

That's definitely good to hear. I am currently working as microbiology lab assistant at a hospital and last summer I interned for a pharmaceutical company. I really don't want to have to go to school to become a pharmacy tech to strengthen my profile when I already earned my B.S. in Chemistry and B.S. in Biology. I'd rather look for research opportunities or jobs that use my degrees.

If you are pharmacy material and are at least somewhat confident with you grades, knowing you're better than a lot of people from your undergraduate school, you should have no problem taking the ptech certification test. I just signed up for it and took it. All I did to prepare was go through a year 2000 CD my school (UTexas) had that has a bank of like 120 questions. And I did it 2 hours before taking the test. If you can work math conversions, you'll be fine. I completely guessed on all the questions about drugs, drug names, laws, procedures, and whatnot.

 

[aplif3]

I am a Finance major. Never worked in a lab or as a research assistant. Never worked as a pharm tech. I just started volunteering at a hospital pharmacy in last January and most of my interviews were in Feb, so pretty much no experience. Although I did study on my own and become certified, which was easy as a cake, in December.... I was only in Pre-Pharmacy club at my school...... so pretty much no experience at all. My GPA was 3.61 and PCAT was 85. I still got in, so pharmacy experience would help, but it's not a necessity.

 

[DKSchrute6]

I got accepted into Minnesota, UIC, and Ohio State and don't have any experience besides shadowing for 5 hours. When I was at my UIC interview, I was the only one in my small group of like 10 that didn't have experience, so i don't think it's the norm to not have experience, even though I personally don't think being a tech is really that important. I have somewhat strong work outside of pharmacy...

Molecular Cellular Biology and Chemistry major
~3.7 GPA
94 PCAT
>150 hours of community service
----Executive position in service fraternity.
TA for 9 semesters
Summer Research
EMT for a Summer

 

[blank260]

if you don't have any pharmacy experience, then how do you get a recommendation from a pharmacist for the schools that require that?

 

[Passion4Sci]

if you don't have any pharmacy experience, then how do you get a recommendation from a pharmacist for the schools that require that?

You don't.

But some schools (obviously among the ones from posters here) don't require the LoR be from a pharmacist.

I can't think of a single California Pharm. school that doesn't want at least one LoR from a Pharmacist AND at least ~40 hours of experience (be it volunteer or otherwise). Maybe the new Northstate in Sac... I dunno.

But, not all schools are the same, especially in the midwest.

 

[255942]

Is there anyone out there who got into pharmacy school and is NOT working as a pharmacy tech? I'd like to know if being a pharmacy tech helps make you a better candidate. Thanks!

While not required, having pharmacy experience and a letter of recommendation from a pharmacist that you have worked with will help your application. If work experience is not an option, visit an independent pharmacy where you are and explain that you are consdiering applying for pharmacy school Ask if you can shadow for a couple of hours a day for a week during a break in classes. Most pharmacists will gladly agree. It can't hurt and may likely help your application.

Best of luck.

 

[Pharmdapp87]

Yeah, I just got accepted with no pharmacy experience, but I've been urged to get a pharmacy tech position this summer because my school puts us out in a community pharmacy setting our first semester.