Questions about being a Pharmacist*

[Blueberry92]

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I'm so grateful for this website and I could look at wonderful answers that answered many of my questions right away!!
So I'm considering to become a Pharmacist which I think is a fantastic career for me so far. But I had few problems before I dive myself into Pharmasy studies.

1. I'm currently a junior in Chicago IL, and am taking AP chemistry and AP English and I've been doing well in those two. However I know that I'm not attracted to science major. It's just that science is the best subject for me so far. To make it simple, are there any who became a Pharmacist whose main interest was not science but by becoming a pharmast, was satisfied to thier career? I hope you can understand it^^; I just dont want to make wrong choice and make sure that it is the best for me.😍

2. I currently don't have good financial plan for pre-pharmacy and pharmacy school and all that so I'm considering to be a nurse first and pay off student loan for pharmacy school by working as a nurse and then become a pharmacst. Do u think it's a good idea for a student living in IL?? My ap chem teacher said it was a good idea but your opinions will certainly help more in my decision!

3. Thus I'm planning to apply to community school but my major concern comes form this. Do you know if the 2 year courses that I take to become a nurse count for pre Pharmacy school OR do I have to start all over again and take all Prepharm classes to enter Pharmachy school?(which will take a longer time..)

I'm so relieved to just pour out my questions that had been wondering around my mind. I'll appreciate all your help!!

 

[the duck]

I would strongly advice against becoming a nurse before going to Pharm school, they are quite unrelated areas of healthcare. Pharm, while ammassing a fair amount of loans, will pay quite well after graduation. I would advise going to Pharm school and then paying off your student loans.

 

[nisarg2010]

I would have to agree with Duck. Money wont be an issue if you really do become a Pharmacist, but it will require a lot of motivation to become a pharmacist. Becoming a nurse first will just be waste of time. As for the question about attending community college, its ok as long as you don’t do all of your pre pharmacy requirements their (might look bad on your pharmacy school application). That’s just my opinion.
Good luck

 

[Peaches84]

..

 

[skierbum]

I just talked to an assistant dean of pharmacy today. Based on that, I don't think that would be a good idea-I was actually considering nursing at one point but changed my mind. If you have to, she says many accepted students work after undergrad for a few years to save up money. That is perfectly acceptable to her and even somewhat encouraged. Also, it doesn't matter what you major in, as long as you complete the pre-pharm requirements. Community college is also a way to save up money. Just try to take the bulk of pre-reqs at a 4-year school. Hope that helps.

 

[orthomyxo]

Do not become a nurse and then do pharm. Believe me, my family is not rich or wealthy in any way, shape, or form, and I am in a 0-6 pharmacy program. I got tons of financial aid, so I only make a small payment each month, and will be able to pay everything else off after I start making good money.

 

[Bacchus]

Looking at this from another angle, I have to say its a poor decision to pursue your BSN with intent to go to pharmacy school. For those entering nursing, they more often than not will stay in nursing. There are nurses that go back to school but the overwhelming majority stay working as nurses. Do not take the opportunity from someone that wants to fulfill that pivotal role in health care.

 

[Blueberry92]

Thank you everyone for your replies!
They really helped! 😀

 

[mintleif]

I'm so grateful for this website and I could look at wonderful answers that answered many of my questions right away!!
So I'm considering to become a Pharmacist which I think is a fantastic career for me so far. But I had few problems before I dive myself into Pharmasy studies.

1. I'm currently a junior in Chicago IL, and am taking AP chemistry and AP English and I've been doing well in those two. However I know that I'm not attracted to science major. It's just that science is the best subject for me so far. To make it simple, are there any who became a Pharmacist whose main interest was not science but by becoming a pharmast, was satisfied to thier career? I hope you can understand it^^; I just dont want to make wrong choice and make sure that it is the best for me.😍

2. I currently don't have good financial plan for pre-pharmacy and pharmacy school and all that so I'm considering to be a nurse first and pay off student loan for pharmacy school by working as a nurse and then become a pharmacst. Do u think it's a good idea for a student living in IL?? My ap chem teacher said it was a good idea but your opinions will certainly help more in my decision!

3. Thus I'm planning to apply to community school but my major concern comes form this. Do you know if the 2 year courses that I take to become a nurse count for pre Pharmacy school OR do I have to start all over again and take all Prepharm classes to enter Pharmachy school?(which will take a longer time..)

I'm so relieved to just pour out my questions that had been wondering around my mind. I'll appreciate all your help!!

well i'm not a pharmacist-yet-but i can tell you it's not all science. quite a bit is math too. and my interests are more towards math than science so i understand where you're coming from. and i think i'll still be satisfied with my career. 🙂

 

[deleted205891]

well i'm not a pharmacist-yet-but i can tell you it's not all science. quite a bit is math too. and my interests are more towards math than science so i understand where you're coming from. and i think i'll still be satisfied with my career. 🙂

There's not much math actually in the pharmacy (not pre-pharmacy) curriculum (kinetics, some algorithms for dosage calculations, one statistics class that may be in pharmacy or pre-pharmacy), but it's not really "hard science" either, it's more of clinical applications of science (and a lot of memorization of various disease states and their therapies).

 

[austinblnd]

If money is the sole issue, I agree with everyone else that you should just take out loans for pharmacy school. I don't think going to a CC then to UIC College of Pharmacy or Midwestern would be much money expensive then a good private/public university for four years. You will most likely be making 100k+ after college if you go into retail, so don't be afraid of taking out student loans. It just makes more sense to go straight to being a pharmacist financially instead of nursing first.

And if money is not the issue, I would just decide if you are more interested in being a nurse or pharmacist for the rest of your life and pick one.