Recent interview at NSU COP

[DoctorRx1986]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Hello, I've been an SDN "lurker" for over a year until I finally decided to subscribe just now. I'm 21 years old and have completed 88 credits with a cumulative GPA of 3.93, attained a 73 on my PCAT, completed extra-curricular activities such as volunteering in hospital pharmacy, working in a part-time job for about a year, among others. In addition, I wrote a solid personal statement for the school, and fortunately, I was invited to interview at the Davie Campus on Wednesday, February 6th at 12:30 pm. If I'm not mistaken, Nova receives about 1,600 applications each year for the Pharm.D program, of which about 370 people are interviewed. According to the statistics on pharmcas, for the Fall 2007 class, 290 of those 370 interviewed were admitted into the program; this translates into 78% of those interviewed are actually accepted. My concern, however, is the following...Although the statistics definitely indicate that being invited to interview correlates with high chances of acceptance, I feel that my interview was somewhat mediocre; I was well prepared and answered the questions quite well and was generally able to interact with my two interviewers; however, I felt that the interview was extremely short, in fact, I felt it lasted about 10 minutes and during that time, I was not even asked too many questions at all. The only questions I was asked were "Why pharmacy?", "Why Nova?", "Do you have any experience in pharmacy?", "if you were rejected, what would you do?" and lastly, "Do you have any questions for us?"....I was astounded at how quickly my interview seemed to pass and I did not get the slightest feedback from either interviewer; both of them seemed to be almost completely indifferent to my application, my responses, and showed little to no emotion throughout the interview; Neither of them asked me additional questions commonly asked during interviews such as "What are your strengths and weaknesses?", "How did you prepare for the PCAT?", etc... Upon leaving the office, I felt I totally bombed the interview and am fearful of receiving a rejection letter next month. Since Wednesday, I have been thinking over and over how I made it successfully to reach this final point of interviewing and travelling 1,200 miles from NYC for what a turned out to be the worst interview imagineable. I believe that if they were truly interested in me, they would have asked more questions, would have been more knowledgeable about my application (they did ask some stupid preliminary questions about the high school I attended, etc...) and referred more to my personal statement as well. As a matter of fact, I don't even think they looked at my pharmcas application at all or knew much about me. I am completely devastated and would like some thoughts, perspectives, or similar experiences any of you have had.

 

[BlueHens66]

I had my interview at the main campus a few weeks ago and was interviewed by 3 professors. At first, they were very serious and stern. They asked a question and just moved onto the next. After a couple questions, I decided to give longer answers and incorporate the aspects of my application that I wanted them to consider. I did my best to tell them as much as I could about myself while allowing room to ask questions and let the interviewers answer. By the end of the interview, I felt that all four of us were having a conversation.

Nova was my second interview at the time and third to date. Looking back at all 3 interviews, I would say that Nova's was the least relaxed. It seemed to me that the professors were trying to let you have the floor and observe your ability to communicate effectively. Although the interview was the least relaxed of the three, I felt that I was able to tell the interviewers much more about myself compared to the other three interviews.

My advice to you is not to worry, what's done is done. I am sure the interview did not go as bad as you think. There is no way to tell how the interviewers felt since they keep the same demeanor through out the interview. If you really think that you did not do your best, learn from this experience so you can perform better at other schools. Keep practicing your interview skills and keep in mind everything you want to tell the interviewers about yourself. Find creative ways to sneak in your experiences so that the interviewers will want you to tell them more. Good luck and keep your head up!

 

[Jbrown007]

The interview was definitly not as long as my other interviews, but i felt like it went pretty smooth. They do ask the common questions like why nova, why pharmacy so you better have a darn good answer for those. I did a lot of research before I went to the interview to find out small details about the schools past history and future. Even with that said i'm still sitting here with no response. Probably because of my lower GPA.

I had my interview with nova back in Early/Mid January. They said that they usually review the interviewees at the end of the month and give a response a few weeks later. I was wondering if anyone who interviewed early in January has heard anything back yet? I am yet to get a response. Thanks for your help and best of luck to everyone.

 

[aniline]

Heelo,I had my interview in mid January and have not heard anything back yet. I hove they send the answer soon.

 

[Sulilina1]

Hey, I barely read this board anymore because of the fact that I'm more than likely rejected. so i hate reading the board cause i feel so left behind for the simple fact that i didn't have an organic chemistry grade by december. Which I'm completely angered by and feel it's completely unfair and unethical on their part (because they made no effort to mention this to any applicant but they were more than happy to take your money to "review" your application but they admitted they were not). Anyways, I do want to say to the poster that I spoke with tracy templin before --when I had hope-- and she said interview length means NOTHING so do not read into it.

Good luck

crystal

 

[NewRx]

Hey, I barely read this board anymore because of the fact that I'm more than likely rejected. so i hate reading the board cause i feel so left behind for the simple fact that i didn't have an organic chemistry grade by december. Which I'm completely angered by and feel it's completely unfair and unethical on their part (because they made no effort to mention this to any applicant but they were more than happy to take your money to "review" your application but they admitted they were not). Anyways, I do want to say to the poster that I spoke with tracy templin before --when I had hope-- and she said interview length means NOTHING so do not read into it.

Good luck

crystal

sorry sulilina. I thought you'd have a chance. Are you taking organic 2 now? I completed organic 2 in the fall and am still waiting for a letter from NSU. They are quick to send out missing courses list, but hold off on interview invites. I wonder if more people apply to NSU than UF.

 

[DontSayNo2Pills]

I'm still waiting to hear from NOVA too. I agree...they are quick with those missing course lists. I'm missing one econ class, but when I asked if I'd still be considered for an interview (if I take the course during the summer), they said yes. Still haven't heard anything yet. Sucks.

 

[Sulilina1]

sorry sulilina. I thought you'd have a chance. Are you taking organic 2 now? I completed organic 2 in the fall and am still waiting for a letter from NSU. They are quick to send out missing courses list, but hold off on interview invites. I wonder if more people apply to NSU than UF.

I'm in organic 1 now. The problem is that in their 2008 pharmacy application requirement booklet (I'm sure you know what i'm talking about), they made ABSOLUTELY NO mention to a *REQUIRED* organic 1 grade by December or else you will not be considered rule -- because that was NEVER a rule to begin with. I was planning on finishing Orgo 2 in the summer. According to alumni and even current students, that was ok because they got accepted while they had to complete orgo 2 in the summer. But because this Dean Malave (who by the way is from the Puerto Rican campus) decided to pull this stunt on applicants in the middle of the process, WAY AFTER the fact that they collected a LOT of people's money and the admissions process began and the 2008 requirements booklet was out, a ton of students are now getting shafted, not even being REVIEWED, and they don't even know! Tracy came to BCC and sat with the pre pharmacy club students and actually SAID that your file will NOT even be opened if you do not or will not have an organic 1 grade by December. It doesnt matter if you got your course missing list. You will not be considered. Period. That is where I have issues with nova. That is where I find them completely unethical and completely unprofessional, even alumni agree and even advised me to go to a better school (because if they had to go back and do it over again, they would not choose nova) and said that it is the Dean that is doing that and changing the school around and they have said, "I'm happy his term is almost over." A lot of students really can't stand him. Now my other issue lies with the fact that since their admissions committee is so small and since they clearly have issues communicating with applicants (they can't even get it right in the booklet), what happens to you other students who don't live near nova like I do? What happens to those that get rejected that had a completely decent GPA, pcat score, experience and LORs like I did but didn't have orgo 1 completed by december? Well, they'll never find out the reason they got rejected was because of the organic 1 grade -- a rule they NEVER EVER implemented UNTIL the MIDDLE of this application process. This is why I completely frown at Nova and will NOT apply to their school next year. If they're having this many problems with communicating to prospective students, I could only imagine the internal problems while you are a student. I always heard rumors about the problems there while working at my pharmacy and especially on SDN, but I never really cared cause I believe I'm independent and ambitious enough to deal with my own issues. But then I heard more from personal friends that are alumni and current students and there's a LOT more problems that go deeper than just discrimination. Such as financial aid, registration, lab health safety, and now education (A lot of the good professors are leaving or have left because of the Dean and other factors and the alumni are very upset because they said they learned the most from them). Honestly, I've been completely turned off by nova and I really don't mind doing another year of school and applying to somewhere that actually has some sort of respect for their students, applicants and education. I'm not going to pay ~$30,000 to be completely ignored, shafted and treated like a number. UF treats their students way better than that, and they have more to deal with. Blows my mind. N$U is all about your money. That's pretty much it. And so with that, good luck to everyone that continues to pursue the school. I'm not here to start a flame fest or fight with anyone, but that's what I've learned in my 7-8 months of (now futile but worthy nonetheless) extensive networking with some pretty credible sources.

Good luck

 

[NewRx]

Wow! Sulilina1. The process is frustrating. Just ask 5minutes. A candidate who interviewed early October and never heard back. I've never heard from 5minutes again on SDN. All I can say is to maximize your chances anyways by applying there since it is so close to home. I think you'd be a great fit for UF. Did you apply to only NSU? ( 5minutes did and I think it was unwise).

You can PM me if you prefer. I know you are frustrated right now. I and many others (accepted/waitlisted/rejected) have posted about this NSU dilemma. Fortunately, there is UF, Bradenton, PBA. I'm going on my second interview this week and it's @ Bradenton!!!! I'm so excited!!!! It is both a medical/pharmacy school!

 

[cdpiano27]

I have talked to 5 minutes personally. He got waitlisted after several months, but he was one of the first people to hear from them. He is qualified for the school in everyway, but he cannot work in a pharmacy because of his international student status. So the only problem with his application may be the lack of experience, but he has unusual circumstances, and that really should have been taken more into consideration. I believe that he should have been admitted to the program for sure.

It is strange in his case, because I know the dean has the final decision. And he told me that his interview went extremely well, and tracy and the other people liked him but he never got to interview with the dean and that the dean has final decision. So unlike the people here that said there interview was short and indifferent, his seemed very personal and good.

A few years ago, I visited the West Palm Beach campus and everyone seemed nice, but again, that was at the point where the dean was recently changed from Hardigan to Malave.

I always had the impression that Nova was a well-established, reputable pharmacy school up to the same calibre as UF. If these stories are true, then I am truly disappointed.

I know one Chinese faculty member, as a friend, and he left and went to LIU-Brooklyn. He told me that they were going to add a PhD program in pharmaceutics, but that never happened.

Although he is an international student from one of the Asian countries, I believe that there are international students at Nova attending right now from the South American, Central American, and Caribbean countries. So although that may seem like the factor, I believe that there are definitely international students who have been admitted to the entry-level PharmD program there, so that should not be an issue.

 

[LoKoTe]

So are you saying there are International students for the entry level PharmD and not the international program they have specifically for students with a BS in Pharmacy from their country? Just wondering. This is not my opinion at all, but maybe the school and/or the Dean prefers students who completed their coursework in the US, since they paid their money to US schools, paid taxes here, etc etc. But if they have other international students admitted to the entry level PharmD and he's a good candidate then I can't understand the reasons.

 

[cdpiano27]

5 minutes was completing work at the community colleges in the area, and he was transferring to FAU to earn a BS in chemistry just in case.

So he did have an AA in the US, his high school was in another Asian country.

I know outstanding community college students that NOVA has taken in the past for sure, even now. So if you have outstanding grades and high PCAT, NOVA CAN take you from CC, unlike the California schools, where they even want your coursework from a top UC school (San Diego, Berkeley, UCLA, etc.)
to be given consideration.

And he did well enough on his PCAT, especially the chemistry section (99), to show that he learned the work. He learned chemistry in his country in high school better than most people would learn it at most universities in the US, and was a tutor for it in one of the community colleges as well.

He told me that they recently admitted (perhaps even last year, if I remember) one girl from Jamaica, with the same type of coursework as him, and slightly lower GPA, but a 58 PCAT. And she was international from Jamaica.

I don't understand it myself, since he said his interview went very well, and he had legitimate reasons for not having pharmacy experience due to visa issues (it is hard to switch between work and student visa).

 

[cdpiano27]

So I am saying that in the ENTRY-LEVEL PharmD program, there are indeed a few students from latin America and the Caribbean. One of my other friends at FIU is trying to get into the int'l pharmD program, but he has a pharmacy degree from China (bachelors).

As you know, one of their satellite campuses is even in Puerto Rico.

 

[Pharmpills]

did anyone ask how many seats were filled up so far when they interviewed?

 

[LoKoTe]

I did and they didn't know 🙁

 

[NewRx]

This is not my opinion at all, but maybe the school and/or the Dean prefers students who completed their coursework in the US, since they paid their money to US schools, paid taxes here, etc etc.

First and foremost, thank you CDPIANO27 for the update on the well qualified 5minutes. It's a shame that he was waitlisted. My goodness, why did he not apply to UF or other schools in the state. He may have missed his chance, what a shame. He must be really disappointed since he's never been back up here. I have no pharmacy experience and I heard from two schools. I maximized my chances by applying to four schools in the state. I believe 5minutes should have done the same. But he may have his own reasons.

Lokote

The notion of someone paying taxes here would be plain bogus. The fact is, most foreign students are better than the students here. Do you know where the US rank in Math and Science? It is abysmal.
Many technical jobs are vacant and companies are looking for foreign candidates with strong math and science background to fill them.

Sulilina1, you should apply to other schools.

 

[LoKoTe]

I know, and I completely agree with you. I didn't go to high school in the US and when I started college the first science classes seemed like a joke, of course that changed later and I'm not a smart person so I had to study a lot. I'm just trying to find an explanation on why they haven't called him for an interview, because his stats look great to me. Let's just hope it was all a confusion on their part and he gets a call.

 

[cdpiano27]

Clarification: 5 minutes did get call for interview, but did not get notified until about 5 months later,and was waitlisted. In fact, he was one of the VERY FIRST people to get an interview from NOVA, only about 3 weeks after he sent his application and supplemental in during the month of AUGUST.

He was not applying to other schools because he has a relative that lives in north Dade county, and that was the only pharmacy school within commutable distance.

Since he cannot take out federal loan as int'l student, he wanted to keep his cost down as much as possible.

If he applied to UF, he would be considered an out-of-state international student and competing for the 10 spots that UF reserves for out-of-state students.

TRust me, I know about the foreign students being better. I am in a graduate program in biostatistics and half of my class is from China DIRECTLY.
Meaning they have an undergraduate from a Chinese school and then directly came to the US.

In fact, my department works very hard to recruit US students. And biostatistics, is almost as high-paying as pharmacy, (it does not have the stability because the jobs are located in certain areas), but still I am sure if more people knew about it and was confident of actually finishing a PhD, you would see a FLOOD of applications to statistics graduate departments like pharmacy. In fact the year that I applied there were 400 applications and 60 accepted. Other programs which i did not get into had ratios like 15 acceptances out of 300 applicants and 10 acceptances out of 150 applicants.

But it is likely that it is much harder to finish a PhD in statistics than a PharmD, and it is highly variable on the school that you go to.

Some schools, I would NEVER pass the PhD qualifier, while others I would definitely pass, and others I would have a chance.

Unlike a PharmD, the school can dismiss at least 30% or more with just a masters degree. However, only about 1 person a year will actually fail out with no degree in my program, at least. And in the pharmaceutical industry, with only a masters in statistics, you will be relegated to nothing but a SAS programmer, and NO chance to move up in the company.

The difference: masters in statistics = SAS programmer position 50-60K
PhD in stats = statistician position in pharmaceutical company or financial institution / bank / credit card company = 80K-100K out of school with NO student debt and a chance to move up. A PhD takes about 5 years to get.

After 4-5 years of work expereince and no student debt you will get around 110-120K.

This career is only well known among math majors in the US along with actuarial science, which does not require grad school, but the passing of 9 exams. You will need to pass 2-3 to get an entry level job, and the other 6 on the job. And these exams are much harder than any qualification exam for pharmacy. I passed the first exam, and the passing rate was only about 35%. The pass rate on each exam is between 25-50% in this field. Most insurnace companies will give you three tries to pass, before you are fired. ASA = 80K (it will take an average of 5 years after undergrad to get there). FSA = 110-120K (it will take an average of 8-10 years after undergrad to get there). And it is probably harder getting an initial job as an actuary than getting into pharmacy school. The initial job will pay you 45K.

However, many Chinese students are trying to SWITCH their major to statistics and target those specific schools that are more applied (so they can get a well-paying job in industry).

I am just expanding knowledge about the opportunities available in my area, which are good as well, that many people on this board would not know about, but require dedication no matter what. There is never a free lunch.

 

[LECOM-B2012]

I actually know 5mintues. He goes to the same school as me. We both go to Broward community college. My stats are just as good as his, if not better because i am a certified tech and have been working for walgreens for 4 years. My gpa is 3.78 and my pcat score was an 83. i actually have LOR's from two science professor and a pharmacist. I finished organic chem 1 in the fall. I need organic 2 and microecon which i am doing this semester. I haven't even been invited for an interview. Meanwhile, i know kids in my school with lower gpa's and lower pcat scores that have been interviewed and accepted. Luckily for me I got accepted to Lecom-Bradenton and have accepted their offer. You can't put all your eggs in one basket. I told this to 5minutes. I know a lot of Nova students, and your interview is probably one of the most important factors in deciding. You have to sell yourself really hard. I know great students that have been rejected and applied three times before they got in because their interview did not demonstrate they had the personality for the career. CONFIDENCE!!!!!!!!! Go into the interview with confidence and if you have the stats there is no way they will say no. In 5mintues case, I also know that he is a international student, which I think Nova keeps a quota on. I know its difficult, because Bradenton doesn't even consider international students. I tell him that waitlist means just that, it doesn't mean he has been rejected. Lecom-brandenton told us that every school has about a 30 percent attrition rate, which means 30 percent of the people they accept don't go. This means that alternate list people usually get in, as long as you high up on the list.

 

[WhiteSnows]

The Dean at Nova discriminates Vietnamese international student. I wish I have a green card, so I can apply to Lecom, but not Nova. Life is not suck, but Nova is suck.

 

[NewRx]

The Dean at Nova discriminates Vietnamese international student. I wish I have a green card, so I can apply to Lecom, but not Nova. Life is not suck, but Nova is suck.

5minutes welcome back DUDE!!!!! Sorry to hear about NSU. You deserve better and maybe it will work out if several people do not attend. Good luck!!

 

[LoKoTe]

The Dean at Nova discriminates Vietnamese international student. I wish I have a green card, so I can apply to Lecom, but not Nova. Life is not suck, but Nova is suck.

Why is that? How do you know? I have no idea, I'm just curious. 🙂

 

[WhiteSnows]

Hi everyone,
It took me less than 1 month to hear from Nova for the interview, but it took 3 months for Nova to send me a letter of alternative list.

It only takes 1 week for the final decision at Lecom University after the interview.

I believe that Nova is interested in me, but not the Dean. I thought he is a nice person by looking at his picture on Nova website, but I was wrong. He used Photoshop for a better picture.

I will have to continue my B.S in Chemistry at FAU. I am going to take Biochemistry in advance before I am admitted to Pharmacy program.

My stats for this year:
21 years old.
English is my second language.
3.9 overall of 83 credits.
80% Pcat
Many volunteering hours
3 years tutoring at BCC in Mathematics and Chemistry.
Graduate as highest honor student (AA degree).
No Pharmacy Experience.

 

[LoKoTe]

Oh my goodness ... I'm so sorry for you man! I wish you the best though, you deserve it.

 

[Pharmpills]

this school is really messed up. i mean they say GPA isnt everything that they look at the whole picture but all i see is ppl with 3.5 and low 70's pcat. i mean just bc some1 has a 3.5 dosnt mean they are smarter than someone with a 3.0 or 3.1 bc maybe the 3.0 took alot of upper level classes while the 3.5 rode on "easy" lower division classes not that all are easy.

its no surprise most ppl rather go to UF or lecom. They dont answer emails or anything too. it seems all they care about is GPA and they dont care what classes u take as long as u fullfill the pre-req and at least in the 70's for pcat, with experience not a big factor either.

 

[LoKoTe]

They said most of their students have Bachelors, so I don't know how does this fit into that ... I wonder if they have good GPAs after 4 years of school

 

[cdpiano27]

Well, a few years ago, I went and talked to the Nova WPB people and they seemed nice, but I am aware that a school can change wthin a few years. As far as Danilo Solis, I feel even more sorry for him. Are you international student as well? If so, where are you from? I assume you may not be because you applied and got into LECOM. It sounds like a Spanish name to me. And I thought Nova took quite a few international students from the Caribbean and Latin America. In fact, one of their satellites IS indeed in Puerto Rico, and the current dean is from there. So I don't understand why you did not even get an interview? Danilo, did you also apply to UF? Because you have a VERY good chance of getting in there with those stats. UF does not care whether you took the classes at community college and their PCAT average is 86-88 with prereq GPA of around 3.6. And you have pharmacy expereince as well. I think that you are definitely material to also get into UF? Finaly, did you also apply to Palm Beach Atlantic?

By the way, a long time ago (2001-2002), I went to Palm Beach Community College, and some 3.5 GPA students from FIU, who were taking second semester organic there over the summer in a six week session, had just received acceptances to NOVA back in 2002. They had worked in a pharmacy as well, so I do not see how they were any worse than you at that time.

For you not to even get an interview with those stats AND experience is just wrong. But I did get rejected outright from University of Iowa's biostatistics program in a similar fashion. But at least they were not anywhere near my first choice at the time.

 

[LoKoTe]

Although it doesn't seem like a long time, 2001-2002 is a long time for pharmacy admissions, every year things get tougher and tougher ... I just wish Nova would update their website stating the reality

 

[cdpiano27]

LoKoTe, how did you think your NOVA interview went? Do you think that you will get in? It just seems like in the past, that was everyone's "safety" school for UF more or less in the state of Florida. But in the more "selective" admissions, they seem to be stressing more intangible factors than tangible factors. And that is tricky and can get a lot of people upset, because we never know the real reason for their decision.

Have you already said "no" to PBA or are you going to keep your seat? Basically, have you already decided that if NOVA does not accept you, that you will go to LECOM-Bradenton?

 

[cdpiano27]

That being said about NOVA, I believe that they should at least answer people's e-mails. I think at one time about two years, I WAS actually able to talk to Tracy Templin. And furthermore, they should publish the rule that you need to have the first semester of organic with a grade at time of application to be considered. There ARE people that are disciplined enough to study organic on their own before taking the PCAT, and do quite well. If you were in the actuarial science profession, you would have to learn entire courses and take very difficult exams, WITHOUT ever sitting in a course and going to work full-time.

So I think it is their responsibility to at least EXPLICITLY state an important rule like this, especially if it is new. Otherwise, they are wasting people's money and time applying.

 

[LoKoTe]

LoKoTe, how did you think your NOVA interview went? Do you think that you will get in? It just seems like in the past, that was everyone's "safety" school for UF more or less in the state of Florida. But in the more "selective" admissions, they seem to be stressing more intangible factors than tangible factors. And that is tricky and can get a lot of people upset, because we never know the real reason for their decision.

Have you already said "no" to PBA or are you going to keep your seat? Basically, have you already decided that if NOVA does not accept you, that you will go to LECOM-Bradenton?

You're right, it used to be backup for most people, but I'm not sure if it is anymore. About my interview, it was the first one that I left and had no idea if it was good or not. They interview was short, just 3-4 questions only, and the interviewers seemed nice and interested somehow, but not as the other schools I interviewed at, so I honestly have no idea what to expect. We will see. About my options, I only had to 2 weeks to send the deposit or say no, and there are still some things I need to clarify with both schools but I just said yes to both of them and sent my deposits, I'll end up losing one, but hey, whatever it takes to make sure I do start classes next semester regardless of what happens this semester

 

[cdpiano27]

The other thing is if someone can show true science aptitude (like 5 minutes) then he or she should be let in. It is not easy to get 99 on PCAT Chemistry. And probably chemistry is the most improtant area that you will use for pharmacy school. If they let him in, he would be at the top of his class over at NOVA for sure, and if he was able to go to a better undergrad school than FAU (no offense) and was not constrained by financial resources, I bet that he would do well at UC-San Diego or UC-San Francisco in the arguably most difficult pharmd programs in those two UC schools. In fact, if he can teach the chemistry material (organic and general chem) in a very clear way to others and spends hours of his time doing it, it shows that he knows the material inside out and will be that much better prepared for pharmacy school.

I think that passion for a profession can go only so far. Let us face it. In other countries, they would look at your entrance score on a certain exam and that is it. So I think that academics and science aptitude eventually has to factor in more than a subjective interview on a particular day. If someone knows what they are getting into, than that is fine. If pharmacy school is judged too much like a job interview, than that is bad. Of course, one does have to know what they are getting into.

In 5 minutes' country, the bachelors of pharmacy which is right out of high school is equivalent to our PharmD without having the clinical resources that we might have here.

There also needs to be higher GPA and academic standards in pharmacy school if is more competitive in the same way that it is for medical school currently. A harder entrance test, a bachelors required, and research experience. As clinical pharmacists, we need to have some understand of the research process. And only with that we will be truly deserving of a doctorate. In other countries such as Germany, the PharmD is seen almost as a PhD.