I'm sure this has been posted before, so I apologize. I am taking a pre-pharmacy program at a community college but plan on going to a university to get a bachelor's before attending pharmacy college, but am unsure of what degree would be best for pre-pharmacy. I am considering biology, but would chemistry be of better help? Advice, please.
Recommended Bachelor's?
- Thread starter TenleyC
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Both are great majors, but I have found for me personally is the biology degree met all of my pre pharm. prereqs. versus a chem degree. This may vary for each person and what school you are applying to. I would look at the prereqs. at the pharmacy schools you want to go to and then see which degree either has you take class for all or most your prereqs. Thats what I did and I really didnt have to taken any unneeded classes. But, if you do choose biology, then I would suggest taking biochem or intro to biochem bc you will need that for pharmacy school. Good luck.. I hopes this helps. But in the end.... there is no wrong degree choice. Just pick the one that best suits you and consider prereqs as well and you should be good!
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Good advice. I'd just like to add that if I had it to do over again I would get a degree in biology rather than chemistry. I do feel as though I am a stronger student after having to take two semesters of physical chemistry with a lab, inorganic chemistry, and two semesters of biochemistry. The problem is that my gpa was lower than if I would have gone the biology route. Surviving physical chemistry is one of the crowning achievements of my academic life... I never want to do that again.
Either degree path will offer classes to satisfy prereq lists but I would recommend going the biology route.
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Any degree will do as long as you fit in the pre-reqs. If you pick something you really like, you probably won't be as stressed out 😉
Ah thanks a lot! Good to hear, I really like biology, and while I enjoy chemistry, it is not my strong point...I have a couple years to settle on a major, right now the CC has me in the pre-pharm program (I was in biology, but when I told them I planned on pharmacy as an ultimate goal, they switched me) which will cover most of my pre-reqs, but I know it's much easier to get into pharm college with a BD...
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Most people take up some kind of biology major since it covers the pre-reqs required for pharmacy. If I were to redo it, I'd pick something I enjoyed that would be less stressful and easier to maintain a high GPA in. You can fill up the pre-reqs on the side while having a mostly fun time in school.
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Bio-chemistry is the route to go. How much does a degree play in admissions into pharmacy school?
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To me theres only 3 things you need to consider which others have already mentioned. How well do the required courses for that bachelor's coincide with pharmacy pre-reqs at the schools you want to apply to? Which route is going to get you a better GPA (what types of courses do you excel at)? The most important one is probably, which interests you more? School's a lot easier to get through if you're taking courses you at least somewhat enjoy.
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I personally recommend Human Nutrition/Nutritional Sciences. I received my BS this past December from UF and learned a lot of pertinent information in my nutrition classes. I think this is a great major for pre-pharmacy students as most of the information you learn is extremely applicable in the pharmacy setting. For example, TPN preparation and administration in hospital/clinical setting and, in retail, having a solid understanding of Human nutrition will allow you to make healthy recommendations to your patients.
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Unless u are in Cali you don't really need a bachelors degree......jus need to complete your Prereqs.......I know some people who did Biol major with Chem minor or vice versa but at the end of the day it is ur call.....just select the major after considering which one is ur favourite....Biol or Chem??😕
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That is just a misconception......By taking entry level Biochem.....we can make our base in it but beyond that actualy doesn't realy help in Pharmacy school. Most schools teach Biochem and medicinal Chem which is specially tailored for pharmacy schools.....thats the info i received from lot of P1 and P2 students of different schools. Any P1 or P2 students want to share their experiences????👍👍
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I don't have a bachelors but I was accepted to two out of three schools I applied to. All I have is an Associates in Science. I would highly recommend pursuing a Bachelors in order to be competitive. Every year it gets harder and harder to stand out. Honestly I could not believe I was accepted my first year applying.
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The trend I've been seeing is that it gets a lot easier every year... but lets not derail this thread on that topic.
T
Taurus1971
I'd go chemistry
Wait I did go chemistry
Do what you like and enjoy
Wait I did go chemistry
Do what you like and enjoy
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Undergrad is the time when you can take whatever classes you want because you probably won't go back to school and take them later. So major in whatever you want - just make sure you fulfill the pre-reqs. For example, if you really like classics, english, engineering or economics, major in that. I do kind of wish I took more classics courses during my undergrad because I'm not going to take them in pharmacy school. Plus, it makes you stand out.
I majored in pharmacology and toxicology - one school was impressed by my major but the others didn't mention it. I would think that a majority of people applying with degrees are biology or biomedical sciences majors. If you want to be a bio major, that's great and you should go for it. But if you want to do something else, you should go for whatever interests you.
I majored in pharmacology and toxicology - one school was impressed by my major but the others didn't mention it. I would think that a majority of people applying with degrees are biology or biomedical sciences majors. If you want to be a bio major, that's great and you should go for it. But if you want to do something else, you should go for whatever interests you.
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Biochemistry would be the best imo. Biology, chemistry or even nutrition will also be very beneficial as you have to take upper division science courses to complete the degree which have many applications for medical school/ pharmacy school. I understood the concepts from my prereqs much better after taking the upperdivision courses.
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I agree. Being a Biochem major, I can tell you that if you have a good biochem dept. at your school, then you'll most likely have very enthusiastic professors teaching those classes, which will make those classes even more interesting. Biochemistry is the study of physical and chemical properties of the macromolecules that make up all living organisms. You get more detail about proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids than you would if you do a bio or chem degree. I believe it's more beneficial in pharm school than bio and chem on this point.
But, more than that, biochem degree is a lot more marketable than a bio degree. At UH, there are around 1,000 or more bio degrees each year, versus about 100 biochem degrees. There might be more or less for chem degrees, I'm not sure (I only know 1 chem major lol). In Houston, the job market for bio degrees is saturated, making it harder for recent bio grads to get jobs; plus, if a bio grad got a job, the pay rate would be significantly lower due to higher competition [i.e. They can fire BioGrad A and get a new BioGrad, B, for cheaper]. Biochem degrees, on contrast, have a bit more specificity, but the pay rate is higher and the jobs are a lot more interesting than just a bio degree can handle.
Honestly, it all comes down to how your school's Bio and Biochem departments are.
I would like to add to Angel's post. I am also a community college student and I was accepted to 2 out of the 3 pharmacy schools that I applied. I even got in my #1 choice! 🙂 My advice would be, try to finish all your pharmacy pre-reqs first! Then apply to pharmacy school and your 4-year university at the same time. If you get accepted into pharm school, jump ship! If not, continue to make yourself more competitive by finishing your bachelor's degree. Note that you do not need a SPECTACULAR GPA to make it from community college. Your GPA should be in the mid 3's and your pcat should be in the mid 80's. If you can get 4-year degree, your gpa can even hover a lil below 3.0. GL! 👍
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