Shotgun or Focused Approach?

[rxdude]

I"m a first year pre-pharm. student in Cali . .blah blah blah. Right now, I'm considering 3 different schools for pharmacy school. Problem is, some of pre-req requirements differ slightly. Do I just focus on 1 school's req's, or satisfy all three schools pre-req's? I figured it would be 5 extra classes that would satisfy each of the 3 schools. So, which is the best approach - shotgun, or focused?

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[lovilla]

Happy Birthday rxdude!

 

[rxdude]

Thank you, Lovilla!

 

[GravyRPH]

Umm, well nothing is guaranteed. The more schools you can apply to the better chance you will have of getting into one of them.

 

[neonam11]

I believe what rxdude is alluding to is whether he should start finishing off all of the pre-pharmacy requirements for all the California pharmacy schools. Since you are a first year pre-pharm student (am I correct in guessing that this is your first year as an undergrad?), I would suggest taking the courses that most California pharmacy schools require:

1. 1 year of biology w/ lab
2. 1 year of general chem w/ lab
3. 1 year of physics w/ lab
4. 1 year of organic chemistry w/ lab
5. 1 semester or 2 quarters of calculus
6. 2 semester or 2 quarters of Freshmen English
7. Microeconomics or macroeconomics
8. Public speaking

After you are sure that you want to apply to these schools and get interviews, you can take the last remaining courses (i.e., microbiology, anatomy, or physiology, depending on the school you applied to) during the spring or summer semester/quarter before your pharmacy program starts. By the way, the courses numbered 1-5 I will be required by most health professional schools you might want to pursue, so if you decide pharmacy is not the profession for you, you still can pursue another health related field.

 

[rxdude]

You're not correct in guessing this is my first year as an undergrad. I've got my B.S. in Management Info. Systems. Also, I've got most of the non-science pre-req's knocked out, so basically I'll just be taking all science classes with the exception of 1 English course. Other than that, I've got about 13 classes that I need for pharm school. I was just curious as to whether or not I should focus on 1, because focusing on 3 different ones will require more classes - which means more time, more homework, tests. etc. I mean . . I haven't even made it to pharm school yet, so I don't need to make my life any harder than it will be. As for me deciding whether or not I want to go into pharmacy, that's a 100% sure thing.

A question for those already in Pharm. School - In your pre-pharm days, did you focus only on 1 school's pre-req's, or more?

 

[Brill]

I prepared to apply at only one school. I wouldn't recommend it for everyone though. My numbers were significantly higher than the averages at the school I applied to and was accepted at, but I knew it was a big risk.

 

[TCB]

You have good questions here...

I am planning on applying to at least 15 schools, and I am taking pre-requisites that most of those schools require. If 1 school out of 15 schools requires a class like Medicinal Microbiology, I am not going to bother applying to that pharmacy school or even taking that class.
Just remember that you can 't just follow the pre-requisites of just 1 school; you will be in big troubles, especially if you're only planning on applying to other schools besides pharmacy schools in California. However if you're planning on getting a Bachelor degree, you pretty much don't have to worry about those additional classes, if not!!!!???!!! Just DON'T focus in 1 school . My friend Natran can tell you all about it, that is one of the reasons why she didn't get accepted anywhere this year.


Good luck.