Should a bachelor’s degree be required in order to apply to pharmacy schools?

[atticus27]

Is it time for the AACP to step it up to the next level?

I say Yes. The demand is clearly out there for pharmacy to enhance admissions requirements. Besides Medicine, Dentistry, And Vet, even Optometry, Physical Therapy, and Audiology requires degrees. Heck, now seems as good a time as ever.

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[WVUPharm2007]

No.

 

[p-rog]

That's more than stepping it to the "next level". There's schools that admit kids straight out of highschool.

 

[atticus27]

That's more than stepping it to the "next level". There's schools that admit kids straight out of highschool.

Even 0-6 program acceptences are conditional upon minimal set performance standards. They could just add a B.S./B.A. degree as new admissions criteria.

 

[rxconquistador]

This is an easy one to answer. Of course a Doctor should have 8 years of school!

Anyone who says no is either trying to rationalize their own education path or is way too trusting of 20 year olds getting in after 2 years.

There should be no 6 year programs out of high school.

I also feel that MBA schools should not accept anyone without 2 years of full time work experience. Otherwise the education is worthless. Academic prowess in business without relevant prior experience is useless.

This is a moot discussion because pharmacy schools won't change their admission policies nor will MBA schools.

But if you do feel this way - and you get in a management position - simply don't ever employ a pharmacist without a bachelors & a PharmD.

 

[steveysmith54]

well good luck trying to get in without one...

But, i think ur efforts should be on trying to get AACP to stop letting everyone and their neighbor open new schools.

That will solve more probs than this debate

 

[Priapism321]

I do agree the requirements should be raised to keep the turkeys out, but I am more in favor of increasing the number of prerequisite credits to 90 (like most medical schools). Also, all schools should require the PCAT, and that test could stand to be a little harder.

 

[Priapism321]

This is an easy one to answer. Of course a Doctor should have 8 years of school!

I would have had my Bachelors in 3 years without a problem.....I don't know how your amateur logic would work in this situation.

 

[OChemist]

personally I can go both ways.
How does the high school students know they want to do pharmacy?
Yet I dont have a bachelors yet and I am coming out with a assc in chemistry.

but I am more in favor of increasing the number of prerequisite credits to 90 (like most medical schools)

Im more with this.

 

[PharmaTope]

Is it time for the AACP to step it up to the next level?

I say Yes. The demand is clearly out there for pharmacy to enhance admissions requirements. Besides Medicine, Dentistry, And Vet, even Optometry, Physical Therapy, and Audiology requires degrees. Heck, now seems as good a time as ever.

yes. i see too many immature people pushed through pharmacy by their parents from high school bc of the money. putting the 4 yr degree before will enhance the quality of people and decrease the number of those going just for money due to more enhanced admissions. the school i went to admitted majority from high school. other places i interviewed at that had more people with prior degrees had a definite difference in quality of individuals and programs.


i agree with the demand that is present it can be done at this point. however, i think the role of a pharmacist should be enhanced as well.

Perhaps a Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner position with some more schooling to function as a nurse practitioner or PA-C would. that would be nice and would decrease a lot of the healthcare burden out there.

 

[AStudentDoctor]

No.

 

[BavarianMWE46]

I say yes. Only requiring two years of pre-reqs makes the PharmD seem too much like a quick, easy money type of degree. If a bachelors were required, people not as dedicated to the field would not apply because of the increased length of school.

It is a doctorate, you should have a bachelors, end of conversation. The only other "doctorate" that doesn't admit atleast 98% of people with bachelors degrees is the Doctor of Chiropractic, and we know how credible that degree is.

I say we require a bachelors for all applicants. The fact that 23 year olds are coming out with a doctorate PharmD makes the field seems like something less than all the other professional doctorates. It almost seems like an extended bachelors degree or maybe a masters degree the way it is set up now.

 

[PharmaTope]

I say yes. Only requiring two years of pre-reqs makes the PharmD seem too much like a quick, easy money type of degree. If a bachelors were required, people not as dedicated to the field would not apply because of the increased length of school.

It is a doctorate, you should have a bachelors, end of conversation. The only other "doctorate" that doesn't admit atleast 98% of people with bachelors degrees is the Doctor of Chiropractic, and we know how credible that degree is.

I say we require a bachelors for all applicants. The fact that 23 year olds are coming out with a doctorate PharmD makes the field seems like something less than all the other professional doctorates. It almost seems like an extended bachelors degree or maybe a masters degree the way it is set up now.

i have to agree with you there. the general public thinks pharmacists have no knowledge. before i ever looked at pharmacy i figured they only had an associates degree.

image is everything! i definitely think it needs a prior degree (based on american standards).

in reality though, i disagree with the american education system requiring undergrad education before progressing. at least in europe you skip the useless undergrad bs. unfortunately this is america and that's how it should work.

 

[medicalCPA]

I do agree the requirements should be raised to keep the turkeys out, but I am more in favor of increasing the number of prerequisite credits to 90 (like most medical schools). Also, all schools should require the PCAT, and that test could stand to be a little harder.

This is what I agree with. Some medical schools actually do not require a bachelor's degree, but it is rare that a student will get in without one.

 

[pharmacygopher]

Yes, without a doubt.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school. The only reason colleges are pushing the bachelors thing is because academics have put a premium on having a bachelors...because that way they get more money in tuition. The idea that you need a 4 year degree to get into any professional program is ridiculous. That includes medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy. Really, the only reason I read or hear about is because requiring a degree projects a facade of prestige. The narcissistic obsession with prestige is one of the things that the health professions need to do away with, anyway. But hell, man...I'm in my mid 20s making bank...and not getting a bachelors before pharmacy school is something I frankly do not regret at all. I'd probably be $150k in debt rather than $80k. F' that.

 

[bigpharmD]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school. The only reason colleges are pushing the bachelors thing is because academics have put a premium on having a bachelors...because that way they get more money in tuition. The idea that you need a 4 year degree to get into any professional program is ridiculous. That includes medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy. Really, the only reason I read or hear about is because requiring a degree projects a facade of prestige. The narcissistic obsession with prestige is one of the things that the health professions need to do away with, anyway. But hell, man...I'm in my mid 20s making bank...and not getting a bachelors before pharmacy school is something I frankly do not regret at all. I'd probably be $150k in debt rather than $80k. F' that.

AMEN brotha....quite frankly we could go the other way on this....do you all think a "doctorate" pharmacy degree is needed to do many of the jobs that pharm grads take post graduation????? Many in the pharmacy community think the Pharmd is what started the dumbing down of the profession...and there should be 2 degrees offered...not saying this is correct.....just throwing it out there.

 

[FarscapeGirl]

I think people should get their Bachelor's before they go to pharmacy school, especially if they have little to no pharmacy experience. And shadowing, even volunteering, is not exactly the same thing.

If you change your mind and no longer want to be in pharmacy school, you'll have an easier time pursuing another degree with a four-year degree. I think people get enamored of the good pay and don't think about the rest of being a pharmacist. Schools try to get people who truly want to be in that profession, but it doesn't always work out.

In my grad school program, a lot of people left after (and even during) our first year. Some to go to medical school, some to public health, and some back to just working in labs. Those that went on to other programs would benefit from the BA or BS that they already had.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

AMEN brotha....quite frankly we could go the other way on this....do you all think a "doctorate" pharmacy degree is needed to do many of the jobs that pharm grads take post graduation????? Many in the pharmacy community think the Pharmd is what started the dumbing down of the profession...and there should be 2 degrees offered...not saying this is correct.....just throwing it out there.

That's not far enough. There should be no doctorates at all after ANY professional program. Medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry should all be bachelors...because that's what they most reflect. There is no thesis...no defense...no research...you just do classes, go through some rotations, and get the degree. Now AFTER THAT, completion of a residency should grant the degree of doctorate. Because a residency is basically grad school, but the health professions have to be asses that do their own thing. But anyway...a doctorate is supposed to imply that a person is a master of the highest degree in a subject. And anyone who has spoken to a kid fresh into a residency can tell you...that's complete bull****....because they are the master of jack ****. I've grown so much vis-a-vis knowledge base over a year after school thanks to the "wonderful" sink-or-swim world of being the only guy that likes afternoon shift in an understaffed hospital...all alone taking care of 150 patients...it seriously makes school look like remedial-paced learning in comparison. Hell, I can actually think back to some of the stuff my professors told me that I took as gospel and reflect on them as being just flat out wrong. Like..."wow, it's obvious you haven't been in the tranches since...ever...thanks for lying to me from within your fantasy-world bubble" type of wrong...

So, yes..the PharmD should be receded back into a B.S. in pharm. As should medicine and dentistry...not to mention the DNP...that newfangled doctor of physical therapy thing...etc, etc...

But that's just me.

 

[ffpickle]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school. The only reason colleges are pushing the bachelors thing is because academics have put a premium on having a bachelors...because that way they get more money in tuition. The idea that you need a 4 year degree to get into any professional program is ridiculous. That includes medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy. Really, the only reason I read or hear about is because requiring a degree projects a facade of prestige. The narcissistic obsession with prestige is one of the things that the health professions need to do away with, anyway. But hell, man...I'm in my mid 20s making bank...and not getting a bachelors before pharmacy school is something I frankly do not regret at all. I'd probably be $150k in debt rather than $80k. F' that.

That is basically true. This is the British system...which most of the world follows....

You do 5 yrs after high school (they call it A-levels) of medicine...

I guess the only argument I've heard for the screwed up North American system is that it gives us more time to "mature"....to that end, we do tend to be pretty immature...the high school/grade school educational system here just coddles (sp?) us and tells us we're all so special.

 

[IrishHammer]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school. The only reason colleges are pushing the bachelors thing is because academics have put a premium on having a bachelors...because that way they get more money in tuition. The idea that you need a 4 year degree to get into any professional program is ridiculous. That includes medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy. Really, the only reason I read or hear about is because requiring a degree projects a facade of prestige. The narcissistic obsession with prestige is one of the things that the health professions need to do away with, anyway. But hell, man...I'm in my mid 20s making bank...and not getting a bachelors before pharmacy school is something I frankly do not regret at all. I'd probably be $150k in debt rather than $80k. F' that.

The only real upshot of the Bachelor's degree, it seems, is that it gives students who started at community college a better chance of getting in. That way, they can "prove" that they can handle courseloads at a "real school".

 

[WVUPharm2007]

The only real upshot of the Bachelor's degree, it seems, is that it gives students who started at community college a better chance of getting in. That way, they can "prove" that they can handle courseloads at a "real school".

I went to a community college. I was more prepared than many that went to a larger school or had a B.S.

This is more bull**** from academia. Community colleges are cheap...can't have people not pay a ton of cash for an education can we? My first two years of school cost like $2000 total. Best decision of my life was to go to a cc. I got the EXACT SAME education at a fraction of the cost.

 

[atticus27]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school.

You know what else is irrelevant? Physics I/II and Calculus (not gonna be an engineer, I'm a gonna be an RPh pappy), Bio II (evolution...ultra-useless), English II (analyzing literature..thank you for that..but yes it was forking useless), Econ and Stats and probably a few others. I guarantee that any one of the aforementioned disciplines are so scarcely used in pharmacy school that any student could easily grasp it as he/she goes.

But I guess what they do provide are the positive qualities such as dicipline, efficient study/time managment skills, reasoning/critical thinking, and academic maturity over time. A B.S./B.A. isn't a panacea for a flawless applicant pool, but I'm sure their intangible attributes will overall be superiror to our current pool. That and it will weed out the people entering the field soley because the academic requirments are shorter than other fields.

And I think if requiring a bachelor's degre will bring ANY amount of prestige to the pharmacy profession then let's do it, facade or not. Pharmacy might be the most trusted profession, but it sure ain't the most respected.

 

[bigpharmD]

That's not far enough. There should be no doctorates at all after ANY professional program. Medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry should all be bachelors...because that's what they most reflect. There is no thesis...no defense...no research...you just do classes, go through some rotations, and get the degree. Now AFTER THAT, completion of a residency should grant the degree of doctorate. Because a residency is basically grad school, but the health professions have to be asses that do their own thing. But anyway...a doctorate is supposed to imply that a person is a master of the highest degree in a subject. And anyone who has spoken to a kid fresh into a residency can tell you...that's complete bull****....because they are the master of jack ****. I've grown so much vis-a-vis knowledge base over a year after school thanks to the "wonderful" sink-or-swim world of being the only guy that likes afternoon shift in an understaffed hospital...all alone taking care of 150 patients...it seriously makes school look like remedial-paced learning in comparison. Hell, I can actually think back to some of the stuff my professors told me that I took as gospel and reflect on them as being just flat out wrong. Like..."wow, it's obvious you haven't been in the tranches since...ever...thanks for lying to me from within your fantasy-world bubble" type of wrong...

So, yes..the PharmD should be receded back into a B.S. in pharm. As should medicine and dentistry...not to mention the DNP...that newfangled doctor of physical therapy thing...etc, etc...

But that's just me.

totally agree....my pharmacy school did require a research project, manuscript, and presentation prior to graduation....now some of these were just surveys etc....but i know the state I am in now with 5 or 6 pharmacy schools does not require a project out of anyone...it is always optional...but dont get me started about this place

 

[ancient]

No, of course not. I had an A.S. in pre-pharmacy from a junior college when I entered pharmacy school. The PharmD was optional at the time. I opted for the B.S. since I knew I was going into retail. If you are able to pass the state board exams and become licensed, that is all that really matters. They should probably bring back the B.S.

If I had been going into clinical or hospital, I would have felt more comfortable spending the extra year for a PharmD.

I found out quickly when I started working that most of the real learning occurs on the job. School can only prepare you for so much.

 

[FarscapeGirl]

That's not far enough. There should be no doctorates at all after ANY professional program. Medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry should all be bachelors...because that's what they most reflect. There is no thesis...no defense...no research...you just do classes, go through some rotations, and get the degree. Now AFTER THAT, completion of a residency should grant the degree of doctorate. Because a residency is basically grad school, but the health professions have to be asses that do their own thing. But anyway...a doctorate is supposed to imply that a person is a master of the highest degree in a subject. And anyone who has spoken to a kid fresh into a residency can tell you...that's complete bull****....because they are the master of jack ****. I've grown so much vis-a-vis knowledge base over a year after school thanks to the "wonderful" sink-or-swim world of being the only guy that likes afternoon shift in an understaffed hospital...all alone taking care of 150 patients...it seriously makes school look like remedial-paced learning in comparison. Hell, I can actually think back to some of the stuff my professors told me that I took as gospel and reflect on them as being just flat out wrong. Like..."wow, it's obvious you haven't been in the tranches since...ever...thanks for lying to me from within your fantasy-world bubble" type of wrong...

So, yes..the PharmD should be receded back into a B.S. in pharm. As should medicine and dentistry...not to mention the DNP...that newfangled doctor of physical therapy thing...etc, etc...

But that's just me.

Oh, this is so relevant to read, as I'm sitting here procrastinating from writing my thesis!

So I'm in grad school right now, about to finish, and I've been here six years now. It's completely different from professional school. Professional school (while I haven't experienced it yet) seems more like an extension of undergrad. Same sort of idea, with classes, finals, etc. Not to say at all that it isn't difficult. But it's a lot different from grad school.

In grad school, the stress you can get is unbelievable and completely different from the test/finals stress. You have to demonstrate knowledge of an area, with no set point of where the cut-off is. You can put almost as little or as much into your PhD as you want, but you'll always feel like you're not doing enough, that there's more to learn, etc. And there's a certain amount of independence that's necessary to achieve. I alone am responsible for my project, and I can't graduate until my committee members think I have done enough. While I've had a few classes, most of what I do is no different from other people in the lab who aren't in school.

I do think, from what I understand, that residency is more like grad school, with the independence aspect and no set learning goals.

It's funny; I was so nervous about being independent when I started grad school. I'm almost glad I did grad school first, since in that way, I think it will help with pharmacy. I realize I have a lot to learn, but I also have that confidence in my ability to one day know things, which will be useful when I get to that point in my pharmacy career.

 

[inquirer89]

I say no with many of the reasons WVU said (med school should be a total of 6 years too). And what's the difference between 2 years of prereqs and 4 years of an English degree?

 

[FarscapeGirl]

I say no with many of the reasons WVU said (med school should be a total of 6 years too). And what's the difference between 2 years of prereqs and 4 years of an English degree?

So true! When I was interviewing at my college, an English major was taking us around, telling all these wonderful things she had done. My dad leans over and asks if I know that as a biochem major, I won't have time to do all that sort of stuff. With as hard as I worked through high school, I definitely knew! I did get to do some fun stuff, but not very much.

 

[VancTheTank]

.

 

[FarscapeGirl]

Not to be a jerk, but this is rather funny.

I personally believe the undergraduate degree should be required. Just one man's opinion.

Oops. Fixed it. I try to get all these silly grammar rules right, but occasionally I forget one.

 

[bacillus1]

That's more than stepping it to the "next level". There's schools that admit kids straight out of highschool.

Even 0-6 programs are moving toward this, granting a B.S. after 4th year (out of 6), before a PharmD.

But I say no. I don't think someone without a B.S. is less qualified to be a pharmacist than someone with a B.S.

 

[FarmerE]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school. The only reason colleges are pushing the bachelors thing is because academics have put a premium on having a bachelors...because that way they get more money in tuition. The idea that you need a 4 year degree to get into any professional program is ridiculous. That includes medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy. Really, the only reason I read or hear about is because requiring a degree projects a facade of prestige. The narcissistic obsession with prestige is one of the things that the health professions need to do away with, anyway. But hell, man...I'm in my mid 20s making bank...and not getting a bachelors before pharmacy school is something I frankly do not regret at all. I'd probably be $150k in debt rather than $80k. F' that.

Thank goodness someone finally posted a well-stated answer for this question! You definitely hit the nail on the head.

I knew exactly what I wanted to do my junior year in high school, so why in the world would I have spent an extra $40K+ and put myself more into debt? What would be the point of spending an extra two years of my life to get a degree that I'll never use (chemistry, biology, some other subject that has nothing to do with the practice of pharmacy)? Requiring a bachelor's probably wouldn't do much more to make pharmacists look more credible. The idea of requiring some kind of post-graduation training (aka residency) would do much more to help improve the image and build respect in the profession, as well as prepare pharmacists to be better practitioners.

 

[AKN16]

Let's be honest. There is ZERO reason why 2 extra years of irrelevant classes are needed. To be ready for pharmacy school, you need a number of classes that can be taken sequentially over 2 years out of high school. The only reason colleges are pushing the bachelors thing is because academics have put a premium on having a bachelors...because that way they get more money in tuition. The idea that you need a 4 year degree to get into any professional program is ridiculous. That includes medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy. Really, the only reason I read or hear about is because requiring a degree projects a facade of prestige. The narcissistic obsession with prestige is one of the things that the health professions need to do away with, anyway. But hell, man...I'm in my mid 20s making bank...and not getting a bachelors before pharmacy school is something I frankly do not regret at all. I'd probably be $150k in debt rather than $80k. F' that.

True dat! personally, there a lot people out there who are struggling to get by with paying for the necessary credits for pre-reqs,. With the degree, they would have to struggle even more to pay for it... college is expensive already and I don't see the point in getting a useless degree(bachelors). If one is serious about what he or she wants to do, then why waste their time in making them get something that has very little relevance to their careers. The pre-reqs were designed for a reason in pharmacy, to make the applicant prepared for pharm school... think about it for a moment, why do most other health professionals req a bachelors?.....b/c their pre-reqs are not as copious as pharmacy schools!

 

[metrarx]

....

 

[AKN16]

There is only 1 difference between a pharmD who got his/her bachelors and a pharmD who didn't get one........the bachelors person spent a lot more money then they needed to!

 

[Carboxide]

There is only 1 difference between a pharmD who got his/her bachelors and a pharmD who didn't get one........the bachelors person spent a lot more money then they needed to!

Maybe, maybe not. I think that my bachelor's, which I'm getting at a liberal arts college, has helped me to become significantly more well rounded. From taking general education courses for my degree such as philosophy, literature, history, and diversity courses, I feel I've gained a lot of perspective on the world. Pharmacists are not lab rats - you DO have to talk to people and be educated in general, not just know what drugs will hurt a fetus. I think the pre-reqs prepare you for the pharmacy school courses, but the other courses taken to get a bachelor's make you significantly more well-rounded, and that's never bad.

 

[metrarx]

....

 

[WVUPharm2007]

If reading a bunch of philosophy books made you a better pharmacist, I'd be the ****.

 

[IrishHammer]

Maybe, maybe not. I think that my bachelor's, which I'm getting at a liberal arts college, has helped me to become significantly more well rounded. From taking general education courses for my degree such as philosophy, literature, history, and diversity courses, I feel I've gained a lot of perspective on the world. Pharmacists are not lab rats - you DO have to talk to people and be educated in general, not just know what drugs will hurt a fetus. I think the pre-reqs prepare you for the pharmacy school courses, but the other courses taken to get a bachelor's make you significantly more well-rounded, and that's never bad.

Pre-reqs do include humanities/social sciences though, and a fairly healthy chunk of them, at that. They're designed to make a student more well-rounded. Besides, somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought it was the other way around...you start off taking courses that cover a broad spectrum of topics, and then courses become more degree-specific and more specialized as you progress from A.S. to B.S. to M.S. to Ph.D.

 

[atticus27]

Developing world perspective and understanding have little to do with having a wide range dinner chitchat topics. Sure, drug knowledge is first and foremost. And 2 extra years of studying philosophy or whatever will obviously not make you a better pharmacists as far as things like drug knowledge , but it can be very personally enriching to the individual which will reflect in both their personal and professional lives, hence a more well rounded person/pharmacist.

I give WVUPharm props, he's no slouch when it comes to thinking outside the box or overall intelligence for that matter. But reality is the educational system isn't changing and a bachelor's requirement is more prestigious and if a bachelor's req did nothing but increase admissions difficultly right now I'd be all for it.

 

[VancTheTank]

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[VancTheTank]

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[metrarx]

....

 

[SHC1984]

A bachelor's degree is NOT required for most dental schools and medical schools either. A bachelor's degree is not that important at all. However, medical and dental schools are very competitive and therefore MOST people that are accepted have bachelor's degrees. I have never applied to med schools, however I know for a fact that all the dental schools I applied to did NOT require a Bachelor's except for Harvard/Penn.

Therefore, NO there is really no need to mandate a bachelors for pharmacy school. As pharmacy schools gets more competitve most people will have bachelors when attending and it will be an "unspoken" requirement like dental and medicine. The ONLY reason why pharmacy school is not as competitive is b/c there are waaaay too many of them being built! There are way too many new pharmacy schools that its becoming easier to get into. LOL...

 

[confettiflyer]

Medicine does not require a BS/BA degree.

Though I agree schools should have higher standards, having one big accreditation body set them for everyone is counterproductive. Admissions decisions are best made by adcoms at local schools, this just takes away their ability to make choices and this regulation would do more harm than good.

If you have two students (all other things being equal) with one having a BS/BA the other not having one, the adcom will already choose the one with the BS/BA degree.

Now, if you have two students...one being an idiot with a BS/BA degree in social science and the other that does not, but has outstanding grades in prereqs and close to a degree, a BS/BA requirement from ACPE just gave you an idiot pharm student.

 

[Taurus]

The last thing that the pharm profession needs is a another requirement. Requiring a BS just means more years in school, more debt, more lost wages. With more pharm schools opening, POWER, automation, etc, pharm job prospects and salaries will undoubtedly decrease in the future. If that's so, why would you want to pile on more debt and more years of schooling? If anything, pharm needs to go back to the BS level instead of pharmd for entry level.

 

[ffpickle]

Not to be a jerk, but this is rather funny.

I personally believe the undergraduate degree should be required. Just one man's opinion.

Isn't this an empty phrase? It is redundant to say "I personally believe," when "I believe" would suffice.

 

[metrarx]

....

 

[spacecowgirl]

You have to demonstrate knowledge of an area, with no set point of where the cut-off is. You can put almost as little or as much into your PhD as you want, but you'll always feel like you're not doing enough, that there's more to learn, etc. And there's a certain amount of independence that's necessary to achieve.

I have never been in grad school, but felt like this in pharmacy school and I felt like it x10000000 during my residency! I think pharmacy school can be what you make of it as well. You can slide through with Cs and get a slouchy job or you can get As, pick difficult rotations, get involved with extracurriculars, and get a job that is challenging.

I don't feel like a BA/BS should be required but I'm glad I had one, I think it has made me a better pharmacist.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

Isn't this an empty phrase? It is redundant to say "I personally believe," when "I believe" would suffice.

Gramma Hitla is da hizzy.