Should All Pharmacy Schools Require Bachelor's Degree?

[pharmerjohn]

As the title states, should all pharmacy schools require that students have bachelor's degrees prior to matriculation? Keep in mind all the talks about saturation of the pharmacy job market, new grads not being able to find jobs, etc... Please explain your choices!

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[Gombrich12]

No, 8 years of school is too much money and time for a PharmD.

 

[pharmerjohn]

No, 8 years of school is too much money and time for a PharmD.

That can be kind of a good thing considering the fact that we have a serious saturation of the job market. In comparison to other professions, it's really not too much to ask for. For example, most family medicine docs & pediatricians make about $180k/year, and they invested 4 years for a bachelor's degree, 4 years for medical school, ~3-4 years residency, and ~2-8 years fellowship if they want to continue on. 8 years for a PharmD is not too much to ask for, considering the fact that it's a "Doctor" of Pharmacy degree.

 

[axelz165]

I think more professional jobs should follow pharmacies path. With how completely bull**** science degrees are; it really wouldn't make a difference honestly. ALso personally i dont think it's the nonbachelors degree students clogging up the market. It's the million new schools that open that accept anyone with a 2.5 gpa and 60% pcat. Regardless of what education they have.

 

[pharmerjohn]

I think more professional jobs should follow pharmacies path. With how completely bullcrap science degrees are; it really wouldn't make a difference honestly. ALso personally i dont think it's the nonbachelors degree students clogging up the market. It's the million new schools that open that accept anyone with a 2.5 gpa and 60% pcat. Regardless of what education they have.

I'm not sure if many people would agree that science degrees are "completely bullcrap." In fact, isn't a PharmD a type of science degree? Why pursue something so completely bullcrap? I don’t think that's a fair assessment, nor is it a valid reason to not require a bachelor’s degree.

I don't think the non-bachelor's degree students are clogging up the market either, but they do make up a large portion of pharmacy students, so they're definitely adding to the saturation. That is to say, making the PharmD degree more difficult/time consuming to attain would help decrease the saturation that we're currently experiencing, as it will deter those who are simply not willing to go the extra miles.

I agree with you on the part about new schools, but only to an extent. The thing is, I'm willing to bet a very large portion of students accepted to these new schools do not have a bachelor's degree (with the exception of 1 or 2 new schools that do require bachelor's degrees). This brings home 2 important points: The first is that even a few new schools are setting the standard by requiring a bachelor's degree, so why not make it a universal standard? The second point is that it's mostly new schools that are accepting students with poor stats, and mostly without bachelor's degrees. That's definitely not helping with the saturation problem. In fact, one might even argue that it's making the saturation problem worse, as it's attracting people into the profession for the wrong reason. That is, they're in it for a quick buck.

 

[BestDoctorEver]

I think more professional jobs should follow pharmacies path. With how completely bullcrap science degrees are; it really wouldn't make a difference honestly. ALso personally i dont think it's the nonbachelors degree students clogging up the market. It's the million new schools that open that accept anyone with a 2.5 gpa and 60% pcat. Regardless of what education they have.

People are getting in with 30%+ PCAT these days.

 

[HobbitJane]

@pharmerjohn I completely agree with your proposition. Back when I was 18, I thought getting into pharmacy school would be very difficult and competitive; therefore, over these past four years, I have worked hard to ensure that my stats would be among the best. I recently met with a medical school admissions coordinator and at first she spoke down to me after I told her that I was pre-pharmacy. After showing the woman my transcript, she suddenly became nicer and complimented my academic performance. I think that says a lot about how professionals view pharmacy school these days. It causes me embarrassment to see people with sub-par GPAs and PCAT scores being accepted into pharmacy school because I feel like I am grouped together with these individuals.

I'm not an academic snob, but a passion for pharmacy should be paired with competence in the sciences as demonstrated by your GPA and PCAT scores. I would like to preserve what little prestige this degree possesses by increasing admission standards. I bet if there was a 3.75, 85% PCAT composite score requirement, class sizes would shrink and the saturation issue would slowly subside. I just randomly picked those numbers, but I feel like admission into a doctorate-level program should be difficult.

 

[SuperXMSat]

I think more professional jobs should follow pharmacies path. With how completely bullcrap science degrees are; it really wouldn't make a difference honestly. ALso personally i dont think it's the nonbachelors degree students clogging up the market. It's the million new schools that open that accept anyone with a 2.5 gpa and 60% pcat. Regardless of what education they have.

Could you explain your stance on why Science degrees are bullcrap? Just seems like a random claim to make.

And as far the whole bachelor's degree thing, I feel like I've heard more and more pharmacy schools saying that they will consider a graduate moreso than someone without a degree. This might be a sign of things to come so never say never I suppose.

 

[Chriskahn]

I think it should be either a bachelors or a certain amount of pharmacy experience required (2 years perhaps). It should eliminate those who are going into the field without passion that are just looking for a high salary.

Personally I think a bachelors is a waste of time and money if you really want to become a pharmacist. Why spend 2 years (after pre reqs are done) and a ton of money getting a bachelors degree you will never use? Instead you can work in a pharmacy for 2 years, make money, gain experience, and be better prepared when you enter pharmacy school.

 

[isanders]

I agree with hobbitJane's take. I feel like pharmacy is kind of viewed of as the little brother in the area of healthcare professions. I know many people just think they can spend two years of college do their pre-reqs and then get accepted into pharmacy school. I would much rather accept people with a bachelor's degree than a mere two years. Personally, I feel that bachelor degrees should become the norm, with only students with top notch GPA/PCAT/etc. getting accepted with only two or three years the exception. Looking back, I am a totally different person in so many ways than my first two years of college. I'm not talking about academia only, but maturity wise and in so many other areas that help develop a "well-rounded" experience. If all these other healthcare professions require a bachelors degree, I think pharmacy should follow suit. Also, life is more than just pharmacy. By strictly limiting yourself to pharm pre-reqs in college and pharmacy tech jobs, you are going to be missing out on life a lot. This is just my opinion, but having the whole college experience wrapping up for me, I'm glad I'm getting my bachelor's degree before pharm school rather than speeding through college for just two years. Besides, I will be more prepared for pharm school because of my advanced classes taken throughout college compared to just the pre-reqs for those who only have two or three years of college.

 

[pharmerjohn]

@pharmerjohn I completely agree with your proposition. Back when I was 18, I thought getting into pharmacy school would be very difficult and competitive; therefore, over these past four years, I have worked hard to ensure that my stats would be among the best. I recently met with a medical school admissions coordinator and at first she spoke down to me after I told her that I was pre-pharmacy. After showing the woman my transcript, she suddenly became nicer and complimented my academic performance. I think that says a lot about how professionals view pharmacy school these days. It causes me embarrassment to see people with sub-par GPAs and PCAT scores being accepted into pharmacy school because I feel like I am grouped together with these individuals.

I'm not an academic snob, but a passion for pharmacy should be paired with competence in the sciences as demonstrated by your GPA and PCAT scores. I would like to preserve what little prestige this degree possesses by increasing admission standards. I bet if there was a 3.75, 85% PCAT composite score requirement, class sizes would shrink and the saturation issue would slowly subside. I just randomly picked those numbers, but I feel like admission into a doctorate-level program should be difficult.

Agreed! 🙂

 

[pharmerjohn]

I think it should be either a bachelors or a certain amount of pharmacy experience required (2 years perhaps). It should eliminate those who are going into the field without passion that are just looking for a high salary.

Personally I think a bachelors is a waste of time and money if you really want to become a pharmacist. Why spend 2 years (after pre reqs are done) and a ton of money getting a bachelors degree you will never use? Instead you can work in a pharmacy for 2 years, make money, gain experience, and be better prepared when you enter pharmacy school.

I agree that pharmacy school applicants should at least have some experience to help keep those without the passion out of the profession. However, they don’t necessarily have to be certified techs with years of experience - some experience in the field like shadowing a pharmacist at a local pharmacy/hospital for ~150 hours would suffice. How else would they know what they’re getting themselves into? On the other hand, the reason why I think years of experience is unnecessary for applying to pharmacy school is because the amount of clinical knowledge a person can acquire working as a technician is very minimal due to the lack of clinical training. Furthermore, experience cannot replace education, otherwise tenured techs would all be pharmacists. What sets a MD apart from a LVN is the difference in education between the two, and in that same vein, what sets a pharmacist apart from a technician is the amount of education the pharmacist has over the tech.

Since we’ve established that the gap between a tech and a pharmacist is the difference in education, requiring a bachelor’s degree would not only broaden the gap of education between the pharmacist and the tech, but will also help the pharmacy profession keep up with other doctorate professions that do require bachelor’s degrees. This is especially critical at this point in time when we have a serious saturation issue. We don’t really need a bachelor’s degree to be able to practice pharmacy as pharmacists, in the same way we don’t really need bachelor’s degrees to practice as doctors and dentists. However, these professions for the most part require bachelor’s degrees to matriculate, so why are we cutting ourselves short? We will only be picking up the slackers who are looking for a short-cut or an easy way out. Also, I agree with what islanders wrote above with regards to the things you can gain from obtaining a bachelor's degree.

 

[rxphd]

I think they should. Every other Doctorate degree does. I think it's weird pharmacy doesn't lol. I do believe it's headed that way anyways tho.

 

[DruggieDoRight]

I think they should, and they should also remove the 0-6 pathway. If this is going to be a doctorate degree it should be at least 8 years like every other doctorate degree. I agree that it shouldn't be this way for professional school because there are plenty of people out there that probably don't need to earn that bachelors to do this program, but the four years spent in undergrad help ensure that this profession is what you want to do. I know for a fact that I was a different person now than I was four years ago.

 

[dwighthoward]

Tim Duncan got his degree, and I didn't even go to college. We all know who the better player is

 

[Chriskahn]

David Robinson got a degree and he is way better than you and has buffer shoulders.

 

[SuperXMSat]

Tim Duncan got his degree, and I didn't even go to college. We all know who the better player is

Yeah, Tim Duncan is better right?

 

[oldstock]

I think more professional jobs should follow pharmacies path. With how completely bullcrap science degrees are; it really wouldn't make a difference honestly. ALso personally i dont think it's the nonbachelors degree students clogging up the market. It's the million new schools that open that accept anyone with a 2.5 gpa and 60% pcat. Regardless of what education they have.

well said. Very well said.

 

[pharmerjohn]

I think they should. Every other Doctorate degree does. I think it's weird pharmacy doesn't lol. I do believe it's headed that way anyways tho.

We'll see what the future holds. As of now, it's barely crawling that way... I wouldn't be surprised if 60% of pharmacists are unemployed due to saturation before it happens. I hope that's not the case though...

 

[pharmerjohn]

Tim Duncan got his degree, and I didn't even go to college. We all know who the better player is

It's all about those championship rings, bro! How many do you have? Now, how many does Tim Duncan have?

Seriously though, if I'm 6'11" and 265lbs, I'd be playing hoops for a living as well! 😀 But how many of us are born with that kind of genes? Less than 1%.

 

[pharmerjohn]

well said. Very well said.

And I'm willing to bet most of those people only have pre-reqs. No bachelor's! Surprised?

 

[Jibby321]

No bachelors here. Honestly I am indifferent. I am doing quite well for no BS.

 

[pharmerjohn]

No bachelors here. Honestly I am indifferent. I am doing quite well for no BS.

The purpose of requiring a bachelor's is to set a standard for pharmacy like other doctorate programs (MD/DO, DMD, etc...). Also, it's not to keep dedicated individuals like you out, but to keep those who are trying to do the bare minimum with abysmal GPA and PCAT out. Like I've said before, a bachelor's is not required to do well in pharmacy school, nor is it required to perform in medical or dental schools. However, it's an added step that will help force non-dedicated people to weigh other options prior to choosing pharmacy. This will in effect help mitigate our current saturation problem. Is this the panacea? No, but it's a step in the right direction.

 

[Jibby321]

It would have also helped if 40+ schools didn't open up in the past 15 years. Which really is crazy.

 

[oldstock]

The purpose of requiring a bachelor's is to set a standard for pharmacy like other doctorate programs (MD/DO, DMD, etc...). Also, it's not to keep dedicated individuals like you out, but to keep those who are trying to do the bare minimum with abysmal GPA and PCAT out. Like I've said before, a bachelor's is not required to do well in pharmacy school, nor is it required to perform in medical or dental schools. However, it's an added step that will help force non-dedicated people to weigh other options prior to choosing pharmacy. This will in effect help mitigate our current saturation problem. Is this the panacea? No, but it's a step in the right direction.

To quote what you said, which I put it in bold, "The purpose....(MD/DO/DMD, etc...)", you are so wrong there. If you have ever checked the academic requirement for US medical schools, there are many medical schools that do NOT require a bachelor degree, but only a minimum of about 90 college credits (including the prerequesite coursework). Obviously, someone of higher authority disagree with you here 🙂 If you looks around the world (even you only want to look in the Western world), not many countries require a bachelor degree for medical, dental, or pharmacy schools.

I am saying with a smirk on my face because I see your reply above with some sarcasm, "And I'm willing to bet most of those people only have pre-reqs. No bachelor's! Surprised?". If you had stated your case with good reasoning, I would have understood and accepted if yours were a good one. But then again, I would bet that you definitely have a bachelor degree, right?? lol 🙂

I think differently than you do. At this days and age, how much we have spent in school already, time or money for a degree?? If schools are going the way you think they should, then 20 years from now, I guess schools would require a master or even a doctorate in your chosen field for medical, dental, or pharmacy admission?? By that time, when you graduate from a medical, dental, or pharmacy school, your hair would all be white 🙂

In my opinion, professional schools should find more efficient ways to select "qualified" candidates for their schools early in the process to reduce the time people have to spend study everything in the whole wide world and to maximize the time those people could spend studying and getting the training for their professions after admission. That would also increase the time those future professionals to work in their field after graduation.

You seem bothered and worried by the fact that the pharmacy job market is becoming more and more saturated. And your solution is the requirement of a bachelor degree for pharmacy admission. In my opinion, this is not a right solution by simply adding more and more unnecessary steps to the admission process. The solution, I think, should be, first, to raise the bar of standard tests. If all schools now require 80-90 percentile for PCAT composite, would you agree that less students would be qualified for pharmacy school admission and only the cream de la cream would be able to get in, with or without a bachelor? (I do not care if you even have a PhD somewhere, what school you go to, or even what your GPA is, if you could not get the score that is competitive enough, which cannot stack against those of people with "lesser" degrees, schools, or lower GPA than you). If the standards of a pharmacy school are raised even higher, it would be more difficult for universities to just open up their pharmacy colleges for whatever reasons or motivations they might have. That would reduce the numbers of pharmacy schools available for students to apply to. Also, how about raising the bar on standardized test post-graduation such as the NAPLEX?? That would further reduce the number of the "non-dedicated" or less qualified candidates that could otherwise practice pharmacy. Would these solutions I've just proposed solve the saturation problem you are worried about??

But I guess you would say NO and still insist on requiring a bachelor degree for pharmacy admission, right? 🙂

 

[dwighthoward]

To quote what you said, which I put it in bold, "The purpose....(MD/DO/DMD, etc...)", you are so wrong there. If you have ever checked the academic requirement for US medical schools, there are many medical schools that do NOT require a bachelor degree, but only a minimum of about 90 college credits (including the prerequesite coursework). Obviously, someone of higher authority disagree with you here 🙂 If you looks around the world (even you only want to look in the Western world), not many countries require a bachelor degree for medical, dental, or pharmacy schools.

I am saying with a smirk on my face because I see your reply above with some sarcasm, "And I'm willing to bet most of those people only have pre-reqs. No bachelor's! Surprised?". If you had stated your case with good reasoning, I would have understood and accepted if yours were a good one. But then again, I would bet that you definitely have a bachelor degree, right?? lol 🙂

I think differently than you do. At this days and age, how much we have spent in school already, time or money for a degree?? If schools are going the way you think they should, then 20 years from now, I guess schools would require a master or even a doctorate in your chosen field for medical, dental, or pharmacy admission?? By that time, when you graduate from a medical, dental, or pharmacy school, your hair would all be white 🙂

In my opinion, professional schools should find more efficient ways to select "qualified" candidates for their schools early in the process to reduce the time people have to spend study everything in the whole wide world and to maximize the time those people could spend studying and getting the training for their professions after admission. That would also increase the time those future professionals to work in their field after graduation.

You seem bothered and worried by the fact that the pharmacy job market is becoming more and more saturated. And your solution is the requirement of a bachelor degree for pharmacy admission. In my opinion, this is not a right solution by simply adding more and more unnecessary steps to the admission process. The solution, I think, should be, first, to raise the bar of standard tests. If all schools now require 80-90 percentile for PCAT composite, would you agree that less students would be qualified for pharmacy school admission and only the cream de la cream would be able to get in, with or without a bachelor? (I do not care if you even have a PhD somewhere, what school you go to, or even what your GPA is, if you could not get the score that is competitive enough, which cannot stack against those of people with "lesser" degrees, schools, or lower GPA than you). If the standards of a pharmacy school are raised even higher, it would be more difficult for universities to just open up their pharmacy colleges for whatever reasons or motivations they might have. That would reduce the numbers of pharmacy schools available for students to apply to. Also, how about raising the bar on standardized test post-graduation such as the NAPLEX?? That would further reduce the number of the "non-dedicated" or less qualified candidates that could otherwise practice pharmacy. Would these solutions I've just proposed solve the saturation problem you are worried about??

But I guess you would say NO and still insist on requiring a bachelor degree for pharmacy admission, right? 🙂

Going to college to get a bachelor's degree is not just about getting a degree. The 4-5 year college undergraduate experience is a life experience, it's not just a process to get a piece of paper.

 

[oldstock]

Going to college to get a bachelor's degree is not just about getting a degree. The 4-5 year college undergraduate experience is a life experience, it's not just a process to get a piece of paper.

You have the right to experience life as much as you would like to do, or to get as many or higher degrees if you choose to do so. On the other hand, you could not force people to go on in college to just spend more time to "experience life" by making the bachelor a requirement for pharmacy school admission. Which is unnecessary imho.

There is more life to experience after you already graduate from pharmacy school if you know what I mean 🙂 jk But what I really mean is an excellent pre-pharmacy student (or pre-anything) can get a lot of things done in a very short period of time vs. a mediocre student, again if you know what I mean 🙂

 

[dwighthoward]

There is more life to experience after you already graduate from pharmacy school if you know what I mean 🙂 jk But what I really mean is an excellent pre-pharmacy student (or pre-anything) can get a lot of things done in a very short period of time vs. a mediocre student, again if you know what I mean 🙂

I don't know what you mean. Your arguments are full of holes and fallacies, just like my offensive post game.

You seem like you have a personal grudge against getting a degree, so I can't really take you seriously "if you know what I mean 🙂" Just leave LA and go to Houston like I did

 

[oldstock]

I don't know what you mean. Your arguments are full of holes and fallacies, just like my offensive post game.

You seem like you have a personal grudge against getting a degree, so I can't really take you seriously "if you know what I mean 🙂" Just leave LA and go to Houston like I did

if you say so, I would like to see what your argument is?? bring on your best game brotha 🙂

I do not have a grudge about having a degree, just saying that adding an unnecessary step into the admission process is not a good solution to the perceived problem of pharmacy job market being saturated. And if you look above, people are sarcastic about others who do not have a bachelor degree, but I cannot be?? (sigh)

 

[dwighthoward]

if you say so, I would like to see what your argument is?? bring on your best game brotha 🙂

I do not have a grudge about having a degree, just saying that adding an unnecessary step into the admission process is not a good solution to the perceived problem of pharmacy job market being saturated. And if you look above, people are sarcastic about others who do not have a bachelor degree, but I cannot be?? (sigh)

I don't think all schools should require Bachelor's degrees. It would be unfair for those who are older and going into pharmacy from a different career or life path. However, I do think that having a Bachelor's degree should give an applicant a better edge in admissions because it proves that they can handle a university level education with passing grades. It shouldn't be the deciding factor, but it should be a factor in admissions.

 

[oldstock]

I don't think all schools should require Bachelor's degrees. It would be unfair for those who are older and going into pharmacy from a different career or life path. However, I do think that having a Bachelor's degree should give an applicant a better edge in admissions because it proves that they can handle a university level education with passing grades. It shouldn't be the deciding factor, but it should be a factor in admissions.

I absolutely agree with you there! Everything else being equal, a bachelor degree would definitely give an applicant an edge in the selection process. But it should not be an absolute requirement for admission to professional schools such as pharmacy schools. Also, it does not look so good to me when a bachelor degree (or master degree or whatever) holder or university student cannot fair against people without the degree or community college students on standard tests (such as the PCAT which most pharmacy schools require for admission). That would speak volume on how much and how well the person know and is able to apply his or her learned materials.

 

[pharmerjohn]

To quote what you said, which I put it in bold, "The purpose....(MD/DO/DMD, etc...)", you are so wrong there. If you have ever checked the academic requirement for US medical schools, there are many medical schools that do NOT require a bachelor degree, but only a minimum of about 90 college credits (including the prerequesite coursework). Obviously, someone of higher authority disagree with you here 🙂 If you looks around the world (even you only want to look in the Western world), not many countries require a bachelor degree for medical, dental, or pharmacy schools.

My first impression after skimming your first paragraph was that I wasn’t sure if you’re trolling or being serious. After reading the rest of your post along with your responses to “Superman,” I came to realize that you’re being serious. I mean this in the nicest way possible, but if you were to post what you said above in the pre-Allopathic or pre-Osteopathic forums, you’ll be getting some serious flak and accused of trolling just for bringing it up the idea that only 90 college credits are all that’s needed for medical school and a bachelor’s is not required. To your credit, a person can TRY to apply with 90 credits including pre-requisites, but that’s no different than taking a wad of cash and setting it aflame. Heck, you can probably apply with 1 credit if you’re so inclined on throwing cash away. However, if you were to have ANY chance whatsoever, you’ll need a bachelor’s degree (except in extremely rare circumstances – 4.0 at Harvard with 44MCAT, LOR from a Nobel laureate, or you donated millions to the school). In fact, most medical schools in the U.S. require a bachelor’s degree to matriculate (Caribbean or international schools are not the same as the U.S. – many who go to schools outside of the U.S. have serious trouble getting U.S. residency or passing the USMLE/COMPLEX). Note that the requirement to apply is different than the requirement to matriculate – most school put the minimum to apply, but if you do the minimum, you won’t be getting any secondaries. Also note that my question in the original post specifically refers to the requirement to matriculate, not to apply. If you’re still in doubt, see the sources below.

A few sources (use the search function):
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/som/admissions/md/application_process/prerequisites_requirements.html
http://www.medicine.virginia.edu/education/medical-students/admissions/admissions-cycle/acceptance.html
http://www.studentdoctor.net/2010/01/medical-school-101-what-medical-school-is-really-like/
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/to-med-school-without-bachelors.716702/

I am saying with a smirk on my face because I see your reply above with some sarcasm, "And I'm willing to bet most of those people only have pre-reqs. No bachelor's! Surprised?". If you had stated your case with good reasoning, I would have understood and accepted if yours were a good one. But then again, I would bet that you definitely have a bachelor degree, right?? lol 🙂

I think differently than you do. At this days and age, how much we have spent in school already, time or money for a degree?? If schools are going the way you think they should, then 20 years from now, I guess schools would require a master or even a doctorate in your chosen field for medical, dental, or pharmacy admission?? By that time, when you graduate from a medical, dental, or pharmacy school, your hair would all be white 🙂

I had a strong case built above regarding the saturation and the fact that newer schools are accepting people with abysmal stats with only pre-reqs. I also strengthened my case by implying that a PharmD is a doctorate degree and should require a bachelor’s degree prior to obtaining it. Unless you have a better counter-argument, I suggest you drop the useless ad hominem assaults and come up with a better response. Furthermore, no one’s saying that we require Masters or PhDs to enter the medical field, and no one ever said it has to be that way. Your extrapolation is incorrect and has no added value to your fallacious reasoning regarding the direction that higher education is heading.

In my opinion, professional schools should find more efficient ways to select "qualified" candidates for their schools early in the process to reduce the time people have to spend study everything in the whole wide world and to maximize the time those people could spend studying and getting the training for their professions after admission. That would also increase the time those future professionals to work in their field after graduation.

I’m with you on this so far, but how do you get more “qualified” candidates who have a genuine interest in the profession? The requirement of a bachelor’s degree, competitive PCAT composite, along with good extra-curricular, perhaps? Geeze… that what I said!

You seem bothered and worried by the fact that the pharmacy job market is becoming more and more saturated. And your solution is the requirement of a bachelor degree for pharmacy admission. In my opinion, this is not a right solution by simply adding more and more unnecessary steps to the admission process. The solution, I think, should be, first, to raise the bar of standard tests. If all schools now require 80-90 percentile for PCAT composite, would you agree that less students would be qualified for pharmacy school admission and only the cream de la cream would be able to get in, with or without a bachelor? (I do not care if you even have a PhD somewhere, what school you go to, or even what your GPA is, if you could not get the score that is competitive enough, which cannot stack against those of people with "lesser" degrees, schools, or lower GPA than you). If the standards of a pharmacy school are raised even higher, it would be more difficult for universities to just open up their pharmacy colleges for whatever reasons or motivations they might have. That would reduce the numbers of pharmacy schools available for students to apply to. Also, how about raising the bar on standardized test post-graduation such as the NAPLEX?? That would further reduce the number of the "non-dedicated" or less qualified candidates that could otherwise practice pharmacy. Would these solutions I've just proposed solve the saturation problem you are worried about??

The PCAT is only 1 test. It’s hardly a good indicator for how competent someone will be in school or how dedicated someone is to the profession. I agree that there should be some standard for PCAT scores, and it would be a step in the right direction to mitigate the saturation issue. However, it’s by no means a replacement for academic performance in school or other requirements (like a bachelor’s) that could make the candidate more well-rounded. As for the NAPLEX, it’s funny how you said too much time and money are spent for education, yet you want to let someone go through pharmacy school and take on $200k in debt to eventually not pass the NAPLEX! That’s beyond cruel!!! Why not make the requirements higher and slightly more lengthy (It’s a bachelor’s not a PhD, for goodness sake!) so that those dedicated will get in, pass the NAPLEX and be able to find a job to pay off their student loans.

But I guess you would say NO and still insist on requiring a bachelor degree for pharmacy admission, right? 🙂

Wrong! I’m not disagreeing with what you said above with regards to making the requirements higher prior to matriculating in pharmacy school, the real major disagreement we have is the need for a bachelor’s. So far, you’re quite keen and not requiring it to benefit students who don’t have one like yourself. I tried putting myself in your shoes, and I understand where you’re coming from. It’s a tough situation… However, you haven’t provided any other solid arguments as to why we should not require a bachelor’s degree. I still stand behind my reason for requiring a bachelor’s, as it will help mitigate the saturation problem we are currently experiencing. It’s just a bachelor’s degree! It’s not like your have to give up a body part*. Just another 2 years of upper-division courses (1 if you’re really dedicated), so I only see it benefitting the profession.

*A thread on the medical forum actually asked about sacrificing a body part (a testicle, to be more specific) to get accepted.

 

[pharmerjohn]

It would have also helped if 40+ schools didn't open up in the past 15 years. Which really is crazy.

And more to come! That's why there needs to be more stringent standards...

 

[pharmerjohn]

I don't think all schools should require Bachelor's degrees. It would be unfair for those who are older and going into pharmacy from a different career or life path. However, I do think that having a Bachelor's degree should give an applicant a better edge in admissions because it proves that they can handle a university level education with passing grades. It shouldn't be the deciding factor, but it should be a factor in admissions.

What's stopping them from getting a bachelor's? What about students who went through college, obtained their bachelor's, worked hard through pharmacy school, acquired $200k in student loans, only to end up not being able to find a job due to the field being too saturated - is it fair for them? Where do we draw the line?

 

[dwighthoward]

What's stopping them from getting a bachelor's? What about students who went through college, obtained their bachelor's, worked hard through pharmacy school, acquired $200k in student loans, only to end up not being able to find a job due to the field being too saturated - is it fair for them? Where do we draw the line?

Man, you and oldstock are like Shaq and Kobe, you guys are just on the wrong side of everything here.

While I like the idea of requiring a bachelor's degree, that isn't the solution to the problem that you're bringing up. The same amount of students will matriculate every year as long as the seats are available. Schools have to fill the seats, and I'm sure more than 500+ apply to most pharmacy schools anyways.

That isn't the solution to solving the "saturation" problem. In fact, there isn't a single solution to anything.

And if you're worried about not finding a job after you graduate, you should start now on thinking of the next big thing in pharmacy. If you find that, you'll have more than enough money to get you around.

F*** Kobe and the Lakers, I <3 James Harden

 

[dwighthoward]

Man I destroyed both of you guys. My flawless logic is like my athletic rebounding prowess. Too bad I turned the ball over 7 times tonight

 

[pharmerjohn]

Man, you and oldstock are like Shaq and Kobe, you guys are just on the wrong side of everything here.

While I like the idea of requiring a bachelor's degree, that isn't the solution to the problem that you're bringing up. The same amount of students will matriculate every year as long as the seats are available. Schools have to fill the seats, and I'm sure more than 500+ apply to most pharmacy schools anyways.

That isn't the solution to solving the "saturation" problem. In fact, there isn't a single solution to anything.

And if you're worried about not finding a job after you graduate, you should start now on thinking of the next big thing in pharmacy. If you find that, you'll have more than enough money to get you around.

F*** Kobe and the Lakers, I <3 James Harden

Dude, you need to work on your reading like you need to work on them free-throws! Lol I already said above that it’s not the solution, but is a step in the right direction.

I agree that it’s the number of seats that allow students to matriculate. Hence, if we have higher standards (like requiring a bachelor’s degree), then fewer people will be able to meet those standards or will opt for a different career path because they feel there are other options out there. With fewer students applying (except for the truly dedicated ones), it will discourage schools from popping up like weeds in the spring time.

Ya, while I’m trying to figure out "the next big thing," I’ll also grow a foot and gain 100 lbs of muscles to be the next Dwight Howard.

 

[oldstock]

Man, you and oldstock are like Shaq and Kobe, you guys are just on the wrong side of everything here.

While I like the idea of requiring a bachelor's degree, that isn't the solution to the problem that you're bringing up. The same amount of students will matriculate every year as long as the seats are available. Schools have to fill the seats, and I'm sure more than 500+ apply to most pharmacy schools anyways.

That isn't the solution to solving the "saturation" problem. In fact, there isn't a single solution to anything.

And if you're worried about not finding a job after you graduate, you should start now on thinking of the next big thing in pharmacy. If you find that, you'll have more than enough money to get you around.

F*** Kobe and the Lakers, I <3 James Harden

my hat to you Dwight: you got it and even are saying it better than me there!! I already said it above that a bachelor degree is NOT the solution to the saturation problem.

Again Dwight, very very well said !!!!!

 

[pharmerjohn]

my hat to you Dwight: you got it and even are saying it better than me there!! I already said it above that a bachelor degree is NOT the solution to the saturation problem.

Again Dwight, very very well said !!!!!

LOL! Oh, the irony! lol

 

[oldstock]

I’m with you on this so far, but how do you get more “qualified” candidates who have a genuine interest in the profession? The requirement of a bachelor’s degree, competitive PCAT composite, along with good extra-curricular, perhaps? Geeze… that what I said!

HOW? you might have to check with Dwight, he got it 🙂

imho: less schools.

Let's say the trend of new schools opening up continues, the seats for pharmacy schools become more and more available and accommodating the number of pharmacy school applicants every year. They would probably let in students with a 2.0 GPA and 30-40 PCAT composite, even in the case that a bachelor degree is an absolute requirement for admission. How is that for quality ?? I would rather take a two year student from a community college with 3.5++ GPA and 80-90 percentile on their PCAT composite than those bachelor degree applicants.

The PCAT is only 1 test. It’s hardly a good indicator for how competent someone will be in school or how dedicated someone is to the profession. I agree that there should be some standard for PCAT scores, and it would be a step in the right direction to mitigate the saturation issue. However, it’s by no means a replacement for academic performance in school or other requirements (like a bachelor’s) that could make the candidate more well-rounded. As for the NAPLEX, it’s funny how you said too much time and money are spent for education, yet you want to let someone go through pharmacy school and take on $200k in debt to eventually not pass the NAPLEX! That’s beyond cruel!!! Why not make the requirements higher and slightly more lengthy (It’s a bachelor’s not a PhD, for goodness sake!) so that those dedicated will get in, pass the NAPLEX and be able to find a job to pay off their student loans.

hey man, I did not say "to let someone go through pharmacy school and take on $200K in debt to eventually not pass the NAPLEX! That's beyond crude!!!". Where did it come from??

ok, you say a bachelor would make a pharmacy applicant more "rounded". I assume you have a bachelor degree and probably not from Harvard or any of the Ivy league schools, right? If yes, a pharmacy applicant with a bachelor degree from Harvard would probably be more "rounded" than you 🙂 jk

I've made that joke to point out to you that it is ridiculous to rely on a degree or GPA to compare or measure the academic performance of a student to another students for admission. If you read my original response to you, schools all have different academic standards. A GPA of 3.0 from a school could be equivalent to 4.0 in another (I just make that example up but hope you get the idea). Likewise, not all bachelor degrees are created equal. The quality of a degree from one school varies compared to the next.

Again, you miss the point. The rules of economics are in effects here: If more students want to go to pharmacy schools, and the number of pharmacy schools is growing at the same growth rate that we see for medical schools, the admission standards will go up. If there are less students and more pharmacy schools, standards will go down. Simple as that.

From your posts above, you said it yourself that a bachelor degree is not needed for performing or learning or being successful in professional schools (medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, law, etc.) But when everyone wants the same thing, the price to acquire it will go up. We all see in the case of US medical school admission, many schools are asking for a bachelor degree as an absolute admission requirements (many US medical schools, however, still do not), just because lots and lots of students wanna go to medical schools and become doctors (while there are only a limited number of US medical schools are available).

Right now, the problem is more and more pharmacy schools opening up, which means more pharmacy graduates in the future. Even if you forcefully add the bachelor degree requirement, schools will produce the same number of graduates. It means that the "saturation" in pharmacy job market that you are worried is going be the same, bachelor degree or not. US economy is still trying to recover, and the job market in general is still in the mud (no matter how the government wanna spin their stats, just look around you). Pharmacy job market is more and more tight as few new jobs are created and older pharmacists are staying longer, keeping their jobs. More schools producing more graduates will add to the pressure.

Again, the problem is, as you see, more schools. Let's say all those new pharmacy graduate all have a bachelor degree before going in pharmacy schools. Those people would be even "smarter" and thus the pressure on the job market is even greater. Maybe the idea of letting more "less qualified" people, in your case is the people without a bachelor degree, would not be so bad. They will eventually fail the NAPLEX, and this will reduce the pool of new pharmacists looking for jobs. With the $200K+ debt on their backs, they will break out and complain about the profession being "cruel" and discourage pre-pharmacy students from applying to pharmacy school and eventually change their pre-thing to pre-medicine or pre-dental or pre-vet, etc. In addition, those (w/o a bachelor degree), who passed the NAPLEX, would probably be "less smart" or "less dedicated" to compete with other new pharmacy graduates who got a bachelor degree for new jobs. This would further help to ease the pressure and to "mitigate" the "saturation" problem 🙂 Just saying 🙂

Wrong! I’m not disagreeing with what you said above with regards to making the requirements higher prior to matriculating in pharmacy school, the real major disagreement we have is the need for a bachelor’s. So far, you’re quite keen and not requiring it to benefit students who don’t have one like yourself. I tried putting myself in your shoes, and I understand where you’re coming from. It’s a tough situation… However, you haven’t provided any other solid arguments as to why we should not require a bachelor’s degree. I still stand behind my reason for requiring a bachelor’s, as it will help "mitigate" the "saturation" problem we are currently experiencing. It’s just a bachelor’s degree! It’s not like your have to give up a body part*. Just another 2 years of upper-division courses (1 if you’re really dedicated), so I only see it benefitting the profession.

*A thread on the medical forum actually asked about sacrificing a body part (a testicle, to be more specific) to get accepted.

You assumed that I do not have a bachelor degree. I guess, anyone argues against your wanting a bachelor as a requirement for pharmacy admission probably does not have a bachelor degree then 🙂 And it is the schools that do not require a bachelor degree for their pharmacy admission not me that "not requiring it"

As for reasons why not, just read my original response to you again brother 🙂

Certain science courses such as general biology, chemistry, physics, calculus should be the absolute requirements for pharmacy admission as they are relevant to the learning and training in pharmacy school. A bachelor degree?? NO. You said it yourself, it is not needed to perform or learn in pharmacy schools.

You want to solve the problem of pharmacy job being "saturated"? You looked at the wrong things bro. Read what Dwight or Axelz165 said above. They already said it very well!


Geez, I do not know why I am typing this super long reply while I have an interview with a "tier-1" pharmacy school early in the morning. Maybe practicing some writing and reasoning?? (lol) Wish me luck !! 🙂

 

[oldstock]

I had a strong case built above regarding the saturation and the fact that newer schools are accepting people with abysmal stats with only pre-reqs. I also strengthened my case by implying that a PharmD is a doctorate degree and should require a bachelor’s degree prior to obtaining it. Unless you have a better counter-argument, I suggest you drop the useless ad hominem assaults and come up with a better response. Furthermore, no one’s saying that we require Masters or PhDs to enter the medical field, and no one ever said it has to be that way. Your extrapolation is incorrect and has no added value to your fallacious reasoning regarding the direction that higher education is heading.

I did provide you with my argument and counter argument since my original post bro 🙂 And it was you that attacked and condescended on people, not me. Courtesy and Respect for people and you will get the same, man 🙂

And I'm willing to bet most of those people only have pre-reqs. No bachelor's! Surprised?

nite 🙂

 

[littleowl]

So the "everyone who applies to a Pharm.D program needs a Bachelor's degree" argument has one tiny/glaring flaw depending on who you ask. Your proposal would require a BS/BA for each applicant but there is no way to standardize the degree itself. For example: the BA in Art History is not equivalent to the BS in Biochemistry and yet both of those degrees would satisfy the proposed matriculation requirement. Another example: the BS in Biology from UWashington is not equivalent to the BS in Biology from Strayer online. What is your solution to those problems? I'm of the opinion that the vast number of available programs and subsequent new grad numbers coupled with the older generation's later retirement age is the number one culprit for the rising unemployment statistics in pharmacy right now. Also, we seem to have a growing number of Pharm.D students who are not fulfilling their intern hours or working during the standard school year. Why is that happening? Are students being encouraged to sit around and study constantly instead of networking and making long-term connections in their chosen career field? I like the idea of a baseline PCAT score requirement because it would force the Art History major and the Biochemistry major to take responsibility for the same level of understanding in the subsections rather than allowing less stringent academic majors to exhibit a stellar GPA and a sub-par PCAT and still be selected for interviews/acceptance.

 

[dwighthoward]

Just don't go into pharmacy if you don't think you can get a job. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

 

[jamesharden]

Just don't go into pharmacy if you don't think you can get a job. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

Tell em, son

 

[pharmerjohn]

imho: less schools.
Let's say the trend of new schools opening up continues, the seats for pharmacy schools become more and more available and accommodating the number of pharmacy school applicants every year. They would probably let in students with a 2.0 GPA and 30-40 PCAT composite, even in the case that a bachelor degree is an absolute requirement for admission. How is that for quality ?? I would rather take a two year student from a community college with 3.5++ GPA and 80-90 percentile on their PCAT composite than those bachelor degree applicants.

You can’t just say, “less schools.” It doesn’t work that way. New schools will continue to open as long as there are people willing to go – especially people with abysmal stats and no degrees. It’s all about greed, and these newer schools are in it to make money – to the detriment of the profession! My proposal is to help preserve the profession by keeping it from getting too saturated. So, how do we do it? More stringent standards like I’ve said before: bachelor’s degree, competitive GPA/PCAT, good EC/experience. You gotta understand that I’m not disagreeing with you on the aspects of GPA/PCAT and the likes, and I never said we should accept people which bachelor’s degrees that have low pre-reqs and low PCAT either. Therefore, quit bringing that up, as it’s a digression that has nothing to do with the discussion at hand. All I’m saying is that we should add a bachelor’s degree on top of those other things that we agreed upon. So, do realize that our disagreement is only on whether or not bachelor’s degrees should be a requirement.

That being said, please realize that the requirement for a bachelor’s is not a panacea – it’s not a solution that will fix the saturation issue. BUT, it is a step in the right direction in the following ways: First, it will cause those who have good grades, good PCAT, and a bachelor’s to consider their options. These students will weigh their options against other professions with similar requirements and will decide whether pharmacy is something they truly want to do. Second, it will cause slackers who prefer to scrape by with the notion that “C’s gets PharmDs” to be weeded out, as they won’t meeting the requirements. These slackers who are barely scraping by with C’s from community college are less likely to go on and pursue a bachelor’s with more challenging upper-division courses. Third, the bachelor’s requirement would put Pharmacy up to the level of other doctorates, which in turns will cause potential students to consider their options before pursuing the degree. It will also send a signal that we demand to be taken seriously like other doctorate degrees. Finally, all these things that I’ve mentioned will result in a trickle down effect that will potentially drive away people who are attracted to the profession for the wrong reasons. The requirement of a bachelor’s degree is not a solution, but its trickle down effects will push the profession in the right direction due to the reasons I have given above. Please think about it. It’s not a bad idea and is an effective piece in the quest for a solution to the saturation puzzle.

hey man, I did not say "to let someone go through pharmacy school and take on $200K in debt to eventually not pass the NAPLEX! That's beyond crude!!!". Where did it come from??

“…how about raising the bar on standardized test post-graduation such as the NAPLEX?? That would further reduce the number of the "non-dedicated" or less qualified candidates that could otherwise practice pharmacy.”

This statement IMPLIES it.

I've made that joke to point out to you that it is ridiculous to rely on a degree or GPA to compare or measure the academic performance of a student to another students for admission. If you read my original response to you, schools all have different academic standards. A GPA of 3.0 from a school could be equivalent to 4.0 in another (I just make that example up but hope you get the idea). Likewise, not all bachelor degrees are created equal. The quality of a degree from one school varies compared to the next.

True, degrees vary from one institution to another, and from one major to another. That’s why we have pre-reqs GPA, PCAT scores, and how active they are with EC – all on top of acquiring a bachelor’s. It’s not that we’re only looking at their bachelor’s degree and judging them on that merit alone, so please don’t assume that. What I’ve said above is how medical and dental schools judge their applicant in terms of well-roundedness.

Again, you miss the point. The rules of economics are in effects here: If more students want to go to pharmacy schools, and the number of pharmacy schools is growing at the same growth rate that we see for medical schools, the admission standards will go up. If there are less students and more pharmacy schools, standards will go down. Simple as that.

I don’t know what rule of economics you’re talking about (supply-demand?), but the thing with medical schools is that they open very few schools compared to pharmacy. They want to protect their profession and add prestige to it. That’s not the same with Pharmacy. Pharmacy simply opens schools left and right, while accepting students with abysmal stats with no bachelor’s. The problem that we’re discussing here really stems from AACP – if they quit approving new schools and set more stringent standards, it could fix our saturation problem. At the moment, they’re not doing anything about it, so the problem continues…

From your posts above, you said it yourself that a bachelor degree is not needed for performing or learning or being successful in professional schools (medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, law, etc.) But when everyone wants the same thing, the price to acquire it will go up. We all see in the case of US medical school admission, many schools are asking for a bachelor degree as an absolute admission requirements (many US medical schools, however, still do not), just because lots and lots of students wanna go to medical schools and become doctors (while there are only a limited number of US medical schools are available).

Most medical schools require a bachelor’s to matriculate, and this sets in motion a sort of “herd effect” that gives the profession prestige. Also, it is very rare that people get accepted into medical school without a bachelor’s as my sources in the previous post point out. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about pharmacy. Although, the same should be said about pharmacy if we are to gain any respect or prestige for the profession.

Again, the problem is, as you see, more schools. Let's say all those new pharmacy graduate all have a bachelor degree before going in pharmacy schools. Those people would be even "smarter" and thus the pressure on the job market is even greater. Maybe the idea of letting more "less qualified" people, in your case is the people without a bachelor degree, would not be so bad. They will eventually fail the NAPLEX, and this will reduce the pool of new pharmacists looking for jobs. With the $200K+ debt on their backs, they will break out and complain about the profession being "cruel" and discourage pre-pharmacy students from applying to pharmacy school and eventually change their pre-thing to pre-medicine or pre-dental or pre-vet, etc. In addition, those (w/o a bachelor degree), who passed the NAPLEX, would probably be "less smart" or "less dedicated" to compete with other new pharmacy graduates who got a bachelor degree for new jobs. This would further help to ease the pressure and to "mitigate" the "saturation" problem Just saying

You’re digressing too much here, but I will say that I see a lot of students accepted this cycle with no bachelor’s, low PCAT, and low GPA from community college. And you guessed it, they all got into new schools. Frankly, I’m not surprised due to the lack of standards that we’re having… Now, mind you, I have nothing but good things to say about students who don’t have bachelor’s, but scored competitively on the PCAT with competitive GPA and EC. It’s those with abysmal stats all-around with no bachelor’s that I’m concerned about. And so I think adding the bachelor’s requirement along with tightening the standards would help.

You want to solve the problem of pharmacy job being "saturated"? You looked at the wrong things bro. Read what Dwight or Axelz165 said above. They already said it very well!

You do realize that Dwight was half joking on the stuff he said, right? He provided no solution whatsoever and put up great stats (or lack their of) for the actual pro basketball player. Not to mention that his “solutions” are all quixotic fantasies about being a ball player or finding “the next big thing in pharmacy.” Let’s get real now…

Our only disagreement like I’ve said before is on whether or not requiring a bachelor’s will help mitigate the saturation issue, so please try to stay on topic and focus the discussion on a finding a possible solution rather than mixing it up with fantasies.

Geez, I do not know why I am typing this super long reply while I have an interview with a "tier-1" pharmacy school early in the morning. Maybe practicing some writing and reasoning?? (lol) Wish me luck !!

Well, good luck! With or without a bachelor’s! 🙂

 

[pharmerjohn]

Just don't go into pharmacy if you don't think you can get a job. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

That statement assumes that finding a jobs is the only reason to go into pharmacy. That's a fallacy! There are people who are genuinely interested in the profession and have many reasons to pursue the profession besides job security. However, it's definitely important that there are jobs for those who do graduate and choose to pursue the profession. So, as Garnett would say, "Get that $h%t outta here!"

 

[pharmerjohn]

So the "everyone who applies to a Pharm.D program needs a Bachelor's degree" argument has one tiny/glaring flaw depending on who you ask. Your proposal would require a BS/BA for each applicant but there is no way to standardize the degree itself. For example: the BA in Art History is not equivalent to the BS in Biochemistry and yet both of those degrees would satisfy the proposed matriculation requirement. Another example: the BS in Biology from UWashington is not equivalent to the BS in Biology from Strayer online. What is your solution to those problems? I'm of the opinion that the vast number of available programs and subsequent new grad numbers coupled with the older generation's later retirement age is the number one culprit for the rising unemployment statistics in pharmacy right now. Also, we seem to have a growing number of Pharm.D students who are not fulfilling their intern hours or working during the standard school year. Why is that happening? Are students being encouraged to sit around and study constantly instead of networking and making long-term connections in their chosen career field? I like the idea of a baseline PCAT score requirement because it would force the Art History major and the Biochemistry major to take responsibility for the same level of understanding in the subsections rather than allowing less stringent academic majors to exhibit a stellar GPA and a sub-par PCAT and still be selected for interviews/acceptance.

All valid points. However, those issues are addressed with the "roundedness" of the applicants. In other words, along with the requirement for a bachelor's, students should have good pre-req GPA, competitive PCAT, and good EC. Those things will help make up for the variations in different degrees at different institutions.

 

[dwighthoward]

Just because I didn't provide a solution doesn't make my original statements wrong. Requiring a Bachelor's degree won't do anything. As they say, a Bachelor's degree is the new High School Diploma.

And no, the Bachelor's degree does not give an MD prestige. Physicians have always been respected professionals in our society

 

[pharmerjohn]

Just because I didn't provide a solution doesn't make my original statements wrong. Requiring a Bachelor's degree won't do anything. As they say, a Bachelor's degree is the new High School Diploma.

And no, the Bachelor's degree does not give an MD prestige. Physicians have always been respected professionals in our society

I never said your original statements are wrong, I simply said you were mostly joking and that you didn't provide a solution - both are true. What do you mean it won't do anything? Would you prefer someone with average GPA at a community college and average PCAT with no bachelor's to get accepted, or would you prefer someone with average GPA and a bachelor's from a university with the same PCAT to get accepted? I hope it's the latter.

No, it doesn't, but it adds to the prestige because it adds a level of difficulty to the admission process - medical school admissions is not a joke for most people. Along with a bachelor's, most medical students have competitive GPA from a university while obtaining their bachelor's, competitive MCAT scores, and good EC. I'm proposing the same idea for pharmacy...

 

[DruggieDoRight]

I never said your original statements are wrong, I simply said you were mostly joking and that you didn't provide a solution - both are true. What do you mean it won't do anything? Would you prefer someone with average GPA at a community college and average PCAT with no bachelor's to get accepted, or would you prefer someone with average GPA and a bachelor's from a university with the same PCAT to get accepted? I hope it's the latter.

No, it doesn't, but it adds to the prestige because it adds a level of difficulty to the admission process - medical school admissions is not a joke for most people. Along with a bachelor's, most medical students have competitive GPA from a university while obtaining their bachelor's, competitive MCAT scores, and good EC. I'm proposing the same idea for pharmacy...

I agree.

At the very least a degree shows that you were able to commit to something for four years, whether it be biochemistry or underwater basket weaving. Maybe it should be different depending on age. One of the reasons for these prerequisites and requirements is to generate a type of student that is prepared for the rigors of pharmacy school. The argument that many schools have different scales of GPA also should factor into the admissions process because some schools, even pharmacy schools can end up not giving you the education that you want, and that's why many universities try to maintain there reputations.