Hello. Currently im in my last year of high school and I am also taking college credits at a nearby college. So far I have nabbed 36 college transferrable credits. so far I have some general class credits down but not too much pre-pharm courses. My question is, is that if the Pharmacy road takes a rough 8 years to accomplish would I be cutting this time down to 6 years? I am pretty sure I would be able to get my Bachelor's degree in 3 years. Im planning on going to a State college.
Slight edge?
- Thread starter bamabcs
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Yes it's possible, if you're looking to enroll in a 3-year pharmacy pathway that some schools offer. And of course, you're looking at 7 years if you go into a 4 year pharmacy pathway after 3 years of undergrad. Many pharmacy students go to pharmacy school after doing 3 years of undergrad, so it's not a bad option.
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You don't necessarily have to get your B.S. you know. If you have that many college credits done, it shows a lot of initiative to apply to pharmacy school as early as possible in your post-secondary career. Just a thought.
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Yeah you don't have to have a bachelor's to apply, you just need about 60-90 college credits including all of the pre-requisites for the particular schools you are interested in.
BUT... some schools are starting to "require" degrees... basically they don't accept many students without one... this applies to a lot of very competitive, popular schools because there are going to be a lot of applicants with very high GPAs, good PCATs, and bachelors degrees... even some with advanced degrees, or students in grad school. So I think you are doing the right thing and planning for your bachelor's degree just in case.
That said... I graduated high school with 32 credits... but I wanted to stay at my school for 4 years because I had a large scholarship (private school) which was spread out over 4 years so I would bascially be missing out on the rest of it if I left early. If you can graduate in 3 years then by all means go for it though. I think it shows initiative if you can do that... I added two minors to my degree just so I could have extra classes to take over the 4 years so I wouldn't look like I was slacking. If you can squeeze pre-pharmacy requirements in with your degree requirements then it's probably possible. Just remember that some of those 36 credits will probably be electives and not count for your degree or pre-pharmacy. I know a lot of my classes didn't count (for example: human growth and development, trigonometry, biology (I passed the AP exam, but I knew pharmacy schools probably would want me to take the actual class in college).
BUT... some schools are starting to "require" degrees... basically they don't accept many students without one... this applies to a lot of very competitive, popular schools because there are going to be a lot of applicants with very high GPAs, good PCATs, and bachelors degrees... even some with advanced degrees, or students in grad school. So I think you are doing the right thing and planning for your bachelor's degree just in case.
That said... I graduated high school with 32 credits... but I wanted to stay at my school for 4 years because I had a large scholarship (private school) which was spread out over 4 years so I would bascially be missing out on the rest of it if I left early. If you can graduate in 3 years then by all means go for it though. I think it shows initiative if you can do that... I added two minors to my degree just so I could have extra classes to take over the 4 years so I wouldn't look like I was slacking. If you can squeeze pre-pharmacy requirements in with your degree requirements then it's probably possible. Just remember that some of those 36 credits will probably be electives and not count for your degree or pre-pharmacy. I know a lot of my classes didn't count (for example: human growth and development, trigonometry, biology (I passed the AP exam, but I knew pharmacy schools probably would want me to take the actual class in college).
My university recommends/requires a three pre-pharmacy track (so many just get a BS), but I came in with 27 credits, so I was able to finish the pre-pharmacy coursework in two years. I applied this year, and I have already been accepted. If you want to get a BS, go for it, personal decision. But you can easily cut this all down by a lot of years (and save some money) by just completing your pre-pharmacy coursework and applying. If you don't get in at first, then go ahead and go for a degree. At least that's what my plan was.
You've put yourself in a great position, so good job.
You've put yourself in a great position, so good job.
