Taking on too much

[pharmk03]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hello-
I'm a career changer going from Marketing to Pharmacy! So needless to say, I have a lot of work to do in the pre-req department. I'm desperately trying to get in pharmacy school Fall 2007, so I'm cramming in as many hours of science and math as I can. I have this summer all lined up and I'm currently signing up for classes for the fall. As it is worked out in my head right now, I'll be taking Organic Chem 1 and lab, Anatomy/physiol and lab, microbiology and lab, and pre calc/trig. I'm also going to try to fit in some volunteer hours and possibly some work hours at a pharmacy.

That would leave Organic II and lab, Calculus, physic and lab, and cell biology to take in the spring 07 semester.

Am I crazy? I'm hoping that my dedication and extreme hard work will show admissions councils that I'm very serious about this. But I also don't want to bomb everything because I'm taking on too much. Your opinions are greatly appreciated!
Thanks

 

[sarahjth]

Not at all crazy.. In fact, I tend to do that too. But you got to remember that good grades are also a big priority. So is rushing to school or good grades better? I am not saying that if you take a ton of science/math classes you are going to get bad grades but I am saying, you might be stressed out. Also, you posted this concern.. so it is already a concern in your eyes. Good luck! If I were you, I might drop a class.

 

[sakigt]

Oh my! It looks like we're both crazy!! I'll be graduating with a degree in Marketing in a week!

My plan is to work 2 years while taking prereqs (since I only have Bio I under my belt) them dive right in if I like it. Where are you from?

 

[n0estoy]

It all depends on where you're taking those prereqs. At my school, i'd think twice before fitting 3 science courses into 1 semester. But that's not the case at all schools.

 

[dana92085]

i dont know if you need to stay in a certain area but maybe apply to a place that will let you do some classes the summer before pharmacy school. i am going to UT-Austin next fall and still have to finish up physics (i dont even know if that is spelled right--how am i going to pass the class! 😀 )!

 

[pAwSN]

Pretty difficult schedule, but not impossible. If you do not have a good chemistry, biology, and math background, it may be very difficult. you would have to work twice as hard because there are things in those classes that you may need to review in the classes i mentioned to do well in the classes you listed. also depends on the professors and where you will be taking these classes. Some from personal experience and some from other people, but some schools are harder and some professors are harder than others. you may also want to ask people who have taken the classes at the school you will be attending to get an idea of the level of difficulty of that class there. difficult but not impossible to get a high GPA with that class load.

 

[dgroulx]

I took anywhere from 19 to 21 credit hours each semester, all sciences with labs at a 4 year university. I had my AA, so I crammed all the BS Biology courses into 2 years, plus took A & P with lab at a community college on nights and weekends. It was doable, but don't plan on working a lot of hours.

 

[csa78]

make sure you can handle the courseload ... if you rush through it and get mediocre grades, it won't be a good idea ... it would be better to get straight A's by spreading it out a little .... not too much though

 

[shaun009]

At my school, the teachers fit in so much information in one semester that it's difficult with two science classes. I go to Glendale Community College in Phoenix, Arizona and we have a very high reputation amongst community colleges.. I feel as though, because of this, the teachers take it upon themselves to teach a lot! I have never met anyone that takes 3 science classes, especially with labs that 1. has done well by getting A's 2. finished the semester taking all three classes


Choice is yours, obviously, but I agree that it's better to plan and pace to do well in the end.

 

[pAwSN]

P.S. Anatomy/physiology: rewrite notes and read ahead if possible
Ochem: do as many practice problems as possible, rewrite reactions over and over again get a white board it may help
Microbiology: rewrite notes and read ahead
Precalc trig: do Hw problems and few days before the test redo some of those problems without looking at solution manual.
may or may not help you but this what i did in these classes
i got A micro, ochem B, physio A, calculus B not taken together but taken with several other science courses
good luck

 

[twester]

To each his own. Personally, I wouldn't take a schedule like that. I've come close a couple of times, but I never took more than 16 hours in a semester and I tried to limit myself to no more than 3 science/math classes in a semester. I also worked 20-30 hours a week and kind of wanted to have at least 1/3 of a regular life. I also went to summer school every year (about 8-10 hours) for two years. That helped lighten the load a little.

It's doable, just be careful not to burn out.

 

[pharmk03]

Thanks for all the advice. Does it look bad to drop a class once it's started? In order to get through in time, I pretty much feel like I need to keep the schedule as is...but it would be nice to know I can drop one if needed. I'm having to split the two schools where I'll be taking these classes. I graduated from UNC in Chapel Hill, so I'd like to continue to take classes here. But they limit continuing ed students to only 8 hours worth of classes. So I'll be forced to take the other two classes at North Carolina State University. They are only about 20 minutes away from each other so it's not that bad. I know UNC's classes will be pretty tough, and not too sure about NCSU's (but I have known many people to come through there who took these classes). I guess all I can do is try it out, and if it looks to be too much for me to handle, then I'll cut back. I just really need to basis for the PCAT as well (another motivator to give it my all at least in the fall).
Thanks again everyone!

 

[ethyl]

I would strongly suggest a lighter courseload that first semester. Switching straight from Marketing to those science courses might be too drastic... give yourself a semester to adjust to the sciences. Perhaps split things up into summer courses this summer, fall 2006, spring 2007 and summer 2007?

 

[Mongoos150]

I could never do this. UA is tough on their sciences, taking more than two is usually murder here (though I'll be doing it my junior year unfortunately). Depends on your school. If you can handle it, more power to ya.

 

[gatheringhoney]

It can be done! I completed Gen Chem I and II, O Chem I and II lectures, O Chem Lab, Biology, Microbiology, Physics I and II, Anatomy, Economics, Intensive Pre-Calc, and Calculus in three semesters at a Big Ten school. It was a tough year and a half, but I took on the heavy load on recommendation of a pharmacy advisor. She said the adcom would rather see a tough schedule with mediocre grades than top grades spread out over time. That advice served me well as I got in at that school.

On the other hand, another Big Ten pharmacy advisor told me I was a fool to take on that load as her adcom would rather see straight A's. In the end, I didn't get in at that school and was told I shouldn't have pushed through the pre-reqs.

Just make sure you know the expectations of the adcoms where you are applying!

 

[Mongoos150]

Interesting, my advisor has said the exact opposite. AdCom doesn't mind as much whether you take two or four years to complete your prereqs, but if you have poor grades in such, you won't be thought of NEARLY as high. This is why I'm taking 3 years to complete my prereqs as opposed to 2 years.

 

[ndearwater]

Pretty difficult schedule, but not impossible. If you do not have a good chemistry, biology, and math background, it may be very difficult. you would have to work twice as hard because there are things in those classes that you may need to review in the classes i mentioned to do well in the classes you listed. also depends on the professors and where you will be taking these classes. Some from personal experience and some from other people, but some schools are harder and some professors are harder than others. you may also want to ask people who have taken the classes at the school you will be attending to get an idea of the level of difficulty of that class there. difficult but not impossible to get a high GPA with that class load.

The professors have A LOT to do with it. Go to ratemyprofessor.com....
I refuse to register for classes until I have consulted this magic website. hahah
It helps to know what you're getting into.
Yes, it looks bad to drop classes and I was even questioned about that at an interview. I agree with the others who have posted; take summer classes and use that first semester to get your feet wet. Good luck!

 

[remotefly]

Hello-
I'm a career changer going from Marketing to Pharmacy! So needless to say, I have a lot of work to do in the pre-req department. I'm desperately trying to get in pharmacy school Fall 2007, so I'm cramming in as many hours of science and math as I can. I have this summer all lined up and I'm currently signing up for classes for the fall. As it is worked out in my head right now, I'll be taking Organic Chem 1 and lab, Anatomy/physiol and lab, microbiology and lab, and pre calc/trig. I'm also going to try to fit in some volunteer hours and possibly some work hours at a pharmacy.

That would leave Organic II and lab, Calculus, physic and lab, and cell biology to take in the spring 07 semester.

Am I crazy? I'm hoping that my dedication and extreme hard work will show admissions councils that I'm very serious about this. But I also don't want to bomb everything because I'm taking on too much. Your opinions are greatly appreciated!
Thanks

Your not crazy. I'm going from comp-sci to pharmacy. I am working full time as a manager position in IT, taking 3- 4 hours of class (i'm taking 6 hours this semester), volunteer, and have to make-up the missed hours at my full-time job (my company is flexible). I did this for about a year. Now I am doing everything except for the volunteer thing because there are only so many hours in a day. True it is tiring, and at times I just wanted to scream because my roommates were just chillin while I was stuck studying for an exam. But its okay, I actually did well in my classes! woohoo! I was surprised at how much I could handle.
All of the hard work has finally paid off, i'm going to pharm school this fall baby!!

So just concentrate and don't lose focus. YOU CAN DO IT!...GOOD LUCK!

 

[gimpsd]

My last year in college I was averaging 20+ units a quarter of Upper division science classes, getting certified in EMT Basic, participating in Air Force ROTC, and volunteering on a regular basis with my community service club on campus...oh...and I had a job as a police escort from 6pm to 2am 4 days a week. I averaged a 3.67 for those three quarters. Keep in mind that prior to this I had never gotten anything higher than a 3.2 and my overall gpa was 2.8. Is it possible to overload yourself and do well? YES....Do you have any social life? NO. Your time is not your own and every spare moment is spent in the library studying. GOOD LUCK.....

 

[hotties]

My last year in college I was averaging 20+ units a quarter of Upper division science classes, getting certified in EMT Basic, participating in Air Force ROTC, and volunteering on a regular basis with my community service club on campus...oh...and I had a job as a police escort from 6pm to 2am 4 days a week. I averaged a 3.67 for those three quarters. Keep in mind that prior to this I had never gotten anything higher than a 3.2 and my overall gpa was 2.8. Is it possible to overload yourself and do well? YES....Do you have any social life? NO. Your time is not your own and every spare moment is spent in the library studying. GOOD LUCK.....

You are super!!! 👍 👍 👍 I can't never ever do that.