Transferring to a lesser known school?

[angybaby]

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Hi! I am a freshmen at University of Minnesota, and I am thinking of transferring out. I just can't stand having classes with upwards of 400 kids in it, and turn out I don't like living in the city. *huh*

I am thinking of transferring to a much less well known school (not that U of M is way up on the list, but it's decent), University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire. I'm just concerned that transferring from a "better" school to a "worse" school will look bad when I apply for pharm school.

So, how much does attending a well known school count for you? I tried to use the search function, so sorry if this is a common question. I just really don't want to shoot myself in the foot. It isn't as if I couldn't stand staying here, I would just prefer to go to a smaller campus outside of the city. I really can't afford any private schools, and UW-EC seems to be the best choice right now. Any thoughts?

 

[fenixtnlfan]

I would say make the switch. If you are unhappy, you are more likely to do poorly in school. Doing well in school and doing ECs are more important than where you went.

 

[nerv12345]

probably the last factor they'll take into account is which school you went to.

earn good grades, good EC, good pcat, good knowledge/experience of pharmacy and you'll be fine

 

[Rumplestiltazepam]

Your coursework, personality, writing skills and work/volunteer experience will count for a lot more than which one of those schools you attend. If the class sizes have a negative impact on your coursework and you are unhappy with the location then making the switch sounds like a good decision.

 

[1908PharmD]

i would say go to a school that has the PharmD program already. so when its time to apply to pharmacy school, you will already be familiar with the students, the faculty, and the committee. You will have already established yourself (perse) on the campus by being involved in the prepharmacy club, apha, honors, etc. does the school you are trying to go to have a PHarmD program?

 

[Rumplestiltazepam]

i would say go to a school that has the PharmD program already. so when its time to apply to pharmacy school, you will already be familiar with the students, the faculty, and the committee. You will have already established yourself (perse) on the campus by being involved in the prepharmacy club, apha, honors, etc. does the school you are trying to go to have a PHarmD program?

University of Minnesota does have a Pharmacy program. It is nice to establish yourself but when classes are made up of 400 students and massive numbers of pharmacy students that is hard to do, doable though. Other schools will have prepharmacy clubs, or hell you could start one... Establishing yourself at one school may help you a little but just at that ONE school, if you are planning on applying to many schools then it would be a better idea to switch schools, be happy and have a better chance at high scores in your courses. High scores and a positive attitude will help you at all schools you apply to where being a established will only help you at that one school and may not even help you that much if your grades suffered because you stayed it was not a good learning environment for you.

 

[DavisAggie]

Hey
Just a word of advice, as a freshman, most of my classes were 400+ students. Most GE classes have this amount of students but as people begin to choose majors, they class number severely declines.
For example, in my general chemistry classes, as a freshman, there was like around 400 ppl in my class. Now that I am a fourth year genetics major, I have about 120 ppl in my classes. Still a big load but going to office hours and getting to know the professor and TAs is really helpful to my grades.

Just some input!

 

[omnione]

One of my P1 classmates is a Wisconsin-Eau Claire alumni, so its clear that a "lesser-known school" is detrimental to pharmacy school applications. In fact, a lot of people in my class and in my interview sessions were from unknown schools. I wouldn't worry about it as school status isn't as big of an issue as medical schools (even there, it's just used to evaluate your GPA).

 

[arkgal]

I think school and class size can make a big difference. The first time I went to school I had 200 people in my organic chemisry class. At my current school I have 20, including myself. I can tell a big difference. There is a lot of more ineractin between the class and the professor, the learning envrionment is more intimate and a lot more laid back too. Also going to my professor outside of class is not a problem. I don't have a lab TA. My professor teachers the lab. It's that way in all of my science classes. I say small schools are great.

 

[117296]

Hi! I am a freshmen at University of Minnesota, and I am thinking of transferring out. I just can't stand having classes with upwards of 400 kids in it, and turn out I don't like living in the city. *huh*

I am thinking of transferring to a much less well known school (not that U of M is way up on the list, but it's decent), University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire. I'm just concerned that transferring from a "better" school to a "worse" school will look bad when I apply for pharm school.

So, how much does attending a well known school count for you? I tried to use the search function, so sorry if this is a common question. I just really don't want to shoot myself in the foot. It isn't as if I couldn't stand staying here, I would just prefer to go to a smaller campus outside of the city. I really can't afford any private schools, and UW-EC seems to be the best choice right now. Any thoughts?

I'm surprised your new school will let you transfer after your first term..I could be wrong, but it thought you had to have the equivalent of 24 sem/36 q credits before transferring. 😕

 

[gtpederson]

I'm surprised your new school will let you transfer after your first term..I could be wrong, but it thought you had to have the equivalent of 24 sem/36 q credits before transferring. 😕

That sounds illegal, or else just stupid on the university's part. It would be like Kmart refusing to let you buy anything unless your total purchase was more than $50.