UNC vs UMich College of Pharmacy

[Luna098765]

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I was recently accepted to UNC and UMich College of Pharmacy.
Both of them are OOS, so tuition difference is not much.

I was first thinking that UNC is better option, since UNC is listed as 2nd in the national ranking.
They recently received 100million dollar donation to pharmacy school and built a building that is state of art. They also changed their curriculum this year so then everyone has to work during summer (There is separate tuition for summer, so I do not know whether it is good or bad).

UM college of pharmacy is currently listed as 7th in the U.S. news ranking.
But I live in Midwest, and UM has a bigger name around here. Meaning, it might be helpful for me when I try to find a job. Plus, UM campus is bigger, so there will be more recruiters visiting campus. if I were to apply for anything other than community pharmacy, it might be more helpful.

If I am looking at the pharmacy school ONLY I think it is right for me to go to UNC. UNC will probably make me a better pharmacist (They will force me to work even during Summer). But the reason why I am going to school is to get a job after I graduate.. I do not know what to do.. Does anyone have any opinion?

 

[SpartanLaser]

Rankings don't matter for pharmacy school. I went to Umich in undergrad and it is a great community! Go blue

 

[felixpharmd]

UNC has very nice weather! Really good schook

 

[dblock05]

Both are good schools, but you are gonna have some crazy loans....hopefully your parents are helping or something.

A person graduating with a Pharm.D from a random school is the same thing as graduating from UNC/Michigan.

 

[68quebec]

if every other aspects are similar, then I would consider location (or weather). UNC has much better location than UM. Cost of living may or may not be similar. I know living at Chapel Hill is not that much expensive. (or you may live at Carrboro, Durham, Cary, etc)

 

[Luna098765]

The reason why I want to go to a good school is because of a job issue. The job market for pharmacist is pretty saturated. I am hoping that better school name will get me an access to a more job opportunities.

In that aspect, which school should I chose?

 

[Ben Tsao]

UNC has the highest rotation match rate, so me being hospital orientated, that was the reason for my decision

 

[CUpharmD2013]

Not sure about NC but Michigan is relatively unsaturated as we still only have 3 pharmacy schools. It also depends on what you want to do after pharmacy school. If you want to work retail, don't bother with either. A PharmD from any institution will get you into retail. If you want to do a residency then look at the residency choices in the particular areas and see which one fits you better. I don't really think the difference between 2 and 7 will be noticed by anyone. Good points made by people about the weather, too. This winter and last winter have both been pretty miserable in Michigan.

 

[xiphoid2010]

Finishing either one would put you ahead of diploma mill grads where you go. When choosing between 2 top tier schools, cost was the big deciding factor to me. I was going to school then go wherever residency/job takes me, not moving there for the rest of my life.

 

[Dred Pirate]

my two cents worth (in order of importance)

1. See what kind of finanical aid is available, even if their sticker price is the same, the package can differ a lot
2. UNC area is VERY saturated - only 2% of UNC grads got jobs in a hospital right out of school (not counting residencies)
3. Chapel Hill is a VERY expensive area to live in (outlying areas not so much)
4. I don't know about the ecconomics in Ann Arbor
5. Rankings don't matter, both schools are very good and you won't have to justify your school compares to the newer diploma mills
6, Consider an in-state school where you live?
7. Weather in NC is far far better, and it is a beautiful area.

 

[Luna098765]

Thanks for the advice!
Currently, I do not know what I want to do after the pharmacy school.
I might become a community pharmacist, but I want to explore my options: fellowship, residency, research, academia, industry, consulting, cosmetic company, QC/QA etc.
That is the reason why I want to go to a "better brand name school" to broaden my job opportunity.

In that aspect, which one do you think it is better school for me?
I know UNC has better pharmacy school.
But I feel like UMich has better alumni connection..

Which one do you think it will help me more in the future?

 

[dbarth101]

Thanks for the advice!
Currently, I do not know what I want to do after the pharmacy school.
I might become a community pharmacist, but I want to explore my options: fellowship, residency, research, academia, industry, consulting, cosmetic company, QC/QA etc.
That is the reason why I want to go to a "better brand name school" to broaden my job opportunity.

In that aspect, which one do you think it is better school for me?
I know UNC has better pharmacy school.
But I feel like UMich has better alumni connection..

Which one do you think it will help me more in the future?

When you get up to the top 30 or so pharmacy schools, you can almost assume they have solid alumni connections so I would not base your decision off of this. For me, I go to Cincinnati, and I hear much more about UNC, as a school for what it's worth. The state of North Carolina always seems a little ahead of the curve when it comes to pharmacy (i.e. Asheville Project, CPP's, etc.). I may be a little biased because one of my favorite teacher-mentors is a North Carolina grad, but I really don't think you can go wrong with either school. No one is going to scoff at you for going to either institution.

I wouldn't necessarily say a school making you work in the summer is a big deal, anyway. I mean... don't you want to work then?

I personally would pick the school that I see myself being able to stay at for 4 years with racking up the least amount of loans!

 

[Dred Pirate]

Thanks for the advice!
Currently, I do not know what I want to do after the pharmacy school.
I might become a community pharmacist, but I want to explore my options: fellowship, residency, research, academia, industry, consulting, cosmetic company, QC/QA etc.
That is the reason why I want to go to a "better brand name school" to broaden my job opportunity.

In that aspect, which one do you think it is better school for me?
I know UNC has better pharmacy school.
But I feel like UMich has better alumni connection..

Which one do you think it will help me more in the future?

sorry, but you do not "know UNC is a better school" You can't. It is a very good school, but there is no way you can say that one school is better than the other. I work with lots of grads from UNC, and also MUSC, VCU, and a variety of others thrown in. I can I say I do not see any one school's grads better than the other.